Virginia Electrical Licensing Law

Virginia Code · 569 sections

The following is the full text of Virginia’s electrical licensing law statutes as published in the Virginia Code. For the official version, see the Virginia Legislature.

Va. Code § 1-208.1

§ 1-208.1. Carbon-free energy; clean energy.A. "Carbon-free energy" or "clean energy" includes electric energy generated from a source that does not emit carbon dioxide into the atmosphere during the process of generating the electric energy, including electric energy generated by the conversion of sunlight, wind, falling water, wave motion, tides, geothermal, fusion energy, or nuclear energy. B. As used in this section, "fusion energy" means the energy generated through the process of fusing together atomic nuclei. 2020, c. 811; 2025, cc. 140, 154.

Va. Code § 1-219.1

§ 1-219.1. Limitations on eminent domain.A. The right to private property being a fundamental right, the General Assembly shall not pass any law whereby private property shall be taken or damaged for public uses without just compensation. The term "public uses" mentioned in Article I, Section 11 of the Constitution of Virginia is hereby defined as to embrace only the acquisition of property where: (i) the property is taken for the possession, ownership, occupation, and enjoyment of property by the public or a public corporation; (ii) the property is taken for construction, maintenance, or operation of public facilities by public corporations or by private entities provided that there is a written agreement with a public corporation providing for use of the facility by the public; (iii) the property is taken for the creation or functioning of any public service corporation, public service company, or railroad; (iv) the property is taken for the provision of any authorized utility service by a government utility corporation; (v) the property is taken for the elimination of blight provided that the property itself is a blighted property; or (vi) the property taken is in a redevelopment or conservation area and is abandoned or the acquisition is needed to clear title where one of the owners agrees to such acquisition or the acquisition is by agreement of all the owners. B. For purposes of this section: "Blighted property" means any property that endangers the public health or safety in its condition at the time of the filing of the petition for condemnation and is (i) a public nuisance or (ii) an individual commercial, industrial, or residential structure or improvement that is beyond repair or unfit for human occupancy or use. "Government utility corporation" means any county or municipality, or entity or agency thereof, which provides or operates one or more of the following authorized utility services: gas, pipeline, electric light, heat, power, water supply, sewer, telephone, or telegraph. "Public corporation" means the Commonwealth of Virginia or any political subdivision thereof or any incorporated municipality therein or any public agency of the Commonwealth or of any political subdivision thereof or of any municipality therein. "Public facilities" means (i) airports, landing fields, and air navigation facilities; (ii) educational facilities; (iii) flood control, bank and shore protection, watershed protection, and dams; (iv) hospital facilities; (v) judicial and court facilities; (vi) correctional facilities, including jails and penitentiaries; (vii) library facilities; (viii) military installations; (ix) parks so designated by the Commonwealth or by the locality in its comprehensive plan; (x) properties of historical significance so designated by the Commonwealth; (xi) law enforcement, fire, emergency medical, and rescue facilities; (xii) sanitary sewer, water or stormwater facilities; (xiii) transportation facilities including highways, roads, streets, and bridges, traffic signals, related easements and rights-of-way, mass transit, ports, and any components of federal, state, or local transportation facilities; (xiv) waste management facilities for hazardous, radioactive, or other waste; (xv) office facilities occupied by a public corporation; and (xvi) such other facilities that are necessary to the construction, maintenance, or operation of a public facility as listed in clauses (i) through (xv) and directly related thereto. C. No more private property may be taken than that which is necessary to achieve the stated public use. D. Except where property is taken (i) for the creation or functioning of a public service corporation, public service company, or railroad; (ii) for the provision of any authorized utility service by a government utility corporation; or (iii) for sanitary sewer, water or stormwater facilities, or transportation facilities, including highways, roads, streets, and bridges, traffic signals, related easements and rights-of-way, mass transit, ports, and any components of federal, state, or local transportation facilities, by a public corporation, property can only be taken where: (a) the public interest dominates the private gain and (b) the primary purpose is not private financial gain, private benefit, an increase in tax base or tax revenues, an increase in employment, or economic development. E. During condemnation proceedings, the property owner may challenge whether the taking or damaging is for a public use, the stated public use is a pretext for an unauthorized use, or the taking or damaging of property is a violation of subsection D. Nothing in this section shall be construed as abrogating any defenses or rights otherwise available to the property owner independently of this section. F. Subject to the provisions of subsection D, the limitations contained in this section shall not abrogate any other provision of law that authorizes a condemnor to dispose of property taken for a public use as surplus property, as otherwise provided by law. G. If the acquisition of only part of a property would leave its owner with an uneconomic remnant, the condemnor shall offer to acquire the entire property for its fair market value as otherwise provided by law, but the condemnor shall not acquire an uneconomic remnant if the owner objects and desires to maintain ownership of the excess property. H. The provisions of this section shall control to the extent there are any inconsistencies between this section and any other general or special law; otherwise, nothing herein shall be construed as abrogating the power of eminent domain delegated independently of this section. I. The provisions of this section shall not apply to the forfeiture of property under Chapters 22.1 (§ 19.2-386.1 et seq.) and 22.2 (§ 19.2-386.15 et seq.) of Title 19.2. J. The provisions of this section shall not apply to real property that is subject to a certificate of take or a certificate of deposit recorded prior to July 1, 2007, in the circuit court clerk's office for the circuit where the real property is located or real property that is the subject of a petition for condemnation filed prior to July 1, 2007. K. For the purposes of any taking of private property in accordance with Article I, Section 11 of the Constitution of Virginia, a government utility corporation shall be considered to be acting as a public service corporation or public service company where the property is taken for the provision of an authorized utility service only; provided, however, that nothing in this subsection shall modify or affect the jurisdiction of the State Corporation Commission. 2007, cc. 882, 901, 926; 2012, cc. 283, 626, 756.

Va. Code § 1-222.1

§ 1-222.1. Manufacturer."Manufacturer" shall not include any farm or aggregation of farms that owns and operates facilities within the Commonwealth for the generation of electric energy from waste-to-energy technology. As used in this definition, (i) "farm" means any person that obtains at least 51 percent of its annual gross income from agricultural operations and produces the agricultural waste used as feedstock for the waste-to-energy technology, (ii) "agricultural waste" means biomass waste materials capable of decomposition that are produced from the raising of plants and animals during agricultural operations, including animal manures, bedding, plant stalks, hulls, and vegetable matter, and (iii) "waste-to-energy technology" means any technology, including but not limited to a methane digester, that converts agricultural waste into gas, steam, or heat that is used to generate electricity on-site. 2009, c. 746.

Va. Code § 10.1-1127.1

§ 10.1-1127.1. Tree conservation ordinance; civil penalties.A. The governing body of any county, city or town may adopt a tree conservation ordinance regulating the preservation and removal of heritage, specimen, memorial and street trees, as defined under subsection B of this section, when such preservation and removal are not commercial silvicultural or horticultural activities, including but not limited to planting, managing, or harvesting forest or tree crops. Such ordinance shall consider planned land use by the property owner, may include reasonable fees for the administration and enforcement of the ordinance and may provide for the appointment by the local governing body of an administrator of the ordinance. B. Any ordinance enacted pursuant to this authority may contain reasonable provisions for the preservation and removal of heritage, specimen, memorial and street trees. For the purpose of this section the following definitions shall apply: "Arborist" or "urban forester" means a person trained in arboriculture, forestry, landscape architecture, horticulture, or related fields and experienced in the conservation and preservation of native and ornamental trees. "Heritage tree" means any tree that has been individually designated by the local governing body to have notable historic or cultural interest. "Memorial tree" means any tree that has been individually designated by the local governing body to be a special commemorating memorial. "Specimen tree" means any tree that has been individually designated by the local governing body to be notable by virtue of its outstanding size and quality for its particular species. "Street tree" means any tree that has been individually designated by the local governing body and which grows in the street right-of-way or on private property as authorized by the owner and placed or planted there by the local government. The designation of such trees shall be by an arborist or urban forester and shall be made by ordinance. The individual property owner of such trees shall be notified prior to the hearing on the adoption of such ordinance by certified mail. C. The provisions of a tree conservation ordinance enacted pursuant to this section shall not apply: (i) to work conducted on federal or state property; (ii) to emergency work to protect life, limb or property; (iii) to routine installation, maintenance and repair of cable and wires used to provide cable television, electric, gas or telephone service; (iv) to activities with minor effects on trees, including but not limited to, home gardening and landscaping of individual homes; and (v) commercial silvicultural or horticultural activities, including but not limited to planting, managing, or harvesting forest or tree crops. D. In the event that the application of any ordinance regulating the removal of heritage, specimen, memorial or street trees results in any taking of private property for a public purpose or use, the governing body shall compensate by fee or other consideration the property owner for such taking and the ordinance shall so state thereby notifying the owner of his right to seek such fee or other compensation. The provisions of Chapter 2 (§ 25.1-200 et seq.) of Title 25.1 shall apply to the taking of private property for a public purpose pursuant to such local ordinance. E. Violations of such local ordinance shall be punishable by civil penalties not to exceed $2,500 for each violation. F. Nothing in this section shall be construed to be in derogation of the authority granted to any county, city or town by the provision of any charter or other provision of law. 1989, c. 678; 2003, c. 940.

Va. Code § 10.1-1197.5

§ 10.1-1197.5. (Effective July 1, 2026) Definitions.As used in this article: "Energy storage facility" means energy storage equipment or technology that is capable of absorbing energy, storing such energy for a period of time, and redelivering energy after it has been stored. "Interconnection facilities" means generation tie lines, collector lines, substations, switching stations, and any other component required to connect an electrical generation facility with the electrical grid. "Small renewable energy project" means (i) an electrical generation facility with a rated capacity not exceeding 150 megawatts that generates electricity only from sunlight or wind and its dedicated associated interconnection facilities; (ii) an electrical generation facility with a rated capacity not exceeding 100 megawatts that generates electricity only from falling water, wave motion, tides, or geothermal power and its dedicated associated interconnection facilities; (iii) an electrical generation facility with a rated capacity not exceeding 20 megawatts that generates electricity only from biomass, energy from waste, or municipal solid waste and its dedicated associated interconnection facilities; (iv) an energy storage facility that uses electrochemical cells to convert chemical energy with a rated capacity not exceeding 150 megawatts and its dedicated associated interconnection facilities; or (v) a hybrid project composed of an electrical generation facility that meets the parameters established in clause (i), (ii), or (iii) and an energy storage facility that meets the parameters established in clause (iv). 2009, cc. 808, 854; 2017, c. 368; 2021, Sp. Sess. I, c. 419; 2025, c. 710. Article 4. Small Business Environmental Compliance Assistance Fund.

Va. Code § 10.1-1197.6

§ 10.1-1197.6. Permit by rule for small renewable energy projects.A. Notwithstanding the provisions of § 10.1-1186.2:1, the Department shall develop, by regulations to be effective as soon as practicable, but not later than July 1, 2012, a permit by rule or permits by rule if it is determined by the Department that one or more such permits by rule are necessary for the construction and operation of small renewable energy projects, including such conditions and standards necessary to protect the Commonwealth's natural resources. If the Department determines that more than a single permit by rule is necessary, the Department initially shall develop the permit by rule for wind energy, which shall be effective as soon as practicable, but not later than January 1, 2011. Subsequent permits by rule regulations shall be effective as soon as practicable. B. The conditions for issuance of the permit by rule for small renewable energy projects shall include: 1. A notice of intent provided by the applicant, to be published in the Virginia Register, that a person intends to submit the necessary documentation for a permit by rule for a small renewable energy project; 2. A certification by the governing body of the locality or localities wherein the small renewable energy project will be located that the project complies with all applicable land use ordinances; 3. Copies of all interconnection studies undertaken by the regional transmission organization or transmission owner, or both, on behalf of the small renewable energy project; 4. A copy of the final interconnection agreement between the small renewable energy project and the regional transmission organization or transmission owner indicating that the connection of the small renewable energy project will not cause a reliability problem for the system. If the final agreement is not available, the most recent interconnection study shall be sufficient for the purposes of this section. When a final interconnection agreement is complete, it shall be provided to the Department. The Department shall forward a copy of the agreement or study to the State Corporation Commission; 5. A certification signed by a professional engineer licensed in Virginia that the maximum generation capacity of the small renewable energy project by (i) an electrical generation facility that generates electricity only from sunlight or wind as designed does not exceed 150 megawatts; (ii) an electrical generation facility that generates electricity only from falling water, wave motion, tides, or geothermal power as designed does not exceed 100 megawatts; or (iii) an electrical generation facility that generates electricity only from biomass, energy from waste, or municipal solid waste as designed does not exceed 20 megawatts; 6. An analysis of potential environmental impacts of the small renewable energy project's operations on attainment of national ambient air quality standards; 7. Where relevant, an analysis of the beneficial and adverse impacts of the proposed project on natural resources. For wildlife, that analysis shall be based on information on the presence, activity, and migratory behavior of wildlife to be collected at the site for a period of time dictated by the site conditions and biology of the wildlife being studied, not exceeding 12 months. For prime agricultural soils and forest land, that analysis shall be required if a proposed project would disturb more than 10 acres of prime agricultural soils or 50 acres of contiguous forest lands, or if it would disturb forest lands enrolled in a program for forestry preservation pursuant to subdivision 2 of § 58.1-3233; 8. If the Department determines that the information collected pursuant to subdivision 7 indicates that significant adverse impacts to wildlife, historic resources, prime agricultural soils, or forest lands are likely, the submission of a mitigation plan, if a draft plan was not provided by the applicant as part of the initial application, with a 45-day public comment period detailing reasonable actions to be taken by the owner or operator to avoid, minimize, or otherwise mitigate such impacts, and to measure the efficacy of those actions. A project will be deemed to have a significant adverse impact if it would disturb more than 10 acres of prime agricultural soils or 50 acres of contiguous forest lands, or if it would disturb forest lands enrolled in a program for forestry preservation pursuant to subdivision 2 of § 58.1-3233; 9. A certification signed by a professional engineer licensed in Virginia that the small renewable energy project is designed in accordance with all of the standards that are established in the regulations applicable to the permit by rule; 10. An operating plan describing how any standards established in the regulations applicable to the permit by rule will be achieved; 11. A detailed site plan with project location maps that show the location of all components of the small renewable energy project, including any towers. Changes to the site plan that occur after the applicant has submitted an application shall be allowed by the Department without restarting the application process, if the changes were the result of optimizing technical, environmental, and cost considerations, do not materially alter the environmental effects caused by the facility, or do not alter any other environmental permits that the Commonwealth requires the applicant to obtain; 12. A certification signed by the applicant that the small renewable energy project has applied for or obtained all necessary environmental permits; 13. A requirement that the applicant hold a public meeting. The public meeting shall be held in the locality or, if the project is located in more than one locality in a place proximate to the location of the proposed project. Following the public meeting, the applicant shall prepare a report summarizing the issues raised at the meeting, including any written comments received. The report shall be provided to the Department; and 14. A 30-day public review and comment period prior to authorization of the project. C. The Department's regulations shall establish a schedule of fees, to be payable by the owner or operator of the small renewable energy project regulated under this article, which fees shall be assessed for the purpose of funding the costs of administering and enforcing the provisions of this article associated with such operations including, but not limited to, the inspection and monitoring of such projects to ensure compliance with this article. D. The owner or operator of a small renewable energy project regulated under this article shall be assessed a permit fee in accordance with the criteria set forth in the Department's regulations. Such fees shall include an additional amount to cover the Department's costs of inspecting such projects. E. The fees collected pursuant to this article shall be used only for the purposes specified in this article and for funding purposes authorized by this article to abate impairments or impacts on the Commonwealth's natural resources directly caused by small renewable energy projects. F. There is hereby established a special, nonreverting fund in the state treasury to be known as the Small Renewable Energy Project Fee Fund, hereafter referred to as the Fund. Notwithstanding the provisions of § 2.2-1802, all moneys collected pursuant to this § 10.1-1197.6 shall be paid into the state treasury to the credit of the Fund. Any moneys remaining in the Fund shall not revert to the general fund but shall remain in the Fund. Interest earned on such moneys shall remain in the Fund and be credited to it. The Fund shall be exempt from statewide indirect costs charged and collected by the Department of Accounts. G. After the effective date of regulations adopted pursuant to this section, no person shall erect, construct, materially modify or operate a small renewable energy project except in accordance with this article or Title 56 if the small renewable energy project was approved pursuant to Title 56. H. Any small renewable energy project shall be eligible for permit by rule under this section if the project is proposed, developed, constructed, or purchased by a person that is not a utility regulated pursuant to Title 56. I. Any small renewable energy project commencing operations after July 1, 2017, shall be eligible for permits by rule under this section and is exempt from State Corporation Commission environmental review or permitting in accordance with subsection B of § 10.1-1197.8 or other applicable law if the project is proposed, developed, constructed, or purchased by: 1. A public utility if the project's costs are not recovered from Virginia jurisdictional customers under base rates, a fuel factor charge under § 56-249.6, or a rate adjustment clause under subdivision A 6 of § 56-585.1; or 2. A utility aggregation cooperative formed under Article 2 (§ 56-231.38 et seq.) of Chapter 9.1 of Title 56. J. For purposes of this section, "prime agricultural soils" means soils recognized as prime farmland by the U.S. Department of Agriculture, and "forest land" has the same meaning as provided in § 10.1-1178, except that any parcel shall be considered forest lands if it was forested at least two years prior to the Department's receipt of a permit application. 2009, cc. 808, 854; 2017, c. 368; 2022, c. 688.

Va. Code § 10.1-1307.02

§ 10.1-1307.02. Permit for generation of electricity during ISO-declared emergency.A. As used in this section: "Emergency generation source" means a stationary internal combustion engine that operates according to the procedures in the ISO's emergency operations manual during an ISO-declared emergency. "ISO-declared emergency" means a condition that exists when the independent system operator, as defined in § 56-576, notifies electric utilities that an emergency exists or may occur and that complies with the definition of "emergency" adopted by the Board pursuant to subsection B. "Retail customer" has the same meaning ascribed thereto in § 56-576. B. The Board shall adopt a general permit regulation for the use of back-up generation to authorize the construction, installation, reconstruction, modification, and operation of emergency generation sources during ISO-declared emergencies. Such general permit regulation shall include a definition of "emergency" that is compatible with the ISO's emergency operations manual. After adoption of such general permit regulation, any amendments to the Board's regulations necessary to carry out the provisions of this section shall be exempt from Article 2 (§ 2.2-4006 et seq.) of the Administrative Process Act. 2009, cc. 752, 855; 2022, c. 356.

Va. Code § 10.1-1307.3

§ 10.1-1307.3. Executive Director to enforce laws.A. The Executive Director or his duly authorized representative shall have the authority to: 1. Supervise, administer, and enforce the provisions of this chapter and regulations and orders of the Board as are conferred upon him by the Board; 2. Investigate any violations of this chapter and regulations and orders of the Board; 3. Require that air pollution records and reports be made available upon request, and require owners to develop, maintain, and make available such other records and information as are deemed necessary for the proper enforcement of this chapter and regulations and orders of the Board; 4. Upon presenting appropriate credentials to the owner, operator, or agent in charge: a. Enter without delay and at reasonable times any business establishment, construction site, or other area, workplace, or environment in this Commonwealth; and b. Inspect and investigate during regular working hours and at other reasonable times, and within reasonable limits and in a reasonable manner, without prior notice, unless such notice is authorized by the Director or his representative, any such business establishment or place of employment and all pertinent conditions, structures, machines, apparatus, devices, equipment, and materials therein, and question privately any such employer, officer, owner, operator, agent, or employee. If such entry or inspection is refused, prohibited, or otherwise interfered with, the Director shall have the power to seek from a court having equity jurisdiction an order compelling such entry or inspection; and 5. Temporarily suspend the enforcement of any regulation or permit requirement applicable to any part of an electrical generation and transmission system, whether owned or contracted for, when a public electric utility providing power within the Commonwealth so requests and has suffered a force majeure event as defined in subdivision 7 of § 59.1-21.18:2. B. The Executive Director or his duly authorized representative may pursue enforcement action for a violation of opacity requirements or limits based on (i) visual observations conducted pursuant to methods approved by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, (ii) data from certified continuous opacity monitors, or (iii) other methods approved by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. 1990, c. 238; 1995, c. 184; 2007, c. 148.

Va. Code § 10.1-1308

§ 10.1-1308. Regulations.A. The Board, after having studied air pollution in the various areas of the Commonwealth, its causes, prevention, control and abatement, shall have the power to promulgate regulations, including emergency regulations, abating, controlling and prohibiting air pollution throughout or in any part of the Commonwealth in accordance with the provisions of the Administrative Process Act (§ 2.2-4000 et seq.), except that a description of provisions of any proposed regulation which are more restrictive than applicable federal requirements, together with the reason why the more restrictive provisions are needed, shall be provided to the standing committee of each house of the General Assembly to which matters relating to the content of the regulation are most properly referable. No such regulation shall prohibit the burning of leaves from trees by persons on property where they reside if the local governing body of the county, city or town has enacted an otherwise valid ordinance regulating such burning. The regulations shall not promote or encourage any substantial degradation of present air quality in any air basin or region which has an air quality superior to that stipulated in the regulations. Any regulations adopted by the Board to have general effect in part or all of the Commonwealth shall be filed in accordance with the Virginia Register Act (§ 2.2-4100 et seq.). B. Any regulation that prohibits the selling of any consumer product shall not restrict the continued sale of the product by retailers of any existing inventories in stock at the time the regulation is promulgated. C. Any regulation requiring the use of stage 1 vapor recovery equipment at gasoline dispensing facilities may be applicable only in areas that have been designated at any time by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency as nonattainment for the pollutant ozone. For purposes of this section, gasoline dispensing facility means any site where gasoline is dispensed to motor vehicle tanks from storage tanks. D. No regulation of the Board shall require permits for the construction or operation of qualified fumigation facilities, as defined in § 10.1-1308.01. E. Notwithstanding any other provision of law and no earlier than July 1, 2024, the Board shall adopt regulations to reduce, for the period of 2031 to 2050, the carbon dioxide emissions from any electricity generating unit in the Commonwealth, regardless of fuel type, that serves an electricity generator with a nameplate capacity equal to or greater than 25 megawatts that supplies (i) 10 percent or more of its annual net electrical generation to the electric grid or (ii) more than 15 percent of its annual total useful energy to any entity other than the manufacturing facility to which the generating source is interconnected (covered unit). The Board may establish, implement, and manage an auction program to sell allowances to carry out the purposes of such regulations or may in its discretion utilize an existing multistate trading system. The Board may utilize its existing regulations to reduce carbon dioxide emissions from electric power generating facilities; however, the regulations shall provide that no allowances be issued for covered units in 2050 or any year beyond 2050. The Board may establish rules for trading, the use of banked allowances, and other auction or market mechanisms as it may find appropriate to control allowance costs and otherwise carry out the purpose of this subsection. In adopting such regulations, the Board shall consider only the carbon dioxide emissions from the covered units. The Board shall not provide for emission offsetting or netting based on fuel type. Regulations adopted by the Board under this subsection shall be subject to the requirements set out in §§ 2.2-4007.03, 2.2-4007.04, 2.2-4007.05, and 2.2-4026 through 2.2-4030 of the Administrative Process Act (§ 2.2-4000 et seq.) and shall be published in the Virginia Register of Regulations. 1966, c. 497, §§ 10-17.16, 10-17.18; 1968, c. 311; 1969, Ex. Sess., c. 8; 1970, c. 469; 1972, c. 781; 1973, c. 251; 1980, c. 469; 1984, c. 734; 1988, cc. 26, 891; 1993, c. 456; 1997, c. 55; 2005, c. 66; 2006, c. 71; 2011, c. 393; 2020, cc. 1193, 1194.

Va. Code § 10.1-1308.1

§ 10.1-1308.1. Streamlined permitting process for qualified energy generators.A. As used in this section: "Biomass" means organic material that is available on a renewable or recurring basis, including: 1. Forest-related materials, including mill residues, logging residues, forest thinnings, slash, brush, low-commercial value materials or undesirable species, and woody material harvested for the purpose of forest fire fuel reduction or forest health and watershed improvement; 2. Agricultural-related materials, including orchard trees, vineyard, grain or crop residues, including straws, aquatic plants and agricultural processed co-products and waste products, including fats, oils, greases, whey, and lactose; 3. Animal waste, including manure and slaughterhouse and other processing waste; 4. Solid woody waste materials, including landscape trimmings, waste pallets, crates and manufacturing, construction, and demolition wood wastes, excluding pressure-treated, chemically treated or painted wood wastes and wood contaminated with plastic; 5. Crops and trees planted for the purpose of being used to produce energy; 6. Landfill gas, wastewater treatment gas, and biosolids, including organic waste byproducts generated during the wastewater treatment process; and 7. Municipal solid waste, excluding tires and medical and hazardous waste. "Expedited process" means a process that (i) requires the applicant to pay fees to the Commonwealth in connection with the issuance and processing of the permit application that do not exceed $50 and (ii) has a duration, from receipt of a complete permit application until final action by the Department on the application, not longer than 60 days. "Qualified energy generator" means a commercial facility located in the Commonwealth with the capacity annually to generate no more than five megawatts of electricity, or produce the equivalent amount of energy in the form of fuel, steam, or other energy product, that is generated or produced from biomass, and that is sold to an unrelated person or used in a manufacturing process. B. The Department shall develop an expedited process for issuing any permit that it is required to issue for the construction or operation of a qualified energy generator. The development of the expedited permitting process shall be in accordance with subdivision A 8 of § 2.2-4006; however, if the construction or operation of a qualified energy generator is subject to a major new source review program required by § 110(a)(2)(C) of the federal Clean Air Act, this section shall not apply. 2008, c. 258; 2010, c. 65; 2022, c. 356.

Va. Code § 10.1-1322.3

§ 10.1-1322.3. Emissions trading programs; emissions credits; Board to promulgate regulations.In accordance with § 10.1-1308, the Board may promulgate regulations to provide for emissions trading programs to achieve and maintain the National Ambient Air Quality Standards established by the United States Environmental Protection Agency, under the federal Clean Air Act. The regulations shall create an air emissions banking and trading program for the Commonwealth, to the extent not prohibited by federal law, that results in net air emission reductions, creates an economic incentive for reducing air emissions, and allows for continued economic growth through a program of banking and trading credits or allowances. The regulations applicable to the electric power industry shall foster competition in the electric power industry, encourage construction of clean, new generating facilities, provide without charge new source set-asides of five percent for the first five plan years and two percent per year thereafter, and provide an initial allocation period of five years. In promulgating such regulations the Board shall consider, but not be limited to, the inclusion of provisions concerning (i) the definition and use of emissions reduction credits or allowances from mobile and stationary sources, (ii) the role of offsets in emissions trading, (iii) interstate or regional emissions trading, (iv) the mechanisms needed to facilitate emissions trading and banking, and (v) the role of emissions allocations in emissions trading. No regulations shall prohibit the direct trading of air emissions credits or allowances between private industries, provided such trades do not adversely impact air quality in Virginia. 1994, c. 204; 1999, c. 1022; 2001, c. 580; 2004, c. 334.

Va. Code § 10.1-1322.5

§ 10.1-1322.5. Virginia Electric Vehicle Grant Fund and Program; report.A. As used in this section: "Department" means the Department of Environmental Quality. "Electric school bus" means a school bus that is propelled to a significant extent by an electric motor that draws electricity from a battery and is capable of being recharged from an external source of electricity. "Fund" means the Virginia Electric Vehicle Grant Fund established in subsection B. "Fund and Program project" means all or any part of projects pursued for the Fund and Program that are necessary and desirable for (i) reducing air pollution in order to protect the health of Virginians; (ii) increasing the number and use of electric school buses in Virginia; (iii) replacing commercial vehicles or heavy equipment in Virginia that use fossil fuels with electric vehicles or equivalents that reduce air emissions; (iv) ensuring a broad geographic distribution of grant awards; and (v) creating employment opportunities for Virginians. "Program" means the Virginia Electric Vehicle Grant Program established pursuant to subsection C. "School bus" has the same meaning as the term "schoolbus" as defined in 49 U.S.C. § 30125, and its successor amendments. B. There is hereby created in the state treasury a special nonreverting fund to be known as the Virginia Electric Vehicle Grant Fund. The Fund shall be established on the books of the Comptroller. All funds appropriated for such purpose, and any gifts, donations, grants, bequests, and other funds received on its behalf, shall be paid into the state treasury and credited to the Fund. Interest earned on moneys in the Fund shall remain in the Fund and be credited to it. Any moneys remaining in the Fund, including interest thereon, at the end of each fiscal year shall not revert to the general fund but shall remain in the Fund. Moneys in the Fund shall be used solely for the purposes of (i) awarding grants on a competitive basis through the Program established pursuant to subsection C or (ii) implementing and administering the Program. Moneys used for implementing and administering the Fund and Program shall be limited to amounts necessary to implement the Fund and Program. Expenditures and disbursements from the Fund shall be made by the State Treasurer on warrants issued by the Comptroller upon written request signed by the Director of the Department. C. The Virginia Electric Vehicle Grant Program is hereby established for the purpose of awarding grants on a competitive basis to Fund and Program projects pursuant to subsection D from such funds as may be available from the Fund. The Department shall oversee each grant awarded through the Program and ensure thorough annual reporting on each such grant. The Program shall be administered by the Department. In administering the Program, the Department shall consult with other departments and stakeholders described in subsection E to publish guidelines and criteria for grant awards, including guidelines and criteria governing agreements between the Department and grant recipients. D. Grants shall be awarded for Fund and Program projects that meet these criteria, and, to the extent practicable, shall follow this order of priority: (i) Fund and Program projects by public school divisions (a) to cover the costs, in whole or in part, associated with replacing existing diesel school buses that they operate with electric school buses that reduce air emissions; (b) to implement recharging infrastructure or other infrastructure needed to charge or maintain such electric school buses; and (c) to train workers according to labor standards to be developed by the Department to support the maintenance, charging, and operations of such electric school buses and (ii) Fund and Program projects by public, private, or nonprofit entities in Virginia (a) to assist with replacing commercial motor vehicles, heavy equipment, or other machinery owned and operated by the entities that are used in Virginia that rely on diesel fuels with electric vehicles or equivalent equipment that reduce air emissions and (b) to implement recharging infrastructure or other infrastructure needed to charge or maintain such electric vehicles or equivalent equipment. E. The Department shall consult with the Department of Energy, the Department of Transportation, the Department of Education, and other agencies of the Commonwealth, as well as organizations with expertise in the climate and public health, and other interested stakeholders, to adopt necessary policies and procedures for administering the Fund and Program and for determining eligibility, qualifications, terms, conditions, and other requirements for Fund and Program projects. The criteria for prioritizing Fund and Program projects by public school divisions shall take into consideration geographic areas with high asthma rates, lowest measured air quality, and level of air emission from existing school buses. F. Notwithstanding any provision to the contrary, in no event shall any allocation of funds be made to the Fund or the Program unless federal funds or nonstate funds are available to cover the entire cost of such allocation. G. The Department shall submit an annual report to the General Assembly regarding administration of the Fund and Program for the preceding fiscal year. The report shall include the number of grants awarded, the number of vehicles or equipment replaced, the number of jobs supported, and, to the extent available, the general environmental or health impact of the Fund and Program. The report shall be furnished to the Chairmen of the House Committee on Appropriations and the Senate Committee on Finance and Appropriations no later than November 1 of each year. However, no annual report shall be required if the Fund and Program do not receive funding. 2021, Sp. Sess. I, c. 418. Article 2. Small Business Technical and Environmental Compliance Assistance Program.

Va. Code § 10.1-1329

§ 10.1-1329. Definitions.As used in this article, unless the context requires a different meaning: "Allowance" means an authorization to emit a fixed amount of carbon dioxide. "Allowance auction" means an auction in which the Department or its agent offers allowances for sale. "DHCD" means the Department of Housing and Community Development. "DOE" means the Department of Energy. "Energy efficiency program" has the same meaning as provided in § 56-576. "Fund" means the Virginia Community Flood Preparedness Fund created pursuant to § 10.1-603.25. "Housing development" means the same as that term is defined in § 36-141. "Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative" or "RGGI" means the program to implement the memorandum of understanding between signatory states dated December 20, 2005, and as may be amended, and the corresponding model rule that established a regional carbon dioxide electric power sector cap and trade program. "Secretary" means the Secretary of Natural and Historic Resources. 2020, cc. 1219, 1280; 2021, Sp. Sess. I, cc. 401, 532.

Va. Code § 10.1-1331

§ 10.1-1331. Energy conversion or energy tolling agreements.If the Governor seeks to include the Commonwealth as a full participant in RGGI or another carbon trading program with an open auction of allowances, or if the Department implements the final carbon trading regulation as approved by the Board on April 19, 2019, (the Final Regulation) in order to establish a carbon dioxide cap and trade program that limits and reduces the total carbon dioxide emissions released by certain electric generation facilities and that complies with the RGGI model rule, then (i) the definition of the term "life-of-the-unit contractual arrangement" under the Final Regulation shall include any energy conversion or energy tolling agreement that has a primary term of 20 years or more and pursuant to which the purchaser is required to deliver fuel to the CO2 budget source or CO2 budget unit and is entitled to receive all of the nameplate capacity and associated energy generated by such source or unit for the entire contractual period and (ii) any purchaser under an energy conversion or energy tolling agreement shall be responsible for acquiring any CO2 allowances required under the Final Regulation in relation to a CO2 budget source or CO2 budget unit that is subject to such agreement. 2020, cc. 1219, 1280. Article 5. Clean Coal Projects.

Va. Code § 10.1-1332

§ 10.1-1332. Definitions.As used in this article, unless the context requires a different meaning: "Center" means the Virginia Center for Coal and Energy Research. "Clean coal project" means any project that uses any technology, including a technology applied at the precombustion, combustion, or postcombustion stage, at a new or existing facility that (i) will achieve significant reductions in air emissions of sulfur dioxide or oxides of nitrogen associated with the utilization of coal in the generation of electricity, process steam, or industrial products and is not in widespread use or (ii) is otherwise defined as clean coal technology pursuant to 42 U.S.C. § 7651n. 2006, c. 939, § 67-400; 2021, Sp. Sess. I, c. 387.

Va. Code § 10.1-1402.03

§ 10.1-1402.03. Closure of certain coal combustion residuals units.A. For the purposes of this section only: "Carrying cost" means the cost associated with financing expenditures incurred but not yet recovered from the electric utility's customers, and shall be calculated by applying the electric utility's weighted average cost of debt and equity capital, as determined by the State Corporation Commission, with no additional margin or profit, to any unrecovered balances. "CCR landfill" means an area of land or an excavation that receives CCR and is not a surface impoundment, underground injection well, salt dome formation, salt bed formation, underground or surface coal mine, or cave and that is owned or operated by an electric utility. "CCR surface impoundment" means a natural topographic depression, man-made excavation, or diked area that (i) is designed to hold an accumulation of CCR and liquids; (ii) treats, stores, or disposes of CCR; and (iii) is owned or operated by an electric utility. "CCR unit" means any CCR landfill, CCR surface impoundment, lateral expansion of a CCR unit, or combination of two or more such units that is owned by an electric utility. Notwithstanding the provisions of 40 C.F.R. Part 257, "CCR unit" also includes any CCR below the unit boundary of the CCR landfill or CCR surface impoundment. "Coal combustion residuals" or "CCR" means fly ash, bottom ash, boiler slag, and flue gas desulfurization materials generated from burning coal for the purpose of generating electricity by an electric utility. "Encapsulated beneficial use" means a beneficial use of CCR that binds the CCR into a solid matrix and minimizes its mobilization into the surrounding environment. The definitions in this subsection shall be interpreted in a manner consistent with 40 C.F.R. Part 257, except as expressly provided in this section. B. The owner or operator of any CCR unit located within the Chesapeake Bay watershed at the Bremo Power Station, Chesapeake Energy Center, Chesterfield Power Station, and Possum Point Power Station that ceased accepting CCR prior to July 1, 2019, shall complete closure of such unit by (i) removing all of the CCR in accordance with applicable standards established by Virginia Solid Waste Management Regulations (9VAC20-81) and (ii) either (a) beneficially reusing all such CCR in a recycling process for encapsulated beneficial use or (b) disposing of the CCR in a permitted landfill on the property upon which the CCR unit is located, adjacent to the property upon which the CCR unit is located, or off of the property on which the CCR unit is located, that includes, at a minimum, a composite liner and leachate collection system that meets or exceeds the federal Criteria for Municipal Solid Waste Landfills pursuant to 40 C.F.R. Part 258. The owner or operator shall beneficially reuse a total of no less than 6.8 million cubic yards in aggregate of such removed CCR from no fewer than two of the sites listed in this subsection where CCR is located. C. The owner or operator shall complete the closure of any such CCR unit required by this section no later than 15 years after initiating the closure process at that CCR unit. During the closure process, the owner or operator shall, at its expense, offer to provide a connection to a municipal water supply, or where such connection is not feasible provide water testing, for any residence within one-half mile of the CCR unit. D. Where closure pursuant to this section requires that CCR or CCR that has been beneficially reused be removed off-site, the owner or operator shall develop a transportation plan in consultation with any county, city, or town in which the CCR units are located and any county, city, or town within two miles of the CCR units that minimizes the impact of any transport of CCR on adjacent property owners and surrounding communities. The transportation plan shall include (i) alternative transportation options to be utilized, including rail and barge transport, if feasible, in combination with other transportation methods necessary to meet the closure timeframe established in subsection C, and (ii) plans for any transportation by truck, including the frequency of truck travel, the route of truck travel, and measures to control noise, traffic impact, safety, and fugitive dust caused by such truck travel. Once such transportation plan is completed, the owner or operator shall post it on a publicly accessible website. The owner or operator shall provide notice of the availability of the plan to the Department and the chief administrative officers of the consulting localities and shall publish such notice once in a newspaper of general circulation in such locality. E. The owner or operator of any CCR unit subject to the provisions of subsection B shall accept and review proposals to beneficially reuse any CCR that are not subject to an existing contractual agreement to remove CCR pursuant to the provisions of subsection B every four years beginning July 1, 2022. Any entity submitting such a proposal shall provide information from which the owner or operator can determine (i) the amount of CCR that will be utilized for encapsulated beneficial use; (ii) the cost of such beneficial reuse of such CCR; and (iii) the guaranteed timeframe in which the CCR will be utilized. F. In conducting closure activities described in subsection B, the owner or operator shall (i) identify options for utilizing local workers, (ii) consult with the Commonwealth's Chief Workforce Development Officer on opportunities to advance the Commonwealth's workforce goals, including furtherance of apprenticeship and other workforce training programs to develop the local workforce, and (iii) give priority to the hiring of local workers. G. No later than October 1, 2022, and no less frequently than every two years thereafter until closure of all of its CCR units is complete, the owner or operator of any CCR unit subject to the provisions of subsection B shall compile the following two reports: 1. A report describing the owner's or operator's closure plan for all such CCR units; the closure progress to date, both per unit and in total; a detailed accounting of the amounts of CCR that have been and are expected to be beneficially reused from such units, both per unit and in total; a detailed accounting of the amounts of CCR that have been and are expected to be landfilled from such units, both per unit and in total; a detailed accounting of the utilization of transportation options and a transportation plan as required by subsection D; and a discussion of groundwater and surface water monitoring results and any measures taken to address such results as closure is being completed. 2. A report that contains the proposals and analysis for proposals required by subsection E. The owner or operator shall post each such report on a publicly accessible website and shall submit each such report to the Governor, the Secretary of Natural and Historic Resources, the Chairman of the Senate Committee on Agriculture, Conservation and Natural Resources, the Chairman of the House Committee on Agriculture, Chesapeake and Natural Resources, the Chairman of the Senate Committee on Commerce and Labor, the Chairman of the House Committee on Labor and Commerce, and the Director. H. All costs associated with closure of a CCR unit in accordance with this section shall be recoverable through a rate adjustment clause authorized by the State Corporation Commission (the Commission) under the provisions of subdivision A 5 e of § 56-585.1, provided that (i) when determining the reasonableness of such costs the Commission shall not consider closure in place of the CCR unit as an option; (ii) the annual revenue requirement recoverable through a rate adjustment clause authorized under this section, exclusive of any other rate adjustment clauses approved by the Commission under the provisions of subdivision A 5 e of § 56-585.1, shall not exceed $225 million on a Virginia jurisdictional basis for the Commonwealth in any 12-month period, provided that any under-recovery amount of revenue requirements incurred in excess of $225 million in a given 12-month period, limited to the under-recovery amount and the carrying cost, shall be deferred and recovered through the rate adjustment clause over up to three succeeding 12-month periods without regard to this limitation, and with the length of the amortization period being determined by the Commission; (iii) costs may begin accruing on July 1, 2019, but no approved rate adjustment clause charges shall be included in customer bills until July 1, 2021; (iv) any such costs shall be allocated to all customers of the utility in the Commonwealth as a non-bypassable charge, irrespective of the generation supplier of any such customer; and (v) any such costs that are allocated to the utility's system customers outside of the Commonwealth that are not actually recovered from such customers shall be included for cost recovery from jurisdictional customers in the Commonwealth through the rate adjustment clause. I. Any electric public utility subject to the requirements of this section may, without regard for whether it has petitioned for any rate adjustment clause pursuant to subdivision A 5 e of § 56-585.1, petition the Commission for approval of a plan for CCR unit closure at any or all of its CCR unit sites listed in subsection B. Any such plan shall take into account site-specific conditions and shall include proposals to beneficially reuse no less than 6.8 million cubic yards of CCR in aggregate from no fewer than two of the sites listed in subsection B. The Commission shall issue its final order with regard to any such petition within six months of its filing, and in doing so shall determine whether the utility's plan for CCR unit closure, and the projected costs associated therewith, are reasonable and prudent, taking into account that closure in place of any CCR unit is not to be considered as an option. The Commission shall not consider plans that do not comply with subsection B. J. Nothing in this section shall be construed to require additional beneficial reuse of CCR at any active coal-fired electric generation facility if such additional beneficial reuse results in a net increase in truck traffic on the public roads of the locality in which the facility is located as compared to such traffic during calendar year 2018. K. The Commonwealth shall not authorize any cost recovery by an owner or operator subject to the provisions of this section for any fines or civil penalties resulting from violations of federal and state law or regulation. 2019, cc. 650, 651; 2021, Sp. Sess. I, c. 401.

Va. Code § 10.1-1402.04

§ 10.1-1402.04. Closure of certain coal combustion residuals units; Giles and Russell Counties.A. For the purposes of this section: "Carrying cost" means the cost associated with financing expenditures incurred but not yet recovered from the electric utility's customers and shall be calculated by applying the electric utility's weighted average cost of debt and equity capital, as determined by the State Corporation Commission, with no additional margin or profit, to any unrecovered balances. "CCR landfill" means an area of land or an excavation that receives CCR and is not a surface impoundment, underground injection well, salt dome formation, salt bed formation, underground or surface coal mine, or cave and that is owned or operated by an electric utility. "CCR surface impoundment" means a natural topographic depression, man-made excavation, or diked area that (i) is designed to hold an accumulation of CCR and liquids; (ii) treats, stores, or disposes of CCR; and (iii) is owned or operated by an electric utility. "CCR unit" means any CCR landfill, CCR surface impoundment, lateral expansion of a CCR unit, or combination of two or more such units that is owned by an electric utility. Notwithstanding the provisions of 40 C.F.R. Part 257, "CCR unit" also includes any CCR below the unit boundary of the CCR landfill or CCR surface impoundment. "Coal combustion residuals" or "CCR" means fly ash, bottom ash, boiler slag, and flue gas desulfurization materials generated from burning coal for the purpose of generating electricity by an electric utility. "Commission" means the State Corporation Commission. "Encapsulated beneficial use" means a beneficial use of CCR that binds the CCR into a solid matrix and minimizes its mobilization into the surrounding environment. The definitions in this subsection shall be interpreted in a manner consistent with 40 C.F.R. Part 257, except as expressly provided in this section. B. The owner or operator of any CCR unit located in Giles County or Russell County at the Glen Lyn Plant and the Clinch River Plant shall, if all CCR units at such plant ceased receiving CCR and submitted notification of completion of a final cap to the Department prior to January 1, 2019, complete post-closure care and any required corrective action of such unit. If all CCR units at such plant have not submitted notification of completion of a final cap to the Department prior to January 1, 2019, the owner or operator shall close all CCR units at such plant by (i) removing all of the CCR in accordance with applicable standards established by Virginia Solid Waste Management Regulations (9VAC20-81) and (ii) either (a) beneficially reusing all such CCR in a recycling process for encapsulated beneficial use or (b) disposing of the CCR in a permitted landfill on the property upon which the CCR unit is located, adjacent to the property upon which the CCR unit is located, or off of the property on which the CCR unit is located, that includes, at a minimum, a composite liner and leachate collection system that meets or exceeds the federal Criteria for Municipal Solid Waste Landfills pursuant to 40 C.F.R. Part 258. The owner or operator shall beneficially reuse CCR removed from its CCR unit if beneficial use of such removed CCR is anticipated to reduce costs incurred under this section. C. The owner or operator shall complete the closure of any such CCR unit required by this section no later than 15 years after initiating the excavation process at that CCR unit. During the closure process, the owner or operator shall, at its expense, offer to provide a connection to a municipal water supply, or where such connection is not feasible provide water testing, for any residence within one-half mile of the CCR unit. D. Where closure pursuant to this section requires that CCR that has been beneficially reused be removed off-site, the owner or operator shall develop a transportation plan in consultation with any county, city, or town in which the CCR units are located and any county, city, or town within two miles of the CCR units that minimizes the impact of any transport of CCR on adjacent property owners and surrounding communities. The transportation plan shall include (i) alternative transportation options to be utilized, including rail and barge transport, if feasible, in combination with other transportation methods necessary to meet the closure timeframe established in subsection C and (ii) plans for any transportation by truck, including the frequency of truck travel, the route of truck travel, and measures to control noise, traffic impact, safety, and fugitive dust caused by such truck travel. Once such transportation plan is completed, the owner or operator shall post it on a publicly accessible website. The owner or operator shall provide notice of the availability of the plan to the Department and the chief administrative officers of the consulting localities and shall publish such notice once in a newspaper of general circulation in such locality. E. The owner or operator of any CCR unit subject to the provisions of subsection B shall accept and review proposals for the encapsulated beneficial use of CCR pursuant to the provisions of subsection B every four years beginning July 1, 2023. Any entity submitting such a proposal shall provide information from which the owner or operator can determine (i) the amount of CCR that will be utilized for encapsulated beneficial use; (ii) the cost of the proposed beneficial use of such CCR; and (iii) the guaranteed timeframe in which the CCR will be utilized. F. In conducting closure activities described in subsection B, the owner or operator shall (i) identify options for utilizing local workers; (ii) consult with the Commonwealth's Chief Workforce Development Officer on opportunities to advance the Commonwealth's workforce goals, including furtherance of apprenticeship and other workforce training programs to develop the local workforce; and (iii) give priority to the hiring of local workers. G. No later than October 1, 2023, and no less frequently than every two years thereafter until closure of or corrective action at all of its CCR units is complete, the owner or operator of any CCR unit subject to the provisions of subsection B shall compile the following two reports: 1. A report describing the owner's or operator's closure plan for all such CCR units; the closure progress to date, both per unit and in total; a detailed accounting of the amounts of CCR that have been and are expected to be beneficially reused from such units, both per unit and in total; a detailed accounting of the amounts of CCR that have been and are expected to be landfilled from such units, both per unit and in total; a detailed accounting of the utilization of transportation options and a transportation plan as required by subsection D; and a discussion of groundwater and surface water monitoring results and any corrective actions or other measures taken to address such results as closure is being completed. 2. A report that contains the proposals and analysis for proposals required by subsection E. The owner or operator shall post each such report on a publicly accessible website and shall submit each such report to the Governor, the Secretary of Natural and Historic Resources, the Chairman of the Senate Committee on Agriculture, Conservation and Natural Resources, the Chairman of the House Committee on Agriculture, Chesapeake and Natural Resources, the Chairman of the Senate Committee on Commerce and Labor, the Chairman of the House Committee on Labor and Commerce, and the Director. H. All costs associated with closure by removal of a CCR unit or encapsulated beneficial use of CCR material in accordance with subsection B shall be recoverable through a rate adjustment clause authorized by the Commission under the provisions of subdivision A 5 e of § 56-585.1, provided that (i) when determining the reasonableness of such costs the Commission shall not consider closure in place of the CCR unit as an option; (ii) the annual revenue requirement recoverable through a rate adjustment clause authorized under this section, exclusive of any other rate adjustment clauses approved by the Commission under the provisions of subdivision A 5 e of § 56-585.1, shall not exceed $40 million on a Virginia jurisdictional basis for the Commonwealth in any 12-month period, provided that any under-recovery amount of revenue requirements incurred in excess of $40 million in a given 12-month period, limited to the under-recovery amount and the carrying cost, shall be deferred and recovered through the rate adjustment clause over up to three succeeding 12-month periods without regard to this limitation, and with the length of the amortization period being determined by the Commission; (iii) costs may begin accruing on July 1, 2020, but no approved rate adjustment clause charges shall be included in customer bills until July 1, 2022; (iv) any such costs shall be allocated to all customers of the utility in the Commonwealth as a non-bypassable charge, irrespective of the generation supplier of any such customer; and (v) any such costs that are allocated to the utility's system customers outside of the Commonwealth that are not actually recovered from such customers shall be included for cost recovery from jurisdictional customers in the Commonwealth through the rate adjustment clause. I. Any electric public utility subject to the requirements of this section may, without regard for whether it has petitioned for any rate adjustment clause pursuant to subdivision A 5 e of § 56-585.1, petition the Commission for approval of a plan for CCR unit closure at any or all of its CCR unit sites listed in subsection B. Any such plan shall take into account site-specific conditions and shall include proposals to beneficially reuse CCR from the sites if beneficial use is anticipated to reduce the costs allocated to customers. The Commission shall issue its final order with regard to any such petition within six months of its filing, and in doing so shall determine whether the utility's plan for CCR unit closure, and the projected costs associated therewith, are reasonable and prudent, taking into account that closure in place of any CCR unit is not to be considered as an option. The Commission shall not consider plans that do not comply with subsection B. J. Nothing in this section shall be construed to require additional beneficial reuse of CCR at any active coal-fired electric generation facility if such additional beneficial reuse results in a net increase in truck traffic on the public roads of the locality in which the facility is located as compared with such traffic during calendar year 2019. K. The Commonwealth shall not authorize any cost recovery by an owner or operator subject to the provisions of this section for any fines or civil penalties resulting from violations of federal and state law or regulation. 2020, c. 563; 2021, Sp. Sess. I, c. 401.

Va. Code § 10.1-1425.39

§ 10.1-1425.39. Rechargeable battery recycling and disposal program.A. As used in this section "rechargeable battery" means any removable, dry-cell, rechargeable battery weighing less than two pounds consisting of one or more electrically connected electrochemical cells that are designed to receive, store, and deliver electric energy. B. Any locality may, by ordinance, prohibit the disposal of rechargeable batteries in any waste-to-energy or solid waste disposal facility within its jurisdiction, provided the locality has implemented a recycling program that is capable of handling all rechargeable batteries generated within its jurisdiction. However, no such ordinance shall contain any provision that penalizes anyone other than the last user of such rechargeable batteries. 2009, c. 365. Article 4. Hazardous Waste Management.

Va. Code § 10.1-204

§ 10.1-204. Statewide system of trails.A. As used in this section, unless the context requires a different meaning: "Other power-driven mobility device" means any mobility device powered by batteries, fuel, or other engines, whether or not designed primarily for use by individuals with mobility disabilities, that is used by individuals with mobility disabilities for the purpose of locomotion, including golf cars, electronic personal assistive mobility devices (EPAMDs), or any mobility device designed to operate in areas without defined pedestrian routes, but that is not a wheelchair within the meaning of this section. "Wheelchair" means a manually-operated or power-driven device designed primarily for use by an individual with a mobility disability for the main purpose of locomotion. B. The Department is authorized to enter into such agreements and to acquire interests as may be necessary to establish, maintain, protect, and regulate a statewide system of trails in order to provide for the ever-increasing outdoor recreational needs of an expanding population, and in order to promote public access to, travel within, and enjoyment and appreciation of the outdoor, natural, and remote areas of the Commonwealth. Notwithstanding any other provision of law, the Department shall not develop, establish, or extend any system of trails, including linear parks or greenways, in any county having the county manager form of government, unless it has submitted to the appropriate local agency, commission, or board, a plan of development, where such plan is required by local ordinance, for the proposed system of trails. C. The statewide system of trails shall be composed of: 1. Scenic trails so located as to provide maximum potential for the appreciation of natural areas and for the conservation and enjoyment of the significant scenic, historic, natural, ecological, geological, or cultural qualities of the areas through which such trails may pass; 2. Recreation trails to provide a variety of outdoor recreation uses in or reasonably accessible to urban areas; and 3. Connecting trails or side trails to provide additional points of public access to recreation trails or scenic trails, or to provide connections between such trails, or to provide access from urban areas to major outdoor recreation sites. D. Each trail shall be limited to foot, horse, or nonmotorized bicycle use, or a combination thereof, as deemed appropriate by the Department. The use of motorized vehicles by the public shall be prohibited along any of the scenic, recreation, or connecting or side trails. This statewide system of trails may contain, at the discretion of the Department, camping sites, shelters, and related public-use and management facilities, which will not substantially interfere with the nature and purposes of the trails. E. Nothing in this section shall be construed to prohibit the Department from (i) allowing the use of wheelchairs or other power-driven mobility devices by disabled individuals on the statewide system of trails or (ii) requiring a user of an other power-driven mobility device to provide a credible assurance that the mobility device is required because of the person's disability, in accordance with the federal Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (P.L. 101-336, 104 Stat. 327) and other applicable state and federal laws. Notwithstanding any provision to the contrary, the Department is authorized to permit, in accordance with applicable state and federal laws, the operation of electric power-assisted bicycles and electric personal assistive mobility devices as defined in § 46.2-100 on any bicycle path or trail designated by the Department for such use. 1971, Ex. Sess., c. 136, § 10-21.3:1; 1972, c. 413; 1984, cc. 739, 750; 1988, c. 891; 1993, c. 755; 2012, c. 598.

Va. Code § 10.1-408

§ 10.1-408. Uses not affected by scenic river designation.A. Except as provided in § 10.1-407, all riparian land and water uses along or in the designated section of a river that are permitted by law shall not be restricted by this chapter. B. Designation as a scenic river shall not be used: 1. To designate the lands along the river and its tributaries as unsuitable for mining pursuant to § 45.2-1028 or regulations promulgated with respect to such section, or as unsuitable for use as a location for a surface mineral mine as defined in § 45.2-1101; however, the Department shall still be permitted to exercise the powers granted under § 10.1-402; or 2. To be a criterion for purposes of imposing water quality standards under the federal Clean Water Act. C. Nothing in this chapter shall preclude the federal government, the Commonwealth, or a locality or local governing body from using, constructing, reconstructing, replacing, repairing, operating, or performing necessary maintenance on any road or bridge. D. Nothing in § 10.1-413, 10.1-414, or 10.1-418.6 shall preclude the Commonwealth or a local governing body or authority from constructing, reconstructing, operating, or performing necessary maintenance on any transportation or public water supply project. E. Nothing in this chapter shall preclude the continued: 1. Use, operation, and maintenance of the existing Loudoun County Sanitation Authority water impoundment or the installation of new water intake facilities in the existing reservoir located within the section of Goose Creek designated by § 10.1-411; 2. Operation and maintenance of existing dams in the section of the Rappahannock River designated by § 10.1-415; 3. Operation, maintenance, alteration, expansion, or destruction by the City of Fredericksburg of the old VEPCO canal or any other part of the city's waterworks; or 4. Operation and maintenance of existing dams in the section of the Clinch River designated by § 10.1-410.2. F. The City of Richmond shall be allowed to reconstruct, operate, and maintain existing facilities at the Byrd Park and Hollywood Hydroelectric Power Stations at current capacity. Nothing in this chapter shall be construed to prevent the Commonwealth, the City of Richmond, or any common carrier railroad from constructing or reconstructing floodwalls or public common carrier facilities that may traverse the section of the James River designated by § 10.1-412, such as road or railroad bridges, raw water intake structures, or water or sewer lines that would be constructed below water level. G. The owner of the Harvell Dam in the City of Petersburg may construct, reconstruct, operate, and maintain the Harvell Dam subject to other law and regulation. H. Nothing in this chapter shall preclude the Commonwealth, the City of Fredericksburg, or Culpeper, Spotsylvania, or Stafford County from constructing any new raw water intake structures or devices, including pipes and reservoirs but not dams, or laying water or sewer lines below water level. I. Nothing in this chapter shall: 1. Preclude the construction, operation, repair, maintenance, or replacement of (i) a natural gas pipeline for which the State Corporation Commission has issued a certificate of public convenience and necessity or any connections with such pipeline owned by the Richmond Gas Utility and connected to such pipeline or (ii) the natural gas pipeline, case number PUE 860065, for which the State Corporation Commission has issued a certificate of public convenience and necessity; 2. Be construed to prevent the construction, use, operation, and maintenance of a natural gas pipeline (i) traversing the portion of the river designated by § 10.1-411.1 at, or at any point north of, the existing power line that is located approximately 200 feet north of the northern entrance to the Swede Tunnel or (ii) on or beneath the two existing railroad trestles, one located just south of the Swede Tunnel and the other located just north of the confluence of the Guest River with the Clinch River, or to prevent the use, operation, and maintenance of such railroad trestles in furtherance of the construction, operation, use, and maintenance of such pipeline; or 3. Preclude the construction, use, operation, maintenance, replacement, or removal of any asset owned or operated by an entity organized pursuant to Chapter 9.1 (§ 56-231.15 et seq.) of Title 56 traversing the portion of the river designated by § 10.1-413 at or any point between the confluence of Allen's Creek and the James River and the confluence of David Creek and the James River. 1988, c. 891; 2014, c. 823; 2018, c. 273; 2020, cc. 306, 629; 2022, cc. 175, 235.

Va. Code § 12.1-30.1

§ 12.1-30.1. Meetings and communications between commissioners and parties or staff.The Commission shall after public hearing, promulgate rules of practice and procedure pursuant to § 12.1-25 controlling meetings and communications between commissioners and any party, or between commissioners and staff concerning any fact or issue arising out of a proceeding involving the regulation of rates, charges, services or facilities of railroad, telephone, gas, electric, water, or sewer companies. The rules shall provide, among other provisions, that no commissioner shall consult with any party or any person acting on behalf of any party with respect to such proceeding without giving adequate notice and opportunity for all parties to participate. 1979, c. 343; 2016, cc. 191, 283.

Va. Code § 13.1-603

§ 13.1-603. Definitions.As used in this chapter: "Articles of incorporation" means all documents constituting, at any particular time, the charter of a corporation. It includes the original charter issued by the General Assembly, a court or the Commission and all amendments including certificates of consolidation, serial designation, reduction, correction, and merger. It excludes articles of share exchange filed by an acquiring corporation. When the articles of incorporation have been restated pursuant to any articles of restatement, amendment, domestication, or merger, it includes only the restated articles of incorporation, including any articles of serial designation, without the accompanying articles of restatement, amendment, domestication, or merger. When used with respect to a foreign corporation, the "articles of incorporation" of such entity means the document that is equivalent to the articles of incorporation of a domestic corporation. "Authorized shares" means the shares of all classes a domestic or foreign corporation is authorized to issue. "Beneficial shareholder" means a person that owns the beneficial interest in shares, which may be a record shareholder or a person on whose behalf shares are registered in the name of an intermediary as nominee. "Certificate," when relating to articles filed with the Commission, means the order of the Commission that makes the articles effective, together with the articles. "Commission" means the State Corporation Commission of Virginia. "Conspicuous" means so written, displayed, or presented that a reasonable person against whom the writing is to operate should have noticed it. For example, text that is italicized, is in boldface, contrasting colors, or capitals, or is underlined, is conspicuous. "Corporation" or "domestic corporation" means a corporation authorized by law to issue shares, irrespective of the nature of the business to be transacted, organized under this chapter or existing pursuant to the laws of the Commonwealth on January 1, 1986, or which, by virtue of articles of incorporation, amendment, or merger, has become a domestic corporation of the Commonwealth, even though also being a corporation organized under laws other than the laws of the Commonwealth, or that has become a domestic corporation of the Commonwealth pursuant to Article 12.1 (§ 13.1-722.1:1 et seq.) or Article 12.2 (§ 13.1-722.8 et seq.) of this chapter or Article 15 (§ 13.1-1081 et seq.) of Chapter 12. "Deliver" or "delivery" means any method of delivery used in conventional commercial practice, including delivery by hand, mail, commercial delivery, and, if authorized in accordance with § 13.1-610, electronic transmission. "Derivative proceeding" means a civil suit in the right of a domestic corporation or, to the extent provided in Article 8.1 (§ 13.1-672.1 et seq.), a foreign corporation. "Disinterested director" means, except with respect to Article 14 (§ 13.1-725 et seq.), a director who, at the time action is to be taken under subdivision B 5 of § 13.1-619, § 13.1-672.4, 13.1-691, 13.1-699, or 13.1-701, does not have (i) a financial interest in a matter that is the subject of such action or (ii) a familial, financial, professional, employment, or other relationship with a person who has a financial interest in the matter, either of which would reasonably be expected to impair the objectivity of the director's judgment when participating in the action, and if the action is to be taken under § 13.1-699 or 13.1-701, is also not a party to the proceeding. The presence of one or more of the following circumstances shall not by itself prevent a person from being a disinterested director: (i) nomination or election of the director to the board by any director who is not a disinterested director with respect to the matter or by any person that has a material relationship with that director, acting alone or participating with others; (ii) service as a director of another corporation of which a director who is not a disinterested director with respect to the matter, or any person that has a material relationship with that director, is or was also a director; or (iii) at the time action is to be taken under § 13.1-672.4, status as a named defendant, as a director against whom action is demanded, or as a director who approved the act being challenged. "Distribution" means a direct or indirect transfer of cash or other property, except the corporation's own shares, or incurrence of indebtedness by a corporation to or for the benefit of its shareholders in respect of any of its shares. A distribution may be in the form of a payment of a dividend; a purchase, redemption, or other acquisition of shares; a distribution of indebtedness of the corporation; a distribution in liquidation; or otherwise. Distribution does not include an acquisition by a corporation of its shares from the estate or personal representative of a deceased shareholder, or any other shareholder, but only to the extent the acquisition is effected using the proceeds of insurance on the life of such deceased shareholder and the board of directors approved the policy and the terms of the redemption prior to the shareholder's death. "Document" means (i) any tangible medium on which information is inscribed, and includes handwritten, typed, printed, or similar instruments and copies of such instruments, or (ii) an electronic record. "Domestic" with respect to an entity, means an entity governed as to its internal affairs by the organic law of the Commonwealth. "Domestic business trust" has the same meaning as specified in § 13.1-1201. "Domestic limited liability company" has the same meaning as specified in § 13.1-1002. "Domestic limited partnership" has the same meaning as specified in § 50-73.1. "Domestic nonstock corporation" has the same meaning as "domestic corporation" as specified in § 13.1-803. "Domestic partnership" means an association of two or more persons to carry on as co-owners a business for profit formed under § 50-73.88, or predecessor law of the Commonwealth, and includes, for all purposes of the laws of the Commonwealth, a registered limited liability partnership. "Effective date," when referring to a document for which effectiveness is contingent upon issuance of a certificate by the Commission, means the time and date determined in accordance with § 13.1-606. "Effective date of notice" is defined in subdivision A 9 of § 13.1-610. "Electronic" means relating to technology having electrical, digital, magnetic, wireless, optical, electromagnetic, or similar capabilities. "Electronic record" means information that is stored in an electronic or other nontangible medium and is retrievable in paper form through an automated process used in conventional commercial practice, unless otherwise authorized in accordance with subdivision A 10 of § 13.1-610. "Electronic transmission" or "electronically transmitted" means any form or process of communication, not directly involving the physical transfer of paper or another tangible medium, that (i) is suitable for the retention, retrieval, and reproduction of information by the recipient, and (ii) is retrievable in paper form by the recipient through an automated process used in conventional commercial practice, unless otherwise authorized in accordance with subdivision A 10 of § 13.1-610. "Eligible entity" means a domestic or foreign unincorporated entity or a domestic or foreign nonstock corporation. "Eligible interests" means interests or memberships. "Employee" includes, unless otherwise provided in the bylaws, an officer but not a director. A director may accept duties that make the director also an employee. "Entity" includes any domestic or foreign corporation; any domestic or foreign nonstock corporation; any domestic or foreign unincorporated entity; any estate or trust; and any state, the United States and any foreign government. "Expenses" means reasonable expenses of any kind that are incurred in connection with a matter. "Filing entity" means an unincorporated entity other than a general partnership. "Foreign," with respect to an entity, means an entity governed as to its internal affairs by the organic law of a jurisdiction other than the Commonwealth. "Foreign business trust" has the same meaning as specified in § 13.1-1201. "Foreign corporation" means a corporation authorized by law to issue shares, organized under laws other than the laws of the Commonwealth. "Foreign limited liability company" has the same meaning as specified in § 13.1-1002. "Foreign limited partnership" has the same meaning as specified in § 50-73.1. "Foreign nonstock corporation" means a corporation that is incorporated under a law other than the law of the Commonwealth and would, based on its public organic record, be a nonstock corporation if incorporated under the law of the Commonwealth. "Foreign partnership" means an association of two or more persons to carry on as co-owners of a business for profit formed under the laws of any state or jurisdiction other than the Commonwealth, and includes, for all purposes of the laws of the Commonwealth, a foreign registered limited liability partnership. "Foreign registered limited liability partnership" has the same meaning as specified in § 50-73.79. "Foreign unincorporated entity" means a foreign partnership, foreign limited liability company, foreign limited partnership, or foreign business trust. "Government subdivision" includes authority, county, district, and municipality. "Governor" means any person under whose authority the powers of an entity are exercised and under whose direction the activities and affairs of the entity are managed pursuant to the organic law governing the entity and its organic rules. "Includes" and "including" denote a partial definition as a nonexclusive list. "Individual" means a natural person. "Interest" means either or both of the following rights under the organic law governing an unincorporated entity: 1. The right to receive distributions from the entity either in the ordinary course or upon liquidation; or 2. The right to receive notice or to vote on issues involving its internal affairs, other than as an agent, assignee, proxy or person responsible for managing its business and affairs. "Interest holder" means a person who holds of record an interest. "Interest holder liability" means: 1. Personal liability for a debt, obligation, or other liability of a domestic or foreign corporation or domestic or foreign eligible entity that is imposed on a person: a. Solely by reason of the person's status as a shareholder, member, or interest holder; or b. By the articles of incorporation of the domestic corporation or the organic rules of the eligible entity or foreign corporation that make one or more specified shareholders, members, or interest holders, or categories of shareholders, members, or interest holders, liable in their capacity as shareholders, members, or interest holders for all or specified liabilities of the corporation or eligible entity; or 2. An obligation of a shareholder, member, or interest holder under the articles of incorporation of a domestic corporation or the organic rules of an eligible entity or foreign corporation to contribute to the entity. For purposes of the foregoing, except as otherwise provided in the articles of incorporation of a domestic corporation or the organic law or organic rules of an eligible entity or a foreign corporation, interest holder liability arises under subdivision 1 when the corporation or eligible entity incurs the liability. "Jurisdiction of formation" means the state or country the law of which includes the organic law governing a domestic or foreign corporation or eligible entity. "Means" denotes an exhaustive definition. "Membership" means the rights of a member in a domestic or foreign nonstock corporation or limited liability company. "Merger" means a transaction pursuant to § 13.1-716 or 13.1-766.1. "Notice" is defined in § 13.1-610. "Organic law" means the statute governing the internal affairs of a domestic or foreign corporation or eligible entity. "Organic rules" means the public organic record and private organic rules of a domestic or foreign corporation or eligible entity. "Person" includes an individual and an entity. "Principal office" means the office, in or out of the Commonwealth, where the principal executive offices of a domestic or foreign corporation are located, or, if there are no such offices, the office, in or out of the Commonwealth, so designated by the board of directors. The designation of the principal office in the most recent annual report filed pursuant to § 13.1-775 shall be conclusive for purposes of this chapter. "Private organic rules" means (i) the bylaws of a domestic or foreign corporation or nonstock corporation or (ii) the rules, regardless of whether in writing, that govern the internal affairs of an unincorporated entity, are binding on all its interest holders, and are not part of its public organic record. Where private organic rules have been amended or restated, the term means the private organic rules as last amended or restated. "Proceeding" includes civil suit and criminal, administrative, and investigatory action. "Protected series" has the same meaning as specified in § 13.1-1002. "Public corporation" means a corporation that has shares listed on a national securities exchange or regularly traded in a market maintained by one or more members of a national or affiliated securities association. "Public organic record" means (i) the articles of incorporation of a domestic or foreign corporation or nonstock corporation or (ii) the document, the filing of which is required to create an unincorporated entity. Where a public organic record has been amended or restated, the term means the public organic record as last amended or restated. "Record date" means the date fixed for determining the identity of the corporation's shareholders and their shareholdings for purposes of this chapter. The determinations shall be made as of the close of business at the principal office of the corporation on the record date unless another time for doing so is specified when the record date is fixed. "Record shareholder" means (i) the person in whose name shares are registered in the records of the corporation or (ii) the person identified as the beneficial owner of shares in a beneficial ownership certificate pursuant to § 13.1-664 on file with the corporation to the extent of the rights granted by such certificate. "Registered limited liability partnership" has the same meaning as specified in § 50-73.79. "Secretary" means the corporate officer or other individual to whom the board of directors has delegated responsibility under subsection C of § 13.1-693 for custody of the minutes of the meetings of the board of directors and of the shareholders and for authenticating records of the corporation. "Series limited liability company" has the same meaning as specified in § 13.1-1002. "Share exchange" means a transaction pursuant to § 13.1-717. "Shareholder" means a record shareholder. "Shares" means the units into which the proprietary interests in a corporation are divided. "Sign" or "signature" means, with present intent to authenticate or adopt a document: (i) to execute or adopt a tangible symbol to a document, and includes any manual, facsimile, or conformed signature; or (ii) to attach to or logically associate with an electronic transmission an electronic sound, symbol, or process, and includes an electronic signature in an electronic transmission. "State" when referring to a part of the United States, includes a state, commonwealth, and the District of Columbia, and their agencies and governmental subdivisions; and a territory or insular possession, and their agencies and governmental subdivisions, of the United States. "Subscriber" means a person who subscribes for shares in a corporation, whether before or after incorporation. "Subsidiary" means, as to any corporation, any other corporation of which it owns, directly or indirectly, voting shares entitled to cast a majority of the votes entitled to be cast generally in an election of directors of such other corporation. "Unincorporated entity" or "domestic unincorporated entity" means a domestic partnership, limited liability company, limited partnership or business trust. "United States" includes district, authority, bureau, commission, department, and any other agency of the United States. "Unrestricted voting trust beneficial owner" means, with respect to any shareholder rights, a voting trust beneficial owner whose entitlement to exercise the shareholder right in question is not inconsistent with the voting trust agreement. "Voting group" means all shares of one or more classes or series that under the articles of incorporation or this chapter are entitled to vote and be counted together collectively on a matter at a meeting of shareholders. All shares entitled by the articles of incorporation or this chapter to vote generally on the matter are for that purpose a single voting group. "Voting power" means the current power to vote in the election of directors. "Voting trust beneficial owner" means an owner of a beneficial interest in shares of the corporation held in a voting trust established pursuant to subsection A of § 13.1-670. "Writing" or "written" means any information in the form of a document. Code 1950, § 13.1-2; 1956, c. 428; 1962, c. 44; 1975, c. 500; 1985, c. 522; 1992, cc. 575, 802; 1993, c. 200; 1994, c. 122; 1997, cc. 190, 801; 2001, c. 545; 2002, cc. 1, 285; 2003, cc. 340, 728; 2005, c. 765; 2006, c. 663; 2007, c. 165; 2010, c. 782; 2012, c. 706; 2015, c. 611; 2016, c. 288; 2019, c. 734; 2020, c. 1226.

Va. Code § 13.1-803

§ 13.1-803. Definitions.As used in this chapter, unless the context requires a different meaning: "Articles of incorporation" means all documents constituting, at any particular time, the charter of a corporation. It includes the original charter issued by the General Assembly, a court or the Commission and all amendments including certificates of merger, consolidation, or correction. When the articles of incorporation have been restated pursuant to any articles of restatement, amendment, domestication, or merger, it includes only the restated articles of incorporation without the accompanying articles of restatement, amendment, domestication, or merger. When used with respect to a foreign corporation, the "articles of incorporation" of such entity means the document that is equivalent to the articles of incorporation of a domestic corporation. "Board of directors" means the group of persons vested with the management of the business of the corporation irrespective of the name by which such group is designated, and "director" means a member of the board of directors. "Certificate," when relating to articles filed with the Commission, means the order of the Commission that makes the articles effective, together with the articles. "Commission" means the State Corporation Commission of Virginia. "Conspicuous" means so written, displayed, or presented that a reasonable person against whom the writing is to operate should have noticed it. For example, text that is italicized, is in boldface, contrasting colors, or capitals, or is underlined is conspicuous. "Corporation" or "domestic corporation" means a corporation not authorized by law to issue shares, irrespective of the nature of the business to be transacted, organized under this chapter or existing pursuant to the laws of the Commonwealth on January 1, 1986, or that, by virtue of articles of incorporation, amendment, or merger, has become a domestic corporation of the Commonwealth, even though also being a corporation organized under laws other than the laws of the Commonwealth or that has become a domestic corporation of the Commonwealth pursuant to Article 11.1 (§ 13.1-898.1:1 et seq.). "Deliver" or "delivery" means any method of delivery used in conventional commercial practice, including delivery by hand, mail, commercial delivery, and, if authorized in accordance with § 13.1-810, by electronic transmission. "Disinterested director" means a director who, at the time action is to be taken under § 13.1-871, 13.1-878, or 13.1-880, does not have (i) a financial interest in a matter that is the subject of such action or (ii) a familial, financial, professional, employment, or other relationship with a person who has a financial interest in the matter, either of which would reasonably be expected to affect adversely the objectivity of the director when participating in the action, and if the action is to be taken under § 13.1-878 or 13.1-880, is also not a party to the proceeding. The presence of one or more of the following circumstances shall not by itself prevent a person from being a disinterested director: (a) nomination or election of the director to the current board by any person, acting alone or participating with others, who is so interested in the matter or (b) service as a director of another corporation of which an interested person is also a director. "Document" means (i) any tangible medium on which information is inscribed, and includes any writing or written instrument, or (ii) an electronic record. "Domestic," with respect to an entity, means an entity governed as to its internal affairs by the organic law of the Commonwealth. "Domestic business trust" has the same meaning as specified in § 13.1-1201. "Domestic limited liability company" has the same meaning as specified in § 13.1-1002. "Domestic limited partnership" has the same meaning as specified in § 50-73.1. "Domestic partnership" means an association of two or more persons to carry on as co-owners of a business for profit formed under § 50-73.88 or predecessor law of the Commonwealth and includes, for all purposes of the laws of the Commonwealth, a registered limited liability partnership. "Domestic stock corporation" has the same meaning as "domestic corporation" as specified in § 13.1-603. "Effective date," when referring to a document for which effectiveness is contingent upon issuance of a certificate by the Commission, means the time and date determined in accordance with § 13.1-806. "Effective date of notice" is defined in § 13.1-810. "Electronic" means relating to technology having electrical, digital, magnetic, wireless, optical, electromagnetic, or similar capabilities. "Electronic record" means information that is stored in an electronic or other medium and is retrievable in paper form through an automated process used in conventional commercial practice, unless otherwise authorized in accordance with subsection J of § 13.1-810. "Electronic transmission" or "electronically transmitted" means any form or process of communication, not directly involving the physical transfer of paper or other tangible medium, that (i) is suitable for the retention, retrieval, and reproduction of information by the recipient, and (ii) is retrievable in paper form by the recipient through an automated process used in conventional commercial practice, unless otherwise authorized in accordance with subsection J of § 13.1-810. "Eligible entity" means a domestic or foreign unincorporated entity or a domestic or foreign stock corporation. "Eligible interests" means interests or shares. "Employee" includes, unless otherwise provided in the bylaws, an officer but not a director. A director may accept duties that make the director also an employee. "Entity" includes any domestic or foreign corporation; any domestic or foreign stock corporation; any domestic or foreign unincorporated entity; any estate or trust; and any state, the United States, and any foreign government. "Entity conversion" means conversion. A certificate of entity conversion is the same as a certificate of conversion. "Foreign," with respect to an entity, means an entity governed as to its internal affairs by the organic law of a jurisdiction other than the Commonwealth. "Foreign business trust" has the same meaning as specified in § 13.1-1201. "Foreign corporation" means a corporation not authorized by law to issue shares, organized under laws other than the laws of the Commonwealth. "Foreign limited liability company" has the same meaning as specified in § 13.1-1002. "Foreign limited partnership" has the same meaning as specified in § 50-73.1. "Foreign partnership" means an association of two or more persons to carry on as co-owners of a business for profit formed under the laws of any state or jurisdiction other than the Commonwealth, and includes, for all purposes of the laws of the Commonwealth, a foreign registered limited liability partnership. "Foreign registered limited liability partnership" has the same meaning as specified in § 50-73.79. "Foreign stock corporation" has the same meaning as "foreign corporation" as specified in § 13.1-603. "Foreign unincorporated entity" means a foreign partnership, foreign limited liability company, foreign limited partnership, or foreign business trust. "Government subdivision" includes authority, county, district, and municipality. "Includes" denotes a partial definition. "Incorporation surrender" has the same meaning as specified in § 13.1-898.1:1. A certificate of incorporation surrender is the same as a certificate of domestication. "Individual" means a natural person. "Interest" means either or both of the following rights under the organic law of a foreign or domestic unincorporated entity: 1. The right to receive distributions from the entity either in the ordinary course or upon liquidation; or 2. The right to receive notice or vote on issues involving its internal affairs, other than as an agent, assignee, proxy, or person responsible for managing its business and affairs. "Jurisdiction of formation" means the state or country the law of which includes the organic law governing a domestic or foreign corporation or eligible entity. "Means" denotes an exhaustive definition. "Member" means one having a membership interest in a corporation in accordance with the provisions of its articles of incorporation or bylaws. "Membership interest" means the interest of a member in a domestic or foreign corporation, including voting and all other rights associated with membership. "Organic document" means the document, if any, that is filed of public record to create an unincorporated entity. Where an organic document has been amended or restated, the term means the organic document as last amended or restated. "Organic law" means the statute governing the internal affairs of a domestic or foreign corporation or eligible entity. "Person" includes an individual and an entity. "Principal office" means the office, in or out of the Commonwealth, where the principal executive offices of a domestic or foreign corporation are located, or, if there are no such offices, the office, in or out of the Commonwealth, so designated by the board of directors. The designation of the principal office in the most recent annual report filed pursuant to § 13.1-936 shall be conclusive for purposes of this chapter. "Proceeding" includes civil suit and criminal, administrative and investigatory action conducted by a governmental agency. "Protected series" has the same meaning as specified in § 13.1-1002. "Record date" means the date established under Article 7 (§ 13.1-837 et seq.) of this chapter on which a corporation determines the identity of its members and their membership interests for purposes of this chapter. The determination shall be made as of the close of business at the principal office of the corporation on the record date unless another time for doing so is specified when the record date is fixed. "Registered limited liability partnership" has the same meaning as specified in § 50-73.79. "Shares" has the same meaning as specified in § 13.1-603. "Sign" or "signature" means, with present intent to authenticate or adopt a document: (i) to execute or adopt a tangible symbol to a document, and includes any manual, facsimile, or conformed signature; or (ii) to attach to or logically associate with an electronic transmission an electronic sound, symbol, or process, and includes an electronic signature in an electronic transmission. "State" when referring to a part of the United States, includes a state, commonwealth, and the District of Columbia, and their agencies and governmental subdivisions; and a territory or insular possession, and their agencies and governmental subdivisions, of the United States. "Transact business" includes the conduct of affairs by any corporation that is not organized for profit. "Unincorporated entity" or "domestic unincorporated entity" means a domestic partnership, limited liability company, limited partnership, or business trust. "United States" includes any district, authority, bureau, commission, department, or any other agency of the United States. "Voting group" means all members of one or more classes that under the articles of incorporation or this chapter are entitled to vote and be counted together collectively on a matter at a meeting of members. All members entitled by the articles of incorporation or this chapter to vote generally on the matter are for that purpose a single voting group. "Voting power" means the current power to vote in the election of directors. "Writing" or "written" means any information in the form of a document. Code 1950, § 13.1-202; 1956, c. 428; 1985, c. 522; 1997, c. 801; 2002, c. 285; 2007, c. 925; 2010, c. 171; 2012, c. 706; 2021, Sp. Sess. I, c. 487; 2022, c. 82.

Va. Code § 15.2-1133

§ 15.2-1133. Purchase of electric power and energy; duration of contracts; source of payments.A. For purposes of this section: "Other party" means any other entity, including but not limited to (i) another municipality or public institution of higher education or any political subdivision, public authority, agency, or instrumentality of the Commonwealth, another state, or the United States of America or (ii) a partnership, limited liability company, not-for-profit corporation, electric cooperative, or investor-owned utility, whether created, incorporated, or otherwise organized and existing under the laws of the Commonwealth or another state or the United States of America. "Project" means any system or facilities for the generation, transmission, transformation, or supply of electrical power and energy by any means whatsoever, including but not limited to fuel, fuel transportation, and fuel supply resources and other related facilities, any one or more electric generating units situated at a particular site, in the continental United States of America, or any interest in the foregoing, whether an undivided interest as a tenant in common or otherwise, or any right to output, capacity or services thereof. B. Any municipal corporation in the Commonwealth that on January 1, 2006, owned and operated an electric utility system may contract with any other party to buy power and energy required for its present or future requirements. Such contracts may provide that the source of such power and energy is limited to a specified project or may include provision for replacement power and energy. Any such contract may provide that the municipal corporation so contracting shall be obligated to make payments required by the contract whether or not a project is completed, operable, or operating and notwithstanding the suspension, interruption, interference, reduction, or curtailment of the output of a project or the power and energy contracted for, and that such payments under the contract shall not be subject to any reduction, whether by offset or otherwise, and shall not be conditioned upon the performance or nonperformance by any other party. Such contracts, with respect to any project, may also provide, in the event of default by any municipal corporation or other party that is a party to any such contract for such project in the performance of its obligations thereunder, for any municipal corporation or other party to any such contract for such project to succeed to the rights and interests and assume the obligations of the defaulting party, pro rata or otherwise, as may be agreed upon in such contracts. Such contracts may provide that the other party is not obligated to provide power and energy in the event that the project specified to be the source of power and energy to be purchased and sold under such contracts is inoperable or in the case of the suspension, interference, reduction or curtailment of the output of such project or in events of force majeure. Notwithstanding the provisions of any other law or charter provision to the contrary, any such contract, with respect to the sale or purchase of capacity, output, power, or energy from a project, may extend for a period not exceeding 50 years from the date a project is estimated to be placed in normal continuous operation; and the execution and effectiveness thereof shall not be subject to any authorizations or approvals by the Commonwealth or any agency, commission, instrumentality, or political subdivision thereof except as specifically required by law. Any such contract shall provide that payments by a municipal corporation under any such contract be made solely from and may be secured by a pledge of and lien upon the revenues derived by such municipal corporation from the ownership and operation of the electric system of such municipal corporation, and such payments shall constitute an operating expense of such electric system. No obligation under such contract shall constitute a legal or equitable pledge, charge, lien, or encumbrance upon any property of the municipal corporation or upon any of its income, receipts, or revenues, except the revenues of its electric system, and neither the faith and credit nor the taxing power of the municipal corporation are, or may be, pledged for the payment of any obligation under any such contract. A municipal corporation shall be obligated to fix, charge, and collect rents, rates, fees, and charges for electric power and energy and other services, facilities, and commodities sold, furnished, or supplied through its electric system sufficient to provide revenues adequate to meet its obligations under any such contract and to pay any and all other amounts payable from or constituting a charge and lien upon such revenues, including amounts sufficient to pay the principal of and interest on bonds of such municipal corporation heretofore or hereafter issued for purposes related to its electric system. Any pledge made by a municipal corporation pursuant to this paragraph shall be governed by the laws of the Commonwealth. 2007, cc. 612, 670. Chapter 12. General Powers and Procedures of Counties. Article 1. Miscellaneous Powers.

Va. Code § 15.2-1217

§ 15.2-1217. Regulation of emission of smoke from fuel-burning equipment.Any county may regulate the emission of smoke and the methods of firing and stoking furnaces and boilers and may charge such reasonable fees for the issuance of permits and the performing of inspections as the governing body may from time to time fix. However, counties shall not apply or enforce such regulations in incorporated towns which have in force ordinances prescribing equal or greater standards in regulating the construction, maintenance and repair of buildings and other structures, the installation, maintenance, operation and repair of plumbing, electrical, heating, elevator, escalator, boiler, unfired pressure vessel and air conditioning installations in or appurtenant to buildings and structures, the emission of smoke, the construction, installation and maintenance of fuel-burning equipment, and the methods of firing and stoking furnaces and boilers, and the light, ventilation, sanitation and use and occupancy of buildings. 1966, c. 290, §§ 15.1-510.1, 15.1-510.4, 15.1-510.6; 1970, cc. 211, 212; 1983, c. 508; 1997, c. 587.

Va. Code § 15.2-1234

§ 15.2-1234. Definitions.As used in this article, "supplies" means any articles or things, including equipment, which are used by or furnished to any department, institution, office, board or other agency of county government. "Contractual services" means any telephone, telegraph, postal, electric light and power service and other similar services. Code 1950, § 15-542; 1962, c. 623, § 15.1-106; 1997, c. 587.

Va. Code § 15.2-1500

§ 15.2-1500. Organization of local government.A. Every locality shall provide for all the governmental functions of the locality, including, without limitation, the organization of all departments, offices, boards, commissions and agencies of government, and the organizational structure thereof, which are necessary and the employment of the officers and other employees needed to carry out the functions of government. B. Except as provided in § 15.2-2160 or Article 5.1 (§ 56-484.7:1 et seq.) of Chapter 15 of Title 56, no locality shall establish any department, office, board, commission, agency or other governmental division or entity which has authority to offer telecommunications equipment, infrastructure, other than pole or tower attachments including antennas or conduit occupancy, or services, other than intragovernmental radio dispatch or paging systems shared by adjoining localities, for sale or lease to any person or entity other than (i) such locality's departments, offices, boards, commissions, agencies or other governmental divisions or entities or (ii) an adjoining locality's departments, offices, boards, commissions, agencies or other governmental divisions or entities, so long as any charges for such telecommunications equipment, infrastructure and services do not exceed the cost to the providing locality of providing such equipment, infrastructure or services. However, any town which is located adjacent to Exit 17 on Interstate 81 and which offered telecommunications services to the public on January 1, 1998, is hereby authorized to continue to offer such telecommunications services, but shall not acquire by eminent domain the facilities or other property of any telephone company or cable operator. Any locality may sell any telecommunications infrastructure, including related equipment, which such locality has constructed, and such locality may receive from the purchaser or purchasers, as full or partial consideration for the sale of such infrastructure, communications services to be used solely for internal use of the locality. The locality shall not be involved in any way in the promotion or marketing of services provided by any purchaser. C. A locality, electric commission or board, industrial development authority, or economic development authority, may lease dark fiber. For purposes of this section, "dark fiber" means fiber optic cable that is not lighted by lasers or other electronic equipment. The locality, electric commission or board, industrial development authority, or economic development authority, shall not be involved in the promotion or marketing of the lessee as the provider of the services. 1997, c. 587; 1998, c. 906; 1999, c. 916; 2002, cc. 479, 489.

Va. Code § 15.2-1720

§ 15.2-1720. Localities authorized to license bicycles, electric power-assisted bicycles, mopeds, and electric personal assistive mobility devices; disposition of unclaimed bicycles, electric power-assisted bicycles, mopeds, and electric personal assistive mobility devices.Any locality may, by ordinance, (i) provide for the public sale or donation to a charitable organization of any bicycle, electric personal assistive mobility device, electric power-assisted bicycle, or moped that has been in the possession of the police or sheriff's department, unclaimed, for more than thirty days; (ii) require every resident owner of a bicycle, electric power-assisted bicycle, electric personal assistive mobility device, or moped to obtain a license therefor and a license plate, tag, or adhesive license decal of such design and material as the ordinance may prescribe, to be substantially attached to the bicycle, electric personal assistive mobility device, electric power-assisted bicycle, or moped; (iii) prescribe the license fee, the license application forms and the license form; and (iv) prescribe penalties for operating a bicycle, electric personal assistive mobility device, electric power-assisted bicycle, or moped on public roads or streets within the locality without an attached license plate, tag, or adhesive decal. The ordinance shall require the license plates, tags, or adhesive decals to be provided by and at the cost of the locality. Any locality may provide that the license plates, tags, or adhesive decals shall be valid for the life of the bicycles, electric personal assistive mobility devices, electric power-assisted bicycles, and mopeds to which they are attached or for such other period as it may prescribe and may prescribe such fee therefor as it may deem reasonable. When any town license is required as provided for herein, the license shall be in lieu of any license required by any county ordinance. Any bicycle, electric personal assistive mobility device, electric power-assisted bicycle, or moped found and delivered to the police or sheriff's department by a private person that thereafter remains unclaimed for thirty days after the final date of publication as required herein may be given to the finder; however, the location and description of the bicycle, electric personal assistive mobility device, electric power-assisted bicycle, or moped shall be published at least once a week for two successive weeks in a newspaper of general circulation within the locality. In addition, if there is a license, tag, or adhesive license decal affixed to the bicycle, electric personal assistive mobility device, or electric power-assisted bicycle, or moped, the record owner shall be notified directly. Code 1950, § 15-554; 1962, c. 623, § 15.1-133; 1968, c. 24; 1970, c. 285; 1975, c. 76; 1986, c. 52; 1994, c. 449; 1997, c. 587; 2001, c. 834; 2002, c. 254; 2013, c. 783.

Va. Code § 15.2-1804.1

§ 15.2-1804.1. (For applicability, see Acts 2021, Sp. Sess. I, c. 473, cl. 2) Building by locality; high performance standards.A. As used in this section: "Appropriate resilience features" means features that are included to prepare for, by reducing risk or enabling recovery, acts of nature, failures of systems, or adversarial acts that could cause a major disruption to building functionality. A locality maintains the responsibility for identifying those potential hazards for which a project should prepare and for determining the sufficiency of the incorporated features to address the potential hazard, following consideration of any guidance pursuant to subsection E. "Commissioning" means the process of ensuring functional performance of mechanical equipment, water heating equipment, lighting, automated control systems, and building envelope, including the steps described in the ICC G4-2018 "Guideline for Commissioning" or successor guidelines and additional guidelines as may be applicable to such systems. "Design phase" means the design of a building construction or renovation project, which, until July 1, 2025, shall be inclusive of the issuance of a request for proposal and the project budget approval, and after July 1, 2025, shall be based on the effective execution date of the contract with the design team. "EV" means an electric vehicle. "High performance building certification program" means a public building design, construction, and renovation program that achieves certification using the U.S. Green Building Council's Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) green building rating standard or the Green Building Initiative's "Green Globes" building standard. For buildings 50,000 square feet and smaller, Earthcraft Light Commercial at the silver level may instead be used for certification under this section. "Locality" means a county, city, or town, inclusive of a school division. "Major disruption" means a disturbance that interrupts the normal activities that are conducted in a building for a duration of time that would require that building to temporarily or permanently cease operations. Localities may define the parameters that would constitute a major disruption based on the nature and duration of a disrupting event, as well as on building typology, consistent with any guidance pursuant to subsection E. "Sufficient ZEV charging and fueling infrastructure" means the provision of EV supply equipment, EV-ready charging electrical capacity and pre-wiring, or fueling infrastructure for other ZEVs that is deemed sufficient based on meeting relevant guidelines or recommendations available during the design phase of a project from either the Virginia Department of Energy pursuant to subsection E or the U.S. Department of Energy. "ZEV" means a zero-emissions vehicle. B. Any locality entering the design phase for the construction of a new building greater than 5,000 gross square feet in size, or the renovation of a building where the cost of the renovation exceeds 50 percent of the value of the building, shall ensure that such building: 1. Is designed, constructed, verified, and operated to comply with a high performance building certification program; 2. Has sufficient ZEV charging and fueling infrastructure; 3. Has features that permit the agency or institution to measure the building's energy consumption, including metering of all electricity, gas, water, and other utilities; and 4. Incorporates appropriate onsite renewable energy generation, energy storage, and resilience features as determined by the locality and following consideration of any guidance pursuant to subsection E. C. Notwithstanding the provisions of subsection B, for any such construction or renovation of a building that is less than 20,000 gross square feet in size, the locality may instead ensure that such building achieves the relevant ENERGY STAR certification and implement commissioning. In the event that the specific building type is not eligible for ENERGY STAR certification, then the locality shall demonstrate, using energy modeling, that the project has been designed to perform at least as well as the ENERGY STAR Target Finder value for that building type or that the project has been designed to meet equivalent standards for such building types as provided in guidance pursuant to subsection E. D. Upon a finding that special circumstances make the construction or renovation to the standards impracticable, the governing body of such locality may, by resolution, grant an exemption from any such design and construction standards. Such resolution shall be made in writing and shall explain the basis for granting the exemption. If the local governing body cites cost as a factor in granting an exemption, the local governing body shall include a comparison of the cost the locality will incur over the next 20 years or the lifecycle of the project, whichever is shorter, if the locality does not comply with the standards required by subsection B versus the costs to the locality if the locality were to comply with such standards. E. The Department of Energy shall upon request provide technical assistance related to subsections A, B, and C to localities subject to available budgetary resources. Such technical assistance may include the issuance of guidance. F. Any local governing body may, by ordinance, adopt its own green design and construction program. When a local program includes standards that address all of the requirements in subsection B and is equal in stringency to or more stringent than the standards in subsection B, the locality shall be deemed compliant with the provisions of this section. 2021, Sp. Sess. I, c. 473; 2024, cc. 687, 706.

Va. Code § 15.2-1902

§ 15.2-1902. Condemnation proceedings generally.Except where otherwise authorized by any applicable charter provision, a locality shall exercise the power of eminent domain in the manner, and in accordance with the procedures, set out in Chapter 2 (§ 25.1-200 et seq.) or Chapter 3 (§ 25.1-300 et seq.) of Title 25.1, except that: 1. Only lands or easements for (i) streets and roads, (ii) drainage facilities, (iii) water supply and sewage disposal systems, including pipes and lines, and (iv) water, sewer and governmentally owned gas, electricity, telephone, telegraph and other utility lines and pipes and related facilities, except to the extent otherwise prohibited by law, may be condemned using the procedures in Chapter 3 of Title 25.1, as provided by the applicable provisions of §§ 15.2-1904 and 15.2-1905, because the foregoing enumerated uses are inherently public uses when undertaken by a locality; 2. Existing water and sewage disposal systems in their entirety shall be condemned in accordance with the procedures in § 15.2-1906; 3. Oyster bottoms and grounds may be condemned utilizing the procedures in Chapter 3 of Title 25.1, as required by § 28.2-628; and 4. The provisions of §§ 33.2-1007 through 33.2-1011, 33.2-1014, and 33.2-1017 shall be applicable, mutatis mutandis, with respect to any condemnation by a locality of property for highway purposes. 1997, c. 587; 2003, c. 940; 2012, c. 832.

Va. Code § 15.2-2017

§ 15.2-2017. Public utilities not to use streets without consent.No street railway, gas, water, steam or electric heating, electric light or power, cold storage, compressed air, viaduct, conduit, telephone or bridge company, nor any corporation, association, person, or partnership engaged in these or like enterprises, shall be permitted to use the streets, alleys or public grounds of a city or town, without the previous consent of the corporate authorities of such city or town. Code 1950, § 15-774; 1962, c. 623, § 15.1-375; 1997, c. 587.

Va. Code § 15.2-2100

§ 15.2-2100. Restrictions on selling certain municipal public property and granting franchises.A. No rights of a city or town in and to its waterfront, wharf property, public landings, wharves, docks, streets, avenues, parks, bridges, or other public places, or its gas, water, or electric works shall be sold except by an ordinance passed by a recorded affirmative vote of three-fourths of all the members elected to the council, notwithstanding any contrary provision of law, general or special, and under such other restrictions as may be imposed by law. Notwithstanding any contrary provision of law, general or special, in case of a veto by the mayor of such an ordinance, it shall require a recorded affirmative vote of three-fourths of all the members elected to the council to override the veto. B. No franchise, lease or right of any kind to use any such public property or any other public property or easement of any description, in a manner not permitted to the general public, shall be granted for a period longer than forty years, except for air rights together with easements for columns for support, which may be granted for a period not exceeding sixty years. Before granting any such franchise or privilege for a term in excess of five years, except for a trunk railway, the city or town shall, after due advertisement, publicly receive bids therefor, in such manner as is provided by § 15.2-2102, and shall then act as may be required by law. Such grant, and any contract in pursuance thereof, may provide that, upon the termination of the grant, the plant as well as the property, if any, of the grantee in the streets, avenues and other public places shall thereupon, without compensation to the grantee, or upon the payment of a fair valuation become the property of the city or town; but the grantee shall be entitled to no payment by reason of the value of the franchise. Any such plant or property acquired by a city or town may be sold or leased or, if authorized by general law, maintained, controlled, and operated by such city or town. Every such grant shall specify the mode of determining any valuation therein provided for and shall make adequate provisions by way of forfeiture of the grant, or otherwise, to secure efficiency of public service at reasonable rates and the maintenance of the property in good order throughout the term of the grant. C. Any additional restriction now required in any existing municipal charter relating to the powers of cities and towns in selling or granting franchises or leasing any of their property is hereby superseded; however, nothing herein contained shall be construed as affecting the term of any existing franchise, lease or right. The requirement of an affirmative three-fourths vote of council shall apply only to the sale of the listed properties and not to their franchise, lease or use. D. The provisions of this section shall only apply to cities or towns and shall not apply to counties or other political subdivisions. Code 1950, § 15-727; 1962, c. 623, § 15.1-307; 1971, Ex. Sess., c. 64; 1997, c. 587; 2001, c. 498.

Va. Code § 15.2-2108.1

§ 15.2-2108.1:1. Franchise fees and public rights-of-way fees on cable operators.A. As used in this section: "Cable operator" means any person or group of persons that (i) provides cable service over a cable system and directly or through one or more affiliates owns a significant interest in such cable system or (ii) otherwise controls or is responsible for, through any arrangement, the management and operation of a cable system, whether or not the operator has entered into a franchise agreement with a locality. Cable operator does not include a provider of wireless or direct-to-home satellite transmission service. "Cable service" means the one-way transmission to subscribers of (i) video programming as defined in 47 U.S.C. § 522 (20) or (ii) other programming service, and subscriber interaction, if any, which is required for the selection of such video programming or other programming service. Cable service does not include any video programming provided by a commercial mobile service provider as defined in 47 U.S.C. § 332 (d) and any direct-to-home satellite service as defined in 47 U.S.C. § 303 (v). "Cable system" or "cable television system" means any facility consisting of a set of closed transmission paths and associated signal generation, reception, and control equipment that is designed to provide cable service that includes video programming and that is provided to multiple subscribers within a community, except that such definition shall not include (i) a system that serves fewer than 20 subscribers; (ii) a facility that serves only to retransmit the television signals of one or more television broadcast stations; (iii) a facility that serves only subscribers without using any public right-of-way; (iv) a facility of a common carrier that is subject, in whole or in part, to the provisions of Title II of the Communications Act of 1934, 47 U.S.C. § 201 et seq., except that such facility shall be considered a cable system to the extent such facility is used in the transmission of video programming directly to subscribers, unless the extent of such use is solely to provide interactive on-demand services; (v) any facilities of any electric utility used solely for operating its electric systems; (vi) any portion of a system that serves fewer than 50 subscribers in any locality, where such portion is a part of a larger system franchised in an adjacent locality; or (vii) an open video system that complies with § 653 of Title VI of the Communications Act of 1934, as amended, 47 U.S.C. § 573. "Franchise" means an initial authorization, or renewal thereof, issued by a franchising authority, including a locality or the Commonwealth Transportation Board, whether such authorization is designated as a franchise, permit, license, resolution, contract, certificate, agreement, or otherwise, that authorizes the construction or operation of a cable system, a telecommunications system, or other facility in the public rights-of-way, including either a negotiated cable franchise or an ordinance cable franchise. B. Notwithstanding any other provision of law, if a cable operator uses the public rights-of-way the cable operator shall be subject to the Public Rights-of-Way Use Fee as provided in § 56-468.1. Any limitation as to fees charged for the use of the public rights-of-way shall not be applicable to pole attachments and conduit occupancy agreements between a cable operator and a locality or its authority or commission, which permits such operator to use the public poles or conduits. C. Notwithstanding any other provision of law, no new or renewed cable franchise entered into on or after January 1, 2007, shall include a franchise fee as long as cable services are subject to the Virginia Communications Sales and Use Tax (§ 58.1-645 et seq.). Franchise fee as used in this subsection shall have the same meaning as that term is defined in 47 U.S.C. § 542 (g). 1. All cable franchises in effect as of January 1, 2007, shall remain in full force and effect, and nothing in this section shall impair any obligation of any such agreement; provided, however, that any requirement in such an existing franchise for payment of a monetary franchise fee based on the gross revenues of the franchisee shall be fulfilled in the manner specified in subdivision 2. 2. Each cable operator owing monetary payments for franchise fees, until the expiration of one or more such existing franchises, shall include with its monthly remittance of the Communications Sales and Use Tax a report, by locality, of the amounts due for franchise fees accruing during that month. The Department of Taxation shall, on behalf of the cable operator in the relevant locality, then distribute to each county, city, or town the amount reported by each locality's franchisee(s). Such payments shall reduce the cable operator's franchise fee liability. The monthly distributions shall be paid from the Communications Sales and Use Tax Trust Fund before making the other calculations and distributions required by § 58.1-662. Until distributed to the individual localities, such amounts shall be deemed to be held in trust for their respective accounts. 3. A locality's acceptance of any payment under subdivision 2 shall not prejudice any rights of the locality under the applicable cable franchises (i) to audit or demand adjustment of the amounts reported by its franchisee, or (ii) to enforce the provisions of the franchise by any lawful administrative or judicial means. 2006, c. 780. Article 1.1. Provision of Cable Television Services by Certain Localities.

Va. Code § 15.2-2108.11

§ 15.2-2108.11. General operating limitations.A. A municipality that provides a cable television service shall comply with all terms and provisions of the Cable Communications Policy Act of 1984 (47 U.S.C. § 521 et seq.) and the regulations issued by the Federal Communications Commission under such Act that would be applicable to a similarly situated private provider of cable television services. B. A municipality may not cross subsidize its cable television services with: 1. Tax dollars; 2. Income from other municipal or utility services; 3. Below-market rate loans from the municipality; or 4. Any other means. C. A municipality shall not make or grant any undue or unreasonable preference or advantage to itself or to any private provider of cable television services. D. A municipality shall apply, without discrimination as to itself and to any private provider, the municipality's ordinances, rules, and policies, including those relating to (i) obligation to serve; (ii) access to public rights of way and municipal utility poles and conduits; (iii) permitting; (iv) performance bonding; (v) reporting; and (vi) quality of service. E. In calculating the rates charged by a municipality for a cable television service: 1. The municipality shall include within its rates an amount equal to all taxes, fees, and other assessments that would be applicable to a similarly situated private provider of the same services, including federal, state, and local taxes; franchise fees; permit fees; pole attachment fees; and any similar fees; and 2. The municipality shall not price any cable television service at a level that is less than the sum of: (i) the actual direct costs of providing the service; (ii) the actual indirect costs of providing the service; and (iii) the amount determined under subdivision E 1. F. A municipality that provides cable television services shall comply with the provisions of Title 47 of the Code of Federal Regulations regarding rate and service changes. G. A municipality shall offer to provide or provide cable television services to only those subscriber locations within either (i) the municipality's electric utility service area as it existed on January 1, 2003, or (ii) the area, as of January 1, 2003, in which the municipality was providing local exchange service or Internet service over telecommunications facilities owned by the municipality, provided that a cable television franchise from any jurisdiction other than the municipality authorized herein shall be required for any service outside the municipality's boundaries. H. A municipality shall keep accurate books and records of the municipality's cable television services. A municipality shall conduct an annual audit of its books and records associated with the municipality's cable television services, such audit to be performed by an independent auditor approved by the Auditor of Public Accounts. Such audit shall include such criteria as the Auditor of Public Accounts deems appropriate and be filed with him, with copies to be submitted to each private provider that holds a franchise to offer service within the municipality. If, after review of such audit, the Commonwealth's Auditor of Public Accounts determines that there are violations of this article, he shall provide public notice of same. I. Notwithstanding any other provision of law, the Auditor of Public Accounts shall not disclose those portions of any comprehensive business plan that reveal marketing strategies of a municipal cable television service except as necessary to perform his duties and such information shall be otherwise exempt from public disclosure and not subject to the provisions of the Virginia Freedom of Information Act (§ 2.2-3700 et seq.). 2003, c. 677; 2004, c. 586.

Va. Code § 15.2-2108.19

§ 15.2-2108.19. Definitions.As used in this article: "Act" means the Communications Act of 1934. "Affiliate," in relation to any person, means another person who owns or controls, is owned or controlled by, or is under common ownership or control with, such person. "Basic service tier" means the service tier that includes (i) the retransmission of local television broadcast channels and (ii) public, educational, and governmental channels required to be carried in the basic tier. "Cable operator" means any person or group of persons that (i) provides cable service over a cable system and directly or through one or more affiliates owns a significant interest in such cable system or (ii) otherwise controls or is responsible for, through any arrangement, the management and operation of a cable system. Cable operator does not include a provider of wireless or direct-to-home satellite transmission service. "Cable service" means the one-way transmission to subscribers of (i) video programming or (ii) other programming service, and subscriber interaction, if any, which is required for the selection or use of such video programming or other programming service. Cable service does not include any video programming provided by a commercial mobile service provider defined in 47 U.S.C. § 332 (d). "Cable system" or "cable television system" means any facility consisting of a set of closed transmission paths and associated signal generation, reception, and control equipment that is designed to provide cable service that includes video programming and that is provided to multiple subscribers within a community, except that such definition shall not include (i) a system that serves fewer than 20 subscribers; (ii) a facility that serves only to retransmit the television signals of one or more television broadcast stations; (iii) a facility that serves only subscribers without using any public right-of-way; (iv) a facility of a common carrier that is subject, in whole or in part, to the provisions of Title II of the Communications Act of 1934, 47 U.S.C. § 201 et seq., except that such facility shall be considered a cable system to the extent such facility is used in the transmission of video programming directly to subscribers, unless the extent of such use is solely to provide interactive on-demand services; (v) any facilities of any electric utility used solely for operating its electric systems; (vi) any portion of a system that serves fewer than 50 subscribers in any locality, where such portion is a part of a larger system franchised in an adjacent locality; or (vii) an open video system that complies with § 653 of Title VI of the Communications Act of 1934, as amended, 47 U.S.C. § 573. "Certificated provider of telecommunications services" means a person holding a certificate issued by the State Corporation Commission to provide local exchange telephone service. "Force majeure" means an event or events reasonably beyond the ability of the cable operator to anticipate and control. "Force majeure" includes, but is not limited to, acts of God, incidences of terrorism, war or riots, labor strikes or civil disturbances, floods, earthquakes, fire, explosions, epidemics, hurricanes, tornadoes, governmental actions and restrictions, work delays caused by waiting for utility providers to service or monitor or provide access to utility poles to which the cable operator's facilities are attached or to be attached or conduits in which the cable operator's facilities are located or to be located, and unavailability of materials or qualified labor to perform the work necessary. "Franchise" means an initial authorization, or renewal thereof, issued by a franchising authority, including a locality or the Commonwealth Transportation Board, whether such authorization is designated as a franchise, permit, license, resolution, contract, certificate, agreement, or otherwise, that authorizes the construction or operation of a cable system, a telecommunications system, or other facility in the public rights-of-way. A negotiated cable franchise is granted by a locality after negotiation with an applicant pursuant to § 15.2-2108.20. An ordinance cable franchise is granted by a locality when an applicant provides notice pursuant to § 15.2-2108.21 that it will provide cable service in the locality. "Gross revenue" means all revenue, as determined in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles, that is actually received by the cable operator and derived from the operation of the cable system to provide cable services in the franchise area; however, in an ordinance cable franchise "gross revenue" shall not include: (i) refunds or rebates made to subscribers or other third parties; (ii) any revenue which is received from the sale of merchandise over home shopping channels carried on the cable system, but not including revenue received from home shopping channels for the use of the cable service to sell merchandise; (iii) any tax, fee, or charge collected by the cable operator and remitted to a governmental entity or its agent or designee, including without limitation a local public access or education group; (iv) program launch fees; (v) directory or Internet advertising revenue including, but not limited to, yellow page, white page, banner advertisement, and electronic publishing; (vi) a sale of cable service for resale or for use as a component part of or for the integration into cable services to be resold in the ordinary course of business, when the reseller is required to pay or collect franchise fees or similar fees on the resale of the cable service; (vii) revenues received by any affiliate or any other person in exchange for supplying goods or services used by the cable operator to provide cable service; and (viii) revenue derived from services classified as noncable services under federal law, including, without limitation, revenue derived from telecommunications services and information services, and any other revenues attributed by the cable operator to noncable services in accordance with rules, regulations, standards, or orders of the Federal Communications Commission. "Interactive on-demand services" means a service providing video programming to subscribers over switched networks on an on-demand, point-to-point basis, but does not include services providing video programming prescheduled by the programming provider. "Ordinance" includes a resolution. "Transfer" means any transaction in which (i) an ownership or other interest in the cable operator is transferred, directly or indirectly, from one person or group of persons to another person or group of persons, so that majority control of the cable operator is transferred; or (ii) the rights and obligations held by the cable operator under the cable franchise granted under this article are transferred or assigned to another person or group of persons. However, notwithstanding clauses (i) and (ii) of the preceding sentence, a transfer of the cable franchise shall not include (a) transfer of an ownership or other interest in the cable operator to the parent of the cable operator or to another affiliate of the cable operator; (b) transfer of an interest in the cable franchise granted under this article or the rights held by the cable operator under the cable franchise granted under this article to the parent of the cable operator or to another affiliate of the cable operator; (c) any action that is the result of a merger of the parent of the cable operator; (d) any action that is the result of a merger of another affiliate of the cable operator; or (e) a transfer in trust, by mortgage, or by assignment of any rights, title, or interest of the cable operator in the cable franchise or the system used to provide cable in order to secure indebtedness. "Video programming" means programming provided by, or generally considered comparable to, programming provided by a television broadcast station. All terms used herein, unless otherwise defined, shall have the same meaning as set forth in Title VI of the Communications Act of 1934, 47 U.S.C. § 521 et seq. In addition, references in this article to any federal law shall include amendments thereto as are enacted from time-to-time. 2006, cc. 73, 76.

Va. Code § 15.2-2109

§ 15.2-2109. Powers of localities as to public utilities and computer services; prevention of pollution of certain water.A. Any locality may (i) acquire or otherwise obtain control of or (ii) establish, maintain, operate, extend and enlarge: waterworks, sewerage, gas works (natural or manufactured), electric plants, public mass transportation systems, stormwater management systems and other public utilities within or outside the limits of the locality and may acquire within or outside its limits in accordance with § 15.2-1800 whatever land may be necessary for acquiring, locating, establishing, maintaining, operating, extending or enlarging waterworks, sewerage, gas works (natural or manufactured), electric plants, public mass transportation systems, stormwater management systems and other public utilities, and the rights-of-way, rails, pipes, poles, conduits or wires connected therewith, or any of the fixtures or appurtenances thereof. As required by subsection C of § 15.2-1800, this section expressly authorizes a county to acquire real property for a public use outside its boundaries. The locality may also prevent the pollution of water and injury to waterworks for which purpose its jurisdiction shall extend to five miles beyond the locality. It may make, erect and construct, within or near its boundaries, drains, sewers and public ducts and acquire within or outside the locality in accordance with § 15.2-1800 so much land as may be necessary to make, erect, construct, operate and maintain any of the works or plants mentioned in this section. In the exercise of the powers granted by this section, localities shall be subject to the provisions of § 25.1-102 to the same extent as are corporations. The provisions of this section shall not be construed to confer upon any locality the power of eminent domain with respect to any public utility owned or operated by any other political subdivision of this Commonwealth. The provisions of this section shall not be construed to exempt localities from the provisions of Chapters 20 (§ 46.2-2000 et seq.), 22 (§ 46.2-2200 et seq.) and 23 (§ 46.2-2300 et seq.) of Title 46.2. B. A locality may not (i) acquire all of a public utility's facilities, equipment or appurtenances for the production, transmission or distribution of natural or manufactured gas, or of electric power, within the limits of such locality or (ii) take over or displace, in whole or in part, the utility services provided by such gas or electric public utility to customers within the limits of such locality until after the acquisition is authorized by a majority of the voters voting in a referendum held in accordance with the provisions of Article 5 (§ 24.2-681 et seq.) of Chapter 6 of Title 24.2 in such locality on the question of whether or not such facilities, equipment or appurtenances should be acquired or such services should be taken over or displaced; however, the provisions of this subsection shall not apply to the use of energy generated from landfill gas in the City of Lynchburg or Fairfax County. In no event, however, shall a locality be required to hold a referendum in order to provide gas or electric service to its own facilities. Notwithstanding any provision of this subsection, a locality may acquire public utility facilities or provide services to customers of a public utility with the consent of the public utility. No city or town which provided electric service as of January 1, 1994, shall be required to hold such a referendum prior to the acquisition of a public utility's facilities, equipment or appurtenances used for the production, transmission or distribution of electric power or to the provision of services to customers of a public utility. Nothing in this subsection shall be deemed to (a) create a property right or property interest or (b) affect or impair any existing property right or property interest of a public utility. C. The City of Bristol is authorized to provide computer services as defined in § 18.2-152.2. "Computer services" as used in this section shall specifically not include the communications link between the host computer and any person or entity other than (i) such locality's departments, offices, boards, commissions, agencies or other governmental divisions or entities or (ii) an adjoining locality's departments, offices, boards, commissions, agencies or other governmental divisions or entities. Code 1950, § 15-715; 1962, c. 623, § 15.1-292; 1970, c. 565; 1980, c. 483; 1994, c. 634; 1996, c. 384; 1997, c. 587; 2000, c. 663; 2003, c. 940; 2007, c. 813.

Va. Code § 15.2-2109.2

§ 15.2-2109.2. Mutual aid agreements for power and natural gas.Localities may enter into mutual aid agreements with investor-owned public utilities, electric cooperatives and interstate natural gas companies in order to prepare for, prevent, and restore power and natural gas outages and failures. Such authority shall include, without limitation, the power to enter into agreements relating to (i) contingency plans, (ii) emergency communications, (iii) sharing of resources and personnel, and (iv) system upgrades, maintenance, and repair. 2004, c. 693.

Va. Code § 15.2-2115

§ 15.2-2115. Purchase of gas, electric and water plants operating in contiguous territory.Whenever a locality leases or purchases any gas, electric or water plant operating within territory contiguous to the locality, the locality so leasing or purchasing shall have all of the rights, privileges and franchises of the person from which the property was leased or purchased and the power to operate, maintain and extend service lines in all the territory which the plant so leased or purchased had the right to do. Any locality leasing or purchasing any property hereunder shall be obligated to furnish, from the property so leased or purchased, or from any other source, an adequate supply of gas, electricity or water to the consumers of any person whose plant was leased or purchased. In the exercise of the powers granted by this section, localities shall be subject to the provisions of § 25.1-102 to the same extent as are corporations. Code 1950, § 15-716; 1962, c. 623, § 15.1-293; 1997, c. 587; 2003, c. 940.

Va. Code § 15.2-2121.2

§ 15.2-2121.2. Disconnection suspension for utilities.A. 1. No electric utility shall disconnect from service any residential customer for the nonpayment of bills or fees (i) when the forecasted temperature low is at or below 32 degrees Fahrenheit within the 24 hours following the scheduled disconnection or (ii) when the forecasted temperature is at or above 92 degrees Fahrenheit within the 24 hours following the scheduled disconnection. 2. No gas utility shall disconnect from service any residential customer for nonpayment of bills or fees when the forecasted temperature low is at or below 32 degrees Fahrenheit within the 24 hours following the scheduled disconnection. 3. No water or wastewater utility shall disconnect from service any residential customer when the forecasted temperature is at or above 92 degrees Fahrenheit within the 24 hours following the scheduled disconnection. 4. To ascertain the projected temperature as provided in this subsection, each utility shall refer to the forecasted local temperature provided by the National Weather Service where the customer to be disconnected is located. B. No utilities shall disconnect from service any residential customer for nonpayment of bills or fees on Fridays, weekends, state holidays, or the day immediately preceding a state holiday. C. Nothing in this section shall be construed to limit utilities from voluntarily suspending scheduled disconnections during other extreme weather events, emergency conditions, or circumstances in which a utility determines such suspension is necessary to protect the health and safety of its customers and the reliability of utility service in the Commonwealth. Further, nothing in this section shall be construed to prohibit (i) a disconnection required by the conditions of subdivision A 8 of § 56-247.1, (ii) emergency disconnections for health and safety purposes, or (iii) the occurrence of an automatic service suspension associated with prepaid utility service. Any fees or expenses incurred by a utility in complying with the requirements of this section shall be recovered by the utility. 2024, cc. 790, 824.

Va. Code § 15.2-2121.3

§ 15.2-2121.3. Notice procedures for nonpayment; disconnecting utility service.A. Each utility subject to the provisions of this article shall provide to each of its residential customers a copy of its disconnection for nonpayment policy (i) at any time a new residential account is established, (ii) when any disconnection for nonpayment of bills or fees is scheduled by including a copy of the policy with such notice, or (iii) by publishing the disconnection policy on the utility's website. Each such utility shall provide all required notices in English and Spanish. Such required notices shall include information regarding payment plans and state, federal, or utility energy assistance programs. B. Each utility subject to the provisions of this article shall deliver notice of nonpayment of bills or fees to its residential customers prior to disconnection by using at least one of the following methods: (i) mail, (ii) email, (iii) text message, (iv) phone call, or (v) door hanger. C. Utility disconnections due to the nonpayment of bills or fees are prohibited for residential customers until the customer's account is 45 days in arrears. After each missed payment, the utility shall provide notice pursuant to subsection B and make contact with the customer and offer bill payment assistance, arrange a payment plan, or provide information to the customer for other bill payment assistance or energy savings programs. D. No electric or gas utility shall require a deposit of more than 25 percent of the arrearage amount for service, exclusive of nonpayment fees, penalties, or interest, in order to restore service to any residential customer where such utility received funding from the Department of Social Services for such customer through the Home Energy Assistance Program pursuant to § 63.2-805 within the last 12 months. A customer is eligible for this provision once every three years. 2024, cc. 790, 824. Article 3. Sewage Disposal Systems Generally.

Va. Code § 15.2-2160

§ 15.2-2160. Provision of telecommunications services.A. Any locality that operates an electric distribution system may provide telecommunications services, including local exchange telephone service as defined in § 56-1, within or outside its boundaries if the locality obtains a certificate pursuant to § 56-265.4:4. Such locality may provide telecommunications services within any locality in which it has electric distribution system facilities as of March 1, 2002. Any locality providing telecommunications services on March 1, 2002, may provide telecommunications, Internet access, broadband, information, and data transmission services within any locality within 75 miles of the geographic boundaries of its electric distribution system as such system existed on March 1, 2002. The BVU Authority may provide telecommunications, Internet access, broadband, information, and data transmission services as provided in the BVU Authority Act (§ 15.2-7200 et seq.). B. A locality that has obtained a certificate pursuant to § 56-265.4:4 shall (i) comply with all applicable laws and regulations for the provision of telecommunications services; (ii) make a reasonable estimate of the amount of all federal, state, and local taxes (including income taxes and consumer utility taxes) that would be required to be paid or collected for each fiscal year if the locality were a for-profit provider of telecommunications services, (iii) prepare reasonable estimates of the amount of any franchise fees and other state and local fees (including permit fees and pole rental fees), and right-of-way charges that would be incurred in each fiscal year if the locality were a for-profit provider of telecommunications services, (iv) prepare and publish annually financial statements in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles showing the results of operations of its provision of telecommunications services, and (v) maintain records demonstrating compliance with the provisions of this section that shall be made available for inspection and copying pursuant to the Virginia Freedom of Information Act (§ 2.2-3700 et seq.). C. Each locality that has obtained a certificate pursuant to § 56-265.4:4 shall provide nondiscriminatory access to for-profit providers of telecommunications services on a first-come, first-served basis to rights-of-way, poles, conduits or other permanent distribution facilities owned, leased or operated by the locality unless the facilities have insufficient capacity for such access and additional capacity cannot reasonably be added to the facilities. D. The prices charged and the revenue received by a locality for providing telecommunications services shall not be cross-subsidized by other revenues of the locality or affiliated entities, except (i) in areas where no offers exist from for-profit providers of such telecommunications services, or (ii) as permitted by the provisions of subdivision B 5 of § 56-265.4:4. The provisions of this subsection shall not apply to Internet access, broadband, information, and data transmission services provided by any locality providing telecommunications services on March 1, 2002. E. No locality providing such services shall acquire by eminent domain the facilities or other property of any telecommunications service provider to offer cable, telephone, data transmission or other information or online programming services. F. Public records of a locality that has obtained a certificate pursuant to § 56-265.4:4, which records contain confidential proprietary information or trade secrets pertaining to the provision of telecommunications service, shall be exempt from disclosure under the Freedom of Information Act (§ 2.2-3700 et seq.). As used in this subsection, a public record contains confidential proprietary information or trade secrets if its acquisition by a competing provider of telecommunications services would provide the competing provider with a competitive benefit. However, the exemption provided by this subsection shall not apply to any authority created pursuant to the BVU Authority Act (§ 15.2-7200 et seq.). G. As used in this section, "locality" shall mean any county, city, town, authority, or other governmental entity which provides or seeks to provide telecommunications services. Every locality shall comply with the requirements of § 56-265.4:4 or 56-484.7:1 unless otherwise specifically exempt. Any locality that has obtained a certificate pursuant to § 56-265.4:4, and which surrenders or transfers such certificate shall continue to remain subject to subsections C, D, and E if any substantial part of its telecommunications assets or operations are transferred to an entity in which the locality has the right to appoint board members, directors, or managers. 2002, cc. 479, 489; 2003, c. 720; 2005, c. 258; 2006, cc. 73, 76; 2010, cc. 117, 210; 2016, cc. 724, 725. Chapter 22. Planning, Subdivision of Land and Zoning. Article 1. General Provisions.

Va. Code § 15.2-2202

§ 15.2-2202. Duties of state agencies; electric utilities.A. The Department of Environmental Quality shall distribute a copy of the environmental impact report submitted to the Department for every major state project pursuant to regulations promulgated under § 10.1-1191 to the chief administrative officer of every locality in which each project is proposed to be located. The purpose of the distribution is to enable the locality to evaluate the proposed project for environmental impact, consistency with the locality's comprehensive plan, local ordinances adopted pursuant to this chapter, and other applicable law and to provide the locality with an opportunity to comment. The Department shall distribute the reports to localities, solicit their comments, and consider their responses in substantially the same manner as the Department solicits and receives comments from state agencies. B. In addition to the information supplied under subsection A, every department, board, bureau, commission, or other agency of the Commonwealth which is responsible for the construction, operation, or maintenance of public facilities within any locality shall, upon the request of the local planning commission having authority to prepare a comprehensive plan, furnish reasonable information requested by the local planning commission relative to the master plans of the state agency which may affect the locality's comprehensive plan. Each state agency shall collaborate and cooperate with the local planning commission, when requested, in the preparation of the comprehensive plan to the end that the local comprehensive plan will coordinate the interests and responsibilities of all concerned. The state agency shall notify the chief administrative officer of the locality when updates to its land use plans are completed and available. C. Every state agency responsible for the construction, operation or maintenance of public facilities within the Commonwealth shall send a notice addressed to the chief administrative officer of every locality in which the agency intends to undertake a capital project involving new construction costing at least $500,000. The notice shall occur at the initiation of the environmental impact report process. This notice shall include a project description and a point of contact with contact information for the project. A notice shall also be given during the planning phase of the project and prior to preparation of construction and site plans and shall inform localities that preliminary construction and site plans will be available for distribution, upon the request of the locality. Agencies shall not be required to give such notice prior to acquisition of property. The purpose of the notice and distribution is to enable the locality to evaluate the project for consistency with local ordinances other than building codes and to provide the locality with an opportunity to submit comments to the agency during the planning phase of a project. Upon receipt of a request from a locality, the state agency shall transmit a copy of the plans to the locality for comment or conduct at least one public meeting in the locality to solicit public input during the planning phase of the project. D. Every institution of higher education responsible for the construction, operation or maintenance of public facilities within the Commonwealth shall send a notice addressed to the chief administrative officer of every locality in which the institution intends to undertake a capital project involving new construction costing at least $500,000. The notice shall occur at the initiation of the environmental impact report process. This notice shall include a project description and a point of contact with contact information for the project. A notice shall also be given during the planning phase of the project and prior to preparation of construction and site plans and shall inform the locality that preliminary construction and site plans will be available for distribution, upon request of the locality. Institutions shall not be required to give such notice prior to acquisition of property. The purpose of the notice and distribution is to enable the locality to evaluate the project for consistency with local ordinances other than building codes and to provide the locality with an opportunity to submit comments to the agency during the planning phase of a project. Upon receipt of a request from a locality, the institution shall transmit a copy of the plans to the locality for comment or conduct at least one public meeting in the locality to solicit public input during the planning phase of the project. E. Every electric utility that is responsible for the construction, operation, and maintenance of electric transmission lines of 150 kilovolts or more shall furnish reasonable information requested by the local planning commission having authority to prepare a comprehensive plan within the utility's certificated service area relative to any electric transmission line of 150 kilovolts or more that may affect the locality's comprehensive plan. If the locality seeks to include the designation of corridors or routes for electric transmission lines of 150 kilovolts or more in its comprehensive plan, the local planning commission shall give the electric utility a reasonable opportunity for consultation about such corridors or routes. The electric utility shall notify the chief administrative officer of every locality in which the electric utility plans to undertake construction of any electric transmission line of 150 kilovolts or more, prior to the filing of any application for approval of such construction with the State Corporation Commission, of its intention to file any such application and shall give the locality a reasonable opportunity for consultation about such line. F. Nothing in this section shall be construed to require any state agency or electric utility to duplicate any submission required to be made by the agency or the electric utility to a locality under any other provision of law. G. Nothing herein shall be deemed to abridge the authority of any state agency or the State Corporation Commission regarding the facilities now or hereafter coming under its jurisdiction. However, failure of any state agency to strictly comply with subsection C will justify entry of an injunction on behalf of the locality. H. The provisions of this section shall not apply to highway, transit or other projects, as provided in subsection B of § 10.1-1188. I. The provisions of this section shall not apply to the entering of any option by any state agency or electric utility for any projects listed in subsection C, D or E. 1993, c. 786, § 15.1-428.1; 1997, c. 587; 2001, c. 281; 2007, c. 761; 2011, c. 699; 2022, c. 480.

Va. Code § 15.2-2204

§ 15.2-2204. Advertisement of plans, ordinances, etc.; joint public hearings; written notice of certain amendments.A. Plans or ordinances, or amendments thereof, recommended or adopted under the powers conferred by this chapter need not be advertised in full, but may be advertised by reference. Every such advertisement shall identify the place or places within the locality where copies of the proposed plans, ordinances or amendments may be examined. The local planning commission shall not recommend nor the governing body adopt any plan, ordinance or amendment thereof until notice of intention to do so has been published twice in some newspaper published or having general circulation in the locality, with the first notice appearing no more than 28 days before and the second notice appearing no less than five days before the date of the meeting referenced in the notice; however, the notice for both the local planning commission and the governing body may be published concurrently. The notice shall specify the time and place of hearing at which persons affected may appear and present their views. The local planning commission and governing body may hold a joint public hearing after public notice as set forth in this subsection. If a joint hearing is held, then public notice as set forth in this subsection need be given only by the governing body. In any instance in which a locality has submitted a correct and timely notice request to such newspaper and the newspaper fails to publish the notice, or publishes the notice incorrectly, such locality shall be deemed to have met the notice requirements of this subsection so long as the notice was published in the next available edition of a newspaper having general circulation in the locality. After enactment of any plan, ordinance or amendment, further publication thereof shall not be required. B. When a proposed amendment of the zoning ordinance involves a change in the zoning map classification of 25 or fewer parcels of land, then, in addition to the advertising as required by subsection A, the advertisement shall include the street address or tax map parcel number of the parcels subject to the action. Written notice shall be given by the local planning commission, or its representative, at least five days before the hearing to the owner or owners, their agent or the occupant, of each parcel involved; to the owners, their agent or the occupant, of all abutting property and property immediately across the street or road from the property affected, including those parcels that lie in other localities of the Commonwealth; and, if any portion of the affected property is within a planned unit development, then to such incorporated property owner's associations within the planned unit development that have members owning property located within 2,000 feet of the affected property as may be required by the commission or its agent. However, when a proposed amendment to the zoning ordinance involves a tract of land not less than 500 acres owned by the Commonwealth or by the federal government, and when the proposed change affects only a portion of the larger tract, notice need be given only to the owners of those properties that are adjacent to the affected area of the larger tract. One notice sent by registered, certified, or first-class mail to the last known address of such owner as shown on the current real estate tax assessment books or current real estate tax assessment records shall be deemed adequate compliance with this requirement, provided that a representative of the local planning commission shall make affidavit that such mailings have been made and file such affidavit with the papers in the case. If the hearing is continued, notice shall be remailed. Costs of any notice required under this chapter shall be taxed to the applicant. When a proposed amendment of the zoning ordinance involves a change in the zoning map classification of more than 25 parcels of land, or a change to the applicable zoning ordinance text regulations that decreases the allowed dwelling unit density of any parcel of land, then, in addition to the advertising as required by subsection A, the advertisement shall include the street address or tax map parcel number of the parcels as well as the approximate acreage subject to the action. For more than 100 parcels of land, the advertisement may instead include a description of the boundaries of the area subject to the changes and a link to a map of the subject area. Written notice shall be given by the local planning commission, or its representative, at least five days before the hearing to the owner, owners, or their agent of each parcel of land involved, provided, however, that written notice of such changes to zoning ordinance text regulations shall not have to be mailed to the owner, owners, or their agent of lots shown on a subdivision plat approved and recorded pursuant to the provisions of Article 6 (§ 15.2-2240 et seq.) where such lots are less than 11,500 square feet. One notice sent by first-class mail to the last known address of such owner as shown on the current real estate tax assessment books or current real estate tax assessment records shall be deemed adequate compliance with this requirement, provided that a representative of the local planning commission shall make affidavit that such mailings have been made and file such affidavit with the papers in the case. Nothing in this subsection shall be construed as to invalidate any subsequently adopted amendment or ordinance because of the inadvertent failure by the representative of the local planning commission to give written notice to the owner, owners, or their agent of any parcel involved. The governing body may provide that, in the case of a condominium or a cooperative, the written notice may be mailed to the unit owners' association or proprietary lessees' association, respectively, in lieu of each individual unit owner. Whenever the notices required hereby are sent by an agency, department, or division of the local governing body, or their representative, such notices may be sent by first-class mail; however, a representative of such agency, department, or division shall make affidavit that such mailings have been made and file such affidavit with the papers in the case. A party's actual notice of, or active participation in, the proceedings for which the written notice provided by this section is required shall waive the right of that party to challenge the validity of the proceeding due to failure of the party to receive the written notice required by this section. C. When a proposed comprehensive plan or amendment thereto; a proposed change in zoning map classification; or an application for special exception for a change in use or to increase by greater than 50 percent of the bulk or height of an existing or proposed building, but not including renewals of previously approved special exceptions, involves any parcel of land located within one-half mile of a boundary of an adjoining locality of the Commonwealth, then, in addition to the advertising and written notification as required by this section, written notice shall also be given by the local planning commission, or its representative, at least 10 days before the hearing to the chief administrative officer, or his designee, of such adjoining locality. D. When (i) a proposed comprehensive plan or amendment thereto, (ii) a proposed change in zoning map classification, or (iii) an application for special exception for a change in use involves any parcel of land located within 3,000 feet of a boundary of a military base, military installation, military airport, excluding armories operated by the Virginia National Guard, or licensed public-use airport then, in addition to the advertising and written notification as required by this section, written notice shall also be given by the local planning commission, or its representative, at least 30 days before the hearing to the commander of the military base, military installation, military airport, or owner of such public-use airport, and the notice shall advise the military commander or owner of such public-use airport of the opportunity to submit comments or recommendations. E. The adoption or amendment prior to July 1, 1996, of any plan or ordinance under the authority of prior acts shall not be declared invalid by reason of a failure to advertise or give notice as may be required by such act or by this chapter, provided a public hearing was conducted by the governing body prior to such adoption or amendment. Every action contesting a decision of a locality based on a failure to advertise or give notice as may be required by this chapter shall be filed within 30 days of such decision with the circuit court having jurisdiction of the land affected by the decision. However, any litigation pending prior to July 1, 1996, shall not be affected by the 1996 amendment to this section. F. Notwithstanding any contrary provision of law, general or special, the City of Richmond may cause such notice to be published in any newspaper of general circulation in the city. G. When a proposed comprehensive plan or amendment of an existing plan designates or alters previously designated corridors or routes for electric transmission lines of 150 kilovolts or more, written notice shall also be given by the local planning commission, or its representative, at least 10 days before the hearing to each electric utility with a certificated service territory that includes all or any part of such designated electric transmission corridors or routes. H. When any applicant requesting a written order, requirement, decision, or determination from the zoning administrator, other administrative officer, or a board of zoning appeals that is subject to the appeal provisions contained in § 15.2-2311 or 15.2-2314, is not the owner or the agent of the owner of the real property subject to the written order, requirement, decision or determination, written notice shall be given to the owner of the property within 10 days of the receipt of such request. Such written notice shall be given by the zoning administrator or other administrative officer or, at the direction of the administrator or officer, the requesting applicant shall be required to give the owner such notice and to provide satisfactory evidence to the zoning administrator or other administrative officer that the notice has been given. Written notice mailed to the owner at the last known address of the owner as shown on the current real estate tax assessment books or current real estate tax assessment records shall satisfy the notice requirements of this subsection. This subsection shall not apply to inquiries from the governing body, planning commission, or employees of the locality made in the normal course of business. Code 1950, § 15-961.4; 1962, c. 407, § 15.1-431; 1964, c. 632; 1968, cc. 354, 714; 1973, cc. 117, 334; 1974, cc. 100, 570; 1975, c. 641; 1976, c. 642; 1977, c. 65; 1982, c. 291; 1990, c. 61; 1992, cc. 353, 757; 1993, cc. 128, 734; 1994, c. 774; 1995, c. 178; 1996, cc. 613, 667; 1997, c.; 2001, c. 406; 2002, c. 634; 2004, cc. 539, 799; 2005, c. 514; 2007, cc. 761, 813; 2011, c. 457; 2012, c. 548; 2013, cc. 149, 213; 2022, c. 478; 2023, cc. 506, 507; 2024, cc. 225, 242; 2025, cc. 52, 171.

Va. Code § 15.2-2223

§ 15.2-2223. Comprehensive plan to be prepared and adopted; scope and purpose.A. The local planning commission shall prepare and recommend a comprehensive plan for the physical development of the territory within its jurisdiction and every governing body shall adopt a comprehensive plan for the territory under its jurisdiction. In the preparation of a comprehensive plan, the commission shall make careful and comprehensive surveys and studies of the existing conditions and trends of growth, and of the probable future requirements of its territory and inhabitants. The comprehensive plan shall be made with the purpose of guiding and accomplishing a coordinated, adjusted, and harmonious development of the territory that will, in accordance with present and probable future needs and resources, best promote the health, safety, morals, order, convenience, prosperity, and general welfare of the inhabitants, including the elderly and persons with disabilities. The comprehensive plan shall be general in nature, in that it shall designate the general or approximate location, character, and extent of each feature, including any road improvement and any transportation improvement, shown on the plan and shall indicate where existing lands or facilities are proposed to be extended, widened, removed, relocated, vacated, narrowed, abandoned, or changed in use as the case may be. B. 1. As part of the comprehensive plan, each locality shall develop a transportation plan that designates a system of transportation infrastructure needs and recommendations that include the designation of new and expanded transportation facilities and that support the planned development of the territory covered by the plan and shall include, as appropriate, roadways, bicycle accommodations, pedestrian accommodations, railways, bridges, waterways, airports, ports, freight corridors, and public transportation facilities. The plan shall recognize and differentiate among a hierarchy of roads such as expressways, arterials, and collectors. In developing the plan, the locality shall take into consideration how to align transportation infrastructure and facilities with affordable, accessible housing and community services that are located within the territory to facilitate community integration of the elderly and persons with disabilities. The Department of Transportation shall, upon request, provide localities with technical assistance in preparing such transportation plan. 2. The transportation plan shall include a map that shows road and transportation improvements, including the cost estimates of such road and transportation improvements from the Department of Transportation, taking into account the current and future needs of residents in the locality while considering the current and future needs of the planning district within which the locality is situated. 3. The transportation plan and any amendment to such plan pursuant to § 15.2-2229 shall be consistent with the Commonwealth Transportation Board's Statewide Transportation Plan developed pursuant to § 33.2-353, the Six-Year Improvement Program adopted pursuant to subsection B of § 33.2-214, and the location of routes to be followed by roads comprising systems of state highways pursuant to subsection A of § 33.2-208. The locality shall consult with the Department of Transportation to assure such consistency is achieved. The transportation plan need reflect only those changes in the annual update of the Six-Year Improvement Program that are deemed to be significant, new, expanded, or relocated roadways. 4. Prior to the adoption of the transportation plan or any amendment to such plan, the locality shall submit such plan or amendment to the Department of Transportation for review and comment. The Department of Transportation shall conduct its review and provide written comments to the locality on the consistency of the transportation plan or any amendment to the provisions of subdivision 1. The Department of Transportation shall provide such written comments to the locality within 90 days of receipt of the plan or amendment, or such other shorter period of time as may be otherwise agreed upon by the Department of Transportation and the locality. 5. The locality shall submit a copy of the adopted transportation plan or any amendment to such plan to the Department of Transportation for informational purposes. If the Department of Transportation determines that such plan or amendment is not consistent with the provisions of subdivision 1, the Department of Transportation shall notify the Commonwealth Transportation Board so that the Board may take appropriate action in accordance with subsection F of § 33.2-214. 6. If the adopted transportation plan designates corridors planned to be served by mass transit, as defined in § 33.2-100, a portion of its allocation from (i) the Northern Virginia Transportation Authority distribution specified in subdivision B 1 of § 33.2-2510, (ii) the commercial and industrial real property tax revenue specified in § 58.1-3221.3, and (iii) the secondary system road construction program, as described in Article 5 (§ 33.2-351 et seq.) of Chapter 3 of Title 33.2, may be used for the purpose of utility undergrounding in the planned corridor, if the locality matches 100 percent of the state allocation. 7. Each locality's amendments to its transportation plan shall be made on or before its ongoing scheduled date for updating its transportation plan. C. The comprehensive plan, with the accompanying maps, plats, charts, and descriptive matter, shall show the locality's long-range recommendations for the general development of the territory covered by the plan. It may include: 1. The designation of areas for various types of public and private development and use, such as residential, including age-restricted housing, tiny homes, or accessory dwelling units; business; industrial; agricultural; mineral resources; conservation; active and passive recreation; public service; and flood plain and drainage. For purposes of this subdivision, the term "tiny home" means a dwelling that is 400 square feet or less in floor area, excluding lofts, and the term "accessory dwelling unit" means an independent dwelling unit on a single-family dwelling lot with its own living, bathroom, and kitchen space. An accessory dwelling unit may be within or attached to a single-family dwelling unit or in a detached structure on a lot containing a single-family dwelling; 2. The designation of a system of community service facilities such as parks, sports playing fields, forests, schools, playgrounds, public buildings and institutions, hospitals, nursing homes, assisted living facilities, community centers, waterworks, sewage disposal or waste disposal areas, and the like; 3. The designation of historical areas and areas for urban renewal or other treatment; 4. The designation of areas for the implementation of reasonable measures to provide for the continued availability, quality, and sustainability of groundwater and surface water; 5. A capital improvements program, a subdivision ordinance, a zoning ordinance, and zoning district maps, mineral resource district maps, and agricultural and forestal district maps, where applicable; 6. The location of existing or proposed recycling centers; 7. The location of military bases, military installations, and military airports and their adjacent safety areas; and 8. The designation of corridors or routes for electric transmission lines of 150 kilovolts or more. D. The comprehensive plan shall include the designation of areas and implementation of measures for the construction, rehabilitation, and maintenance of affordable housing, which is sufficient to meet the current and future needs of residents of all levels of income in the locality while considering the current and future needs of the planning district within which the locality is situated. E. The comprehensive plan shall consider strategies to provide broadband infrastructure that is sufficient to meet the current and future needs of residents and businesses in the locality. To this end, local planning commissions may consult with and receive technical assistance from the Center for Innovative Technology, among other resources. F. The comprehensive plan is encouraged to consider strategies to address resilience. As used in this subsection, "resilience" means the capability to anticipate, prepare for, respond to, and recover from significant multi-hazard threats with minimum damage to social well-being, health, the economy, and the environment. 1975, c. 641, § 15.1-446.1; 1976, c. 650; 1977, c. 228; 1988, c. 268; 1989, c. 532; 1990, c. 19; 1993, cc. 116, 758; 1996, cc. 585, 600; 1997, c.; 2003, c. 811; 2004, cc. 691, 799; 2005, cc. 466, 699; 2006, cc. 527, 563, 564; 2007, c. 761; 2012, cc. 729, 733; 2013, cc. 561, 585, 646, 656; 2014, cc. 397, 443; 2018, cc. 420, 691, 796, 828; 2023, cc. 353, 354, 424; 2025, c. 570.

Va. Code § 15.2-2224

§ 15.2-2224. Surveys and studies to be made in preparation of plan; implementation of plan.A. In the preparation of a comprehensive plan, the local planning commission shall survey and study such matters as the following: 1. Use of land, preservation of agricultural and forestal land, production of food and fiber, characteristics and conditions of existing development, trends of growth or changes, natural resources, historic areas, groundwater and surface water availability, quality, and sustainability, geologic factors, population factors, employment, environmental and economic factors, existing public facilities, drainage, flood control and flood damage prevention measures, dam break inundation zones and potential impacts to downstream properties to the extent that information concerning such information exists and is available to the local planning authority, the transmission of electricity, broadband infrastructure, road improvements, and any estimated cost thereof, transportation facilities, transportation improvements, and any cost thereof, the need for affordable housing in both the locality and planning district within which it is situated, and any other matters relating to the subject matter and general purposes of the comprehensive plan. However, if a locality chooses not to survey and study historic areas, then the locality shall include historic areas in the comprehensive plan, if such areas are identified and surveyed by the Department of Historic Resources. Furthermore, if a locality chooses not to survey and study mineral resources, then the locality shall include mineral resources in the comprehensive plan, if such areas are identified and surveyed by the Department of Energy. The requirement to study the production of food and fiber shall apply only to those plans adopted on or after January 1, 1981. 2. Probable future economic and population growth of the territory and requirements therefor. B. The comprehensive plan shall recommend methods of implementation and shall include a current map of the area covered by the comprehensive plan. Unless otherwise required by this chapter, the methods of implementation may include but need not be limited to: 1. An official map; 2. A capital improvements program; 3. A subdivision ordinance; 4. A zoning ordinance and zoning district maps; 5. A mineral resource map; 6. A recreation and sports resource map; and 7. A map of dam break inundation zones. Code 1950, § 15-964.1; 1962, c. 407, § 15.1-447; 1975, c. 641; 1977, c. 228; 1980, c. 322; 1981, c. 418; 1988, c. 438; 1990, c. 97; 1991, c. 280; 1993, cc. 758, 770; 1996, cc. 585, 600; 1997, c. 587; 2006, c. 564; 2007, c. 761; 2008, c. 491; 2018, cc. 420, 691; 2021, Sp. Sess. I, c. 532.

Va. Code § 15.2-2232

§ 15.2-2232. Legal status of plan.A. Whenever a local planning commission recommends a comprehensive plan or part thereof for the locality and such plan has been approved and adopted by the governing body, it shall control the general or approximate location, character and extent of each feature shown on the plan. Thereafter, unless a feature is already shown on the adopted master plan or part thereof or is deemed so under subsection D, no street or connection to an existing street, park or other public area, public building or public structure, public utility facility or public service corporation facility other than a railroad facility or an underground natural gas or underground electric distribution facility of a public utility as defined in subdivision (b) of § 56-265.1 within its certificated service territory, whether publicly or privately owned, shall be constructed, established or authorized, unless and until the general location or approximate location, character, and extent thereof has been submitted to and approved by the commission as being substantially in accord with the adopted comprehensive plan or part thereof. In connection with any such determination, the commission may, and at the direction of the governing body shall, hold a public hearing, after notice as required by § 15.2-2204. Following the adoption of the Statewide Transportation Plan by the Commonwealth Transportation Board pursuant to § 33.2-353 and written notification to the affected local governments, each local government through which one or more of the designated corridors of statewide significance traverses, shall, at a minimum, note such corridor or corridors on the transportation plan map included in its comprehensive plan for information purposes at the next regular update of the transportation plan map. Prior to the next regular update of the transportation plan map, the local government shall acknowledge the existence of corridors of statewide significance within its boundaries. B. The commission shall communicate its findings to the governing body, indicating its approval or disapproval with written reasons therefor. The governing body may overrule the action of the commission by a vote of a majority of its membership. Failure of the commission to act within 60 days of a submission, unless the time is extended by the governing body, shall be deemed approval. The owner or owners or their agents may appeal the decision of the commission to the governing body within 10 days after the decision of the commission. The appeal shall be by written petition to the governing body setting forth the reasons for the appeal. The appeal shall be heard and determined within 60 days from its filing. A majority vote of the governing body shall overrule the commission. C. Widening, narrowing, extension, enlargement, vacation or change of use of streets or public areas shall likewise be submitted for approval, but paving, repair, reconstruction, improvement, drainage or similar work and normal service extensions of public utilities or public service corporations shall not require approval unless such work involves a change in location or extent of a street or public area. D. Any public area, facility, park or use as set forth in subsection A which is identified within, but not the entire subject of, a submission under either § 15.2-2258 for subdivision or subdivision A 8 of § 15.2-2286 for development or both may be deemed a feature already shown on the adopted master plan, and, therefore, excepted from the requirement for submittal to and approval by the commission or the governing body, provided that the governing body has by ordinance or resolution defined standards governing the construction, establishment or authorization of such public area, facility, park or use or has approved it through acceptance of a proffer made pursuant to § 15.2-2303. E. Approval and funding of a public telecommunications facility on or before July 1, 2012, by the Virginia Public Broadcasting Board pursuant to Article 12 (§ 2.2-2426 et seq.) of Chapter 24 of Title 2.2 or after July 1, 2012, by the Board of Education pursuant to § 22.1-20.1 shall be deemed to satisfy the requirements of this section and local zoning ordinances with respect to such facility with the exception of television and radio towers and structures not necessary to house electronic apparatus. The exemption provided for in this subsection shall not apply to facilities existing or approved by the Virginia Public Telecommunications Board prior to July 1, 1990. The Board of Education shall notify the governing body of the locality in advance of any meeting where approval of any such facility shall be acted upon. F. On any application for a telecommunications facility, the commission's decision shall comply with the requirements of the Federal Telecommunications Act of 1996. Failure of the commission to act on any such application for a telecommunications facility under subsection A submitted on or after July 1, 1998, within 90 days of such submission shall be deemed approval of the application by the commission unless the governing body has authorized an extension of time for consideration or the applicant has agreed to an extension of time. The governing body may extend the time required for action by the local commission by no more than 60 additional days. If the commission has not acted on the application by the end of the extension, or by the end of such longer period as may be agreed to by the applicant, the application is deemed approved by the commission. G. A proposed telecommunications tower or a facility constructed by an entity organized pursuant to Chapter 9.1 (§ 56-231.15 et seq.) of Title 56 shall be deemed to be substantially in accord with the comprehensive plan and commission approval shall not be required if the proposed telecommunications tower or facility is located in a zoning district that allows such telecommunications towers or facilities by right. H. A solar facility subject to subsection A shall be deemed to be substantially in accord with the comprehensive plan if (i) such proposed solar facility is located in a zoning district that allows such solar facilities by right; (ii) such proposed solar facility is designed to serve the electricity or thermal needs of the property upon which such facility is located, or will be owned or operated by an eligible customer-generator or eligible agricultural customer-generator under § 56-594 or 56-594.01 or by a small agricultural generator under § 56-594.2; or (iii) the locality waives the requirement that solar facilities be reviewed for substantial accord with the comprehensive plan. All other solar facilities shall be reviewed for substantial accord with the comprehensive plan in accordance with this section. However, a locality may allow for a substantial accord review for such solar facilities to be advertised and approved concurrently in a public hearing process with a rezoning, special exception, or other approval process. Code 1950, §§ 15-909, 15-923, 15-964.10; 1958, c. 389; 1960, c. 567; 1962, c. 407, § 15.1-456; 1964, c. 528; 1966, c. 596; 1968, c. 290; 1975, c. 641; 1976, c. 291; 1978, c. 584; 1982, c. 39; 1987, c. 312; 1989, c. 532; 1990, c. 633; 1997, cc. 587, 858; 1998, c. 683; 2007, c. 801; 2009, cc. 670, 690; 2012, cc. 803, 835; 2016, c. 613; 2018, cc. 175, 318; 2020, c. 665; 2022, c. 181. Article 4. The Official Map.

Va. Code § 15.2-2241

§ 15.2-2241. Mandatory provisions of a subdivision ordinance.A. A subdivision ordinance shall include reasonable regulations and provisions that apply to or provide: 1. For plat details which shall meet the standard for plats as adopted under § 42.1-82 of the Virginia Public Records Act (§ 42.1-76 et seq.); 2. For the coordination of streets within and contiguous to the subdivision with other existing or planned streets within the general area as to location, widths, grades and drainage, including, for ordinances and amendments thereto adopted on or after January 1, 1990, for the coordination of such streets with existing or planned streets in existing or future adjacent or contiguous to adjacent subdivisions; 3. For adequate provisions for drainage and flood control, for adequate provisions related to the failure of impounding structures and impacts within dam break inundation zones, and other public purposes, and for light and air, and for identifying soil characteristics; 4. For the extent to which and the manner in which streets shall be graded, graveled or otherwise improved and water and storm and sanitary sewer and other public utilities or other community facilities are to be installed; 5. For the acceptance of dedication for public use of any right-of-way located within any subdivision or section thereof, which has constructed or proposed to be constructed within the subdivision or section thereof, any street, curb, gutter, sidewalk, bicycle trail, drainage or sewerage system, waterline as part of a public system or other improvement dedicated for public use, and maintained by the locality, the Commonwealth, or other public agency, and for the provision of other site-related improvements required by local ordinances for vehicular ingress and egress, including traffic signalization and control, for public access streets, for structures necessary to ensure stability of critical slopes, and for storm water management facilities, financed or to be financed in whole or in part by private funds only if the owner or developer (i) certifies to the governing body that the construction costs have been paid to the person constructing such facilities or, at the option of the local governing body, presents evidence satisfactory to the governing body that the time for recordation of any mechanics lien has expired or evidence that any debt for said construction that may be due and owing is contested and further provides indemnity with adequate surety in an amount deemed sufficient by the designated agent; (ii) furnishes to the governing body a certified check or cash escrow in the amount of the estimated costs of construction or a personal, corporate or property bond, with surety satisfactory to the designated agent, in an amount sufficient for and conditioned upon the construction of such facilities, or a contract for the construction of such facilities and the contractor's bond, with like surety, in like amount and so conditioned; or (iii) furnishes to the governing body a bank or savings institution's letter of credit on certain designated funds satisfactory to the designated agent as to the bank or savings institution, the amount and the form. The amount of such certified check, cash escrow, bond, or letter of credit shall not exceed the total of the estimated cost of construction based on unit prices for new public or private sector construction in the locality and a reasonable allowance for estimated administrative costs, inflation, and potential damage to existing roads or utilities, which shall not exceed 10 percent of the estimated construction costs. If the owner or developer defaults on construction of such facilities, and such facilities are constructed by the surety or with funding from the aforesaid check, cash escrow, bond or letter of credit, the locality shall be entitled to retain or collect the allowance for administrative costs to the extent the costs of such construction do not exceed the total of the originally estimated costs of construction and the allowance for administrative costs. "Such facilities," as used in this section, means those facilities specifically provided for in this section. If a developer records a final plat which may be a section of a subdivision as shown on an approved preliminary subdivision plat and furnishes to the governing body a certified check, cash escrow, bond, or letter of credit in the amount of the estimated cost of construction of the facilities to be dedicated within said section for public use and maintained by the locality, the Commonwealth, or other public agency, the developer shall have the right to record the remaining sections shown on the preliminary subdivision plat for a period of five years from the recordation date of any section, or for such longer period as the local commission or other agent may, at the approval, determine to be reasonable, taking into consideration the size and phasing of the proposed development, subject to the terms and conditions of this subsection and subject to engineering and construction standards and zoning requirements in effect at the time that each remaining section is recorded. In the event a governing body of a county, wherein the highway system is maintained by the Department of Transportation, has accepted the dedication of a road for public use and such road due to factors other than its quality of construction is not acceptable into the secondary system of state highways, then such governing body may, if so provided by its subdivision ordinance, require the subdivider or developer to furnish the county with a maintenance and indemnifying bond, with surety satisfactory to the designated agent, in an amount sufficient for and conditioned upon the maintenance of such road until such time as it is accepted into the secondary system of state highways. In lieu of such bond, the designated agent may accept a bank or savings institution's letter of credit on certain designated funds satisfactory to the designated agent as to the bank or savings institution, the amount and the form, or accept payment of a negotiated sum of money sufficient for and conditioned upon the maintenance of such road until such time as it is accepted into the secondary system of state highways and assume the subdivider's or developer's liability for maintenance of such road. "Maintenance of such road" as used in this section, means maintenance of the streets, curb, gutter, drainage facilities, utilities or other street improvements, including the correction of defects or damages and the removal of snow, water or debris, so as to keep such road reasonably open for public usage; 6. For conveyance of common or shared easements to franchised cable television operators furnishing cable television and public service corporations furnishing cable television, gas, telephone and electric service to the proposed subdivision. Once a developer conveys an easement that will permit electric, cable or telephone service to be furnished to a subdivision, the developer shall, within 30 days after written request by a cable television operator or telephone service provider, grant an easement to that cable television operator or telephone service provider for the purpose of providing cable television and communications services to that subdivision, which easement shall be geographically coextensive with the electric service easement, or if only a telephone or cable service easement has been granted, then geographically coextensive with that telephone or cable service easement; however, the developer and franchised cable television operator or telephone service provider may mutually agree on an alternate location for an easement. If the final subdivision plat is recorded and does not include conveyance of a common or shared easement as provided herein, the designated agent shall not be responsible to enforce the requirements of this subdivision; 7. For monuments of specific types to be installed establishing street and property lines; 8. That unless a plat is filed for recordation within six months after final approval thereof or such longer period as may be approved by the governing body, such approval shall be withdrawn and the plat marked void and returned to the approving official; however, in any case where construction of facilities to be dedicated for public use has commenced pursuant to an approved plan or permit with surety approved by the designated agent, or where the developer has furnished surety to the designated agent by certified check, cash escrow, bond, or letter of credit in the amount of the estimated cost of construction of such facilities, the time for plat recordation shall be extended to one year after final approval or to the time limit specified in the surety agreement approved by the designated agent; 9. For the administration and enforcement of such ordinance, not inconsistent with provisions contained in this chapter, and specifically for the imposition of reasonable fees and charges for the review of plats and plans, and for the inspection of facilities required by any such ordinance to be installed; such fees and charges shall in no instance exceed an amount commensurate with the services rendered taking into consideration the time, skill and administrator's expense involved. All such charges heretofore made are hereby validated; 10. For reasonable provisions permitting a single division of a lot or parcel for the purpose of sale or gift to a member of the immediate family of the property owner in accordance with the provisions of § 15.2-2244; 11. For the periodic partial and final complete release of any bond, escrow, letter of credit, or other performance guarantee required by the governing body under this section in accordance with the provisions of § 15.2-2245; 12. For the review of plats, site plans, and plans of development solely involving parcels of commercial or residential real estate as set forth in §§ 15.2-2259 and 15.2-2260; and 13. For the identification of deficiencies, corrections, or modifications of proposed and resubmitted plats and plans as set forth in §§ 15.2-2259 and 15.2-2260. B. No locality shall require that any certified check, cash escrow, bond, letter of credit or other performance guarantee furnished pursuant to this chapter apply to, or include the cost of, any facility or improvement unless such facility or improvement is shown or described on the approved plat or plan of the project for which such guarantee is being furnished. Furthermore, the terms, conditions, and specifications contained in any agreement, contract, performance agreement, or similar document, however described or delineated, between a locality or its governing body and an owner or developer of property entered into pursuant to this chapter in conjunction with any performance guarantee, as described in this subsection, shall be limited to those items depicted or provided for in the approved plan, plat, permit application, or similar document for which such performance guarantee is applicable. Code 1950, §§ 15-781, 15-967.1; 1950, p. 183; 1962, c. 407, § 15.1-466; 1970, c. 436; 1973, cc. 169, 480; 1975, c. 641; 1976, c. 270; 1978, cc. 429, 439, 440; 1979, cc. 183, 188, 395; 1980, cc. 379, 381; 1981, c. 348; 1983, cc. 167, 609; 1984, c. 111; 1985, cc. 422, 455; 1986, c. 54; 1987, c. 717; 1988, cc. 279, 735; 1989, cc. 332, 393, 403, 495; 1990, cc. 170, 176, 287, 708, 973; 1991, cc. 30, 47, 288, 538; 1992, c. 380; 1993, cc. 836, 846, 864; 1994, c. 421; 1995, cc. 386, 388, 389, 452, 457, 474; 1996, cc. 77, 325, 452, 456; 1997, cc., 737; 2002, c. 517; 2004, c. 952; 2006, c. 670; 2008, cc. 491, 718; 2009, cc. 193, 194; 2010, cc. 149, 766; 2011, c. 512; 2012, c. 468; 2025, c. 594.

Va. Code § 15.2-2241.2

§ 15.2-2241.2. Bonding provisions for decommissioning of solar energy equipment, facilities, or devices.A. As used in this section, unless the context requires a different meaning: "Decommission" means the removal and proper disposal of solar energy equipment, facilities, or devices on real property that has been determined by the locality to be subject to § 15.2-2232 and therefore subject to this section. "Decommission" includes the reasonable restoration of the real property upon which such solar equipment, facilities, or devices are located, including (i) soil stabilization and (ii) revegetation of the ground cover of the real property disturbed by the installation of such equipment, facilities, or devices. "Solar energy equipment, facilities, or devices" means any personal property designed and used primarily for the purpose of collecting, generating, or transferring electric energy from sunlight. B. As part of the local legislative approval process or as a condition of approval of a site plan, a locality shall require an owner, lessee, or developer of real property subject to this section to enter into a written agreement to decommission solar energy equipment, facilities, or devices upon the following terms and conditions: (i) if the party that enters into such written agreement with the locality defaults in the obligation to decommission such equipment, facilities, or devices in the timeframe set out in such agreement, the locality has the right to enter the real property of the record title owner of such property without further consent of such owner and to engage in decommissioning, and (ii) such owner, lessee, or developer provides financial assurance of such performance to the locality in the form of certified funds, cash escrow, bond, letter of credit, or parent guarantee, based upon an estimate of a professional engineer licensed in the Commonwealth, who is engaged by the applicant, with experience in preparing decommissioning estimates and approved by the locality; such estimate shall not exceed the total of the projected cost of decommissioning, which may include the net salvage value of such equipment, facilities, or devices, plus a reasonable allowance for estimated administrative costs related to a default of the owner, lessee, or developer, and an annual inflation factor. 2019, cc. 743, 744.

Va. Code § 15.2-2269

§ 15.2-2269. Plans and specifications for utility fixtures and systems to be submitted for approval.A. If the owners of any such subdivision desire to construct in, on, under, or adjacent to any streets or alleys located in such subdivision any gas, water, sewer or electric light or power works, pipes, wires, fixtures or systems, they shall present plans or specifications therefor to the designated agent, for approval. If the subdivision is located beyond the corporate limits of a municipality but within the limits set forth in § 15.2-2248, such plans and specifications shall be presented for approval to the designated agent, if the county has not adopted a subdivision ordinance. The designated agent, shall have 45 days in which to approve or disapprove the same. In event of the failure of any designated agent, to act within such period, such plans and specifications may be submitted, after ten days' notice to the locality, to the circuit court for such locality for its approval or disapproval, and its approval thereof shall, for all purposes of this article be treated and considered as approval by the designated agent. B. Any state agency or public authority authorized by state law making a review of any plat forwarded to it under this article, including, without limitation, the Virginia Department of Transportation and authorities authorized by Chapter 51 (§ 15.2-5100 et seq.), shall complete its review within 45 days of receipt of the plans, provided, however, that the time periods set forth in § 15.2-2222.1 shall apply to plats triggering the applicability of said section. The Virginia Department of Transportation and authorities authorized by Chapter 51 (§ 15.2-5100 et seq.) shall allow use of public rights-of-way dedicated for public street purposes for placement of utilities by permit when practical and shall not unreasonably deny plan approval. If a state agency or public authority by state law does not approve the plan, it shall comply with the requirements, and be subject to the restrictions, set forth in subsection A of § 15.2-2259, with respect to the exception of the time period therein specified. Upon receipt of the approvals from all state agencies, the designated agent shall act upon a preliminary subdivision plat within 35 days. Code 1950, § 15-967.15; 1962, c. 407, § 15.1-480; 1997, c.; 2007, c. 202; 2008, c. 718; 2025, c. 594.

Va. Code § 15.2-2286

§ 15.2-2286. Permitted provisions in zoning ordinances; amendments; applicant to pay delinquent taxes; penalties.A. A zoning ordinance may include, among other things, reasonable regulations and provisions as to any or all of the following matters: 1. For variances or special exceptions, as defined in § 15.2-2201, to the general regulations in any district. 2. For the temporary application of the ordinance to any property coming into the territorial jurisdiction of the governing body by annexation or otherwise, subsequent to the adoption of the zoning ordinance, and pending the orderly amendment of the ordinance. 3. For the granting of special exceptions under suitable regulations and safeguards; notwithstanding any other provisions of this article, the governing body of any locality may reserve unto itself the right to issue such special exceptions. Conditions imposed in connection with residential special use permits, wherein the applicant proposes affordable housing, shall be consistent with the objective of providing affordable housing. When imposing conditions on residential projects specifying materials and methods of construction or specific design features, the approving body shall consider the impact of the conditions upon the affordability of housing. Conditions may include the period of validity for a special exception or special use permit; however, in the case of a special exception or special use permit for residential projects, the period of validity shall be no less than three years. The governing body or the board of zoning appeals of the Cities of Hampton and Norfolk may impose a condition upon any special exception or use permit relating to retail alcoholic beverage control licensees which provides that such special exception or use permit will automatically expire upon a change of ownership of the property, a change in possession, a change in the operation or management of a facility, or the passage of a specific period of time. The governing body of the City of Richmond may impose a condition upon any special use permit issued after July 1, 2000, relating to retail alcoholic beverage licensees which provides that such special use permit shall be subject to an automatic review by the governing body upon a change in possession, a change in the owner of the business, or a transfer of majority control of the business entity. Upon review by the governing body, it may either amend or revoke the special use permit after notice and a public hearing as required by § 15.2-2206. 4. For the administration and enforcement of the ordinance including the appointment or designation of a zoning administrator who may also hold another office in the locality. The zoning administrator shall have all necessary authority on behalf of the governing body to administer and enforce the zoning ordinance. His authority shall include (i) ordering in writing the remedying of any condition found in violation of the ordinance; (ii) insuring compliance with the ordinance, bringing legal action, including injunction, abatement, or other appropriate action or proceeding subject to appeal pursuant to § 15.2-2311; and (iii) in specific cases, making findings of fact and, with concurrence of the attorney for the governing body, conclusions of law regarding determinations of rights accruing under § 15.2-2307 or subsection C of § 15.2-2311. Whenever the zoning administrator has reasonable cause to believe that any person has engaged in or is engaging in any violation of a zoning ordinance that limits occupancy in a residential dwelling unit, which is subject to a civil penalty that may be imposed in accordance with the provisions of § 15.2-2209, and the zoning administrator, after a good faith effort to obtain the data or information necessary to determine whether a violation has occurred, has been unable to obtain such information, he may request that the attorney for the locality petition the judge of the general district court for his jurisdiction for a subpoena duces tecum against any such person refusing to produce such data or information. The judge of the court, upon good cause shown, may cause the subpoena to be issued. Any person failing to comply with such subpoena shall be subject to punishment for contempt by the court issuing the subpoena. Any person so subpoenaed may apply to the judge who issued the subpoena to quash it. Notwithstanding the provisions of § 15.2-2311, a zoning ordinance may prescribe an appeal period of less than 30 days, but not less than 10 days, for a notice of violation involving (a) the storage or disposal of nonagricultural excavation material, waste, and debris or (b) temporary or seasonal commercial uses, parking of commercial trucks in residential zoning districts, maximum occupancy limitations of a residential dwelling unit, or similar short-term, recurring violations. Where provided by ordinance, the zoning administrator may be authorized to grant a modification from any provision contained in the zoning ordinance with respect to physical requirements on a lot or parcel of land, including but not limited to size, height, location or features of or related to any building, structure, or improvements, if the administrator finds in writing that: (1) the strict application of the ordinance would produce undue hardship; (2) such hardship is not shared generally by other properties in the same zoning district and the same vicinity; and (3) the authorization of the modification will not be of substantial detriment to adjacent property and the character of the zoning district will not be changed by the granting of the modification. Prior to the granting of a modification, the zoning administrator shall give, or require the applicant to give, all adjoining property owners written notice of the request for modification, and an opportunity to respond to the request within 21 days of the date of the notice. The zoning administrator shall make a decision on the application for modification and issue a written decision with a copy provided to the applicant and any adjoining landowner who responded in writing to the notice sent pursuant to this paragraph. The decision of the zoning administrator shall constitute a decision within the purview of § 15.2-2311, and may be appealed to the board of zoning appeals as provided by that section. Decisions of the board of zoning appeals may be appealed to the circuit court as provided by § 15.2-2314. The zoning administrator shall respond within 90 days of a request for a decision or determination on zoning matters within the scope of his authority unless the requester has agreed to a longer period. If the decision or determination by the zoning administrator could impair the ability of an adjacent property owner to satisfy the minimum storage capacity and yield requirements for a residential drinking well pursuant to § 32.1-176.4 or any regulation adopted thereunder, the zoning administrator shall provide a copy of such decision or determination to such adjacent property owner so affected. 5. For the imposition of penalties upon conviction of any violation of the zoning ordinance. Any such violation shall be a misdemeanor punishable by a fine of not more than $1,000. If the violation is uncorrected at the time of the conviction, the court shall order the violator to abate or remedy the violation in compliance with the zoning ordinance, within a time period established by the court. Failure to remove or abate a zoning violation within the specified time period shall constitute a separate misdemeanor offense punishable by a fine of not more than $1,000; any such failure during a succeeding 10-day period shall constitute a separate misdemeanor offense punishable by a fine of not more than $1,500; and any such failure during any succeeding 10-day period shall constitute a separate misdemeanor offense for each 10-day period punishable by a fine of not more than $2,000. However, any conviction resulting from a violation of provisions regulating the storage or disposal of nonagricultural excavation material, waste, and debris shall be punishable by a fine of $2,000. Failure to abate the violation within the specified time period shall be punishable by a fine of $5,000, and any such failure during any succeeding 10-day period shall constitute a separate misdemeanor offense for each 10-day period punishable by a fine of $7,500. However, any conviction resulting from a violation of provisions regulating the number of unrelated persons in single-family residential dwellings shall be punishable by a fine of up to $2,000. Failure to abate the violation within the specified time period shall be punishable by a fine of up to $5,000, and any such failure during any succeeding 10-day period shall constitute a separate misdemeanor offense for each 10-day period punishable by a fine of up to $7,500. However, no such fine shall accrue against an owner or managing agent of a single-family residential dwelling unit during the pendency of any legal action commenced by such owner or managing agent of such dwelling unit against a tenant to eliminate an overcrowding condition in accordance with the Virginia Residential Landlord and Tenant Act (§ 55.1-1200 et seq.). A conviction resulting from a violation of provisions regulating the number of unrelated persons in single-family residential dwellings shall not be punishable by a jail term. 6. For the collection of fees to cover the cost of making inspections, issuing permits, advertising of notices and other expenses incident to the administration of a zoning ordinance or to the filing or processing of any appeal or amendment thereto. 7. For the amendment of the regulations or district maps from time to time, or for their repeal. Whenever the public necessity, convenience, general welfare, or good zoning practice requires, the governing body may by ordinance amend, supplement, or change the regulations, district boundaries, or classifications of property. Any such amendment may be initiated (i) by resolution of the governing body; (ii) by motion of the local planning commission; or (iii) by petition of the owner, contract purchaser with the owner's written consent, or the owner's agent therefor, of the property which is the subject of the proposed zoning map amendment, addressed to the governing body or the local planning commission, who shall forward such petition to the governing body; however, the ordinance may provide for the consideration of proposed amendments only at specified intervals of time, and may further provide that substantially the same petition will not be reconsidered within a specific period, not exceeding one year. Any such resolution or motion by such governing body or commission proposing the rezoning shall state the above public purposes therefor. In any county having adopted such zoning ordinance, all motions, resolutions or petitions for amendment to the zoning ordinance, and/or map shall be acted upon and a decision made within such reasonable time as may be necessary which shall not exceed 12 months unless the applicant requests or consents to action beyond such period or unless the applicant withdraws his motion, resolution or petition for amendment to the zoning ordinance or map, or both. In the event of and upon such withdrawal, processing of the motion, resolution or petition shall cease without further action as otherwise would be required by this subdivision. 8. For the submission and approval of a plan of development prior to the issuance of building permits to assure compliance with regulations contained in such zoning ordinance. 9. For areas and districts designated for mixed use developments or planned unit developments as defined in § 15.2-2201. 10. For the administration of incentive zoning as defined in § 15.2-2201. 11. For provisions allowing the locality to enter into a voluntary agreement with a landowner that would result in the downzoning of the landowner's undeveloped or underdeveloped property in exchange for a tax credit equal to the amount of excess real estate taxes that the landowner has paid due to the higher zoning classification. The locality may establish reasonable guidelines for determining the amount of excess real estate tax collected and the method and duration for applying the tax credit. For purposes of this section, "downzoning" means a zoning action by a locality that results in a reduction in a formerly permitted land use intensity or density. 12. Provisions for requiring and considering Phase I environmental site assessments based on the anticipated use of the property proposed for the subdivision or development that meet generally accepted national standards for such assessments, such as those developed by the American Society for Testing and Materials, and Phase II environmental site assessments, that also meet accepted national standards, such as, but not limited to, those developed by the American Society for Testing and Materials, if the locality deems such to be reasonably necessary, based on findings in the Phase I assessment, and in accordance with regulations of the United States Environmental Protection Agency and the American Society for Testing and Materials. A reasonable fee may be charged for the review of such environmental assessments. Such fees shall not exceed an amount commensurate with the services rendered, taking into consideration the time, skill, and administrative expense involved in such review. 13. Provisions to incorporate generally accepted national environmental protection and product safety standards for the use of solar panels and battery technologies for solar photovoltaic (electric energy) projects, such as those developed for existing product certifications and standards including the National Sanitation Foundation/American National Standards Institute No. 457, International Electrotechnical Commission No. 61215-2, Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers Standard 1547, and Underwriters Laboratories No. 61730-2. 14. Provisions for requiring disclosure and remediation of contamination and other adverse environmental conditions of the property prior to approval of subdivision and development plans. 15. For the enforcement of provisions of the zoning ordinance that regulate the number of persons permitted to occupy a single-family residential dwelling unit, provided such enforcement is in compliance with applicable local, state and federal fair housing laws. 16. For the issuance of inspection warrants by a magistrate or court of competent jurisdiction. The zoning administrator or his agent may make an affidavit under oath before a magistrate or court of competent jurisdiction and, if such affidavit establishes probable cause that a zoning ordinance violation has occurred, request that the magistrate or court grant the zoning administrator or his agent an inspection warrant to enable the zoning administrator or his agent to enter the subject dwelling for the purpose of determining whether violations of the zoning ordinance exist. After issuing a warrant under this section, the magistrate or judge shall file the affidavit in the manner prescribed by § 19.2-54. After executing the warrant, the zoning administrator or his agents shall return the warrant to the clerk of the circuit court of the city or county wherein the inspection was made. The zoning administrator or his agent shall make a reasonable effort to obtain consent from the owner or tenant of the subject dwelling prior to seeking the issuance of an inspection warrant under this section. B. Prior to the initiation of an application by the owner of the subject property, the owner's agent, or any entity in which the owner holds an ownership interest greater than 50 percent, for a special exception, special use permit, variance, rezoning or other land disturbing permit, including building permits and erosion and sediment control permits, or prior to the issuance of final approval, the authorizing body may require the applicant to produce satisfactory evidence that any delinquent real estate taxes, nuisance charges, stormwater management utility fees, and any other charges that constitute a lien on the subject property, that are owed to the locality and have been properly assessed against the subject property, have been paid, unless otherwise authorized by the treasurer. Code 1950, § 15-968.5; 1962, c. 407, § 15.1-491; 1964, c. 564; 1966, c. 455; 1968, cc. 543, 595; 1973, c. 286; 1974, c. 547; 1975, cc. 99, 575, 579, 582, 641; 1976, cc. 71, 409, 470, 683; 1977, c. 177; 1978, c. 543; 1979, c. 182; 1982, c. 44; 1983, c. 392; 1984, c. 238; 1987, c. 8; 1988, cc. 481, 856; 1989, cc. 359, 384; 1990, cc. 672, 868; 1992, c. 380; 1993, c. 672; 1994, c. 802; 1995, cc. 351, 475, 584, 603; 1996, c. 451; 1997, cc. 529, 543,; 1998, c. 385; 1999, c. 792; 2000, cc. 764, 817; 2001, c. 240; 2002, cc. 547, 703; 2005, cc. 625, 677; 2006, cc. 304, 514, 533, 903; 2007, cc. 821, 937; 2008, cc. 297, 317, 343, 581, 593, 720, 777; 2009, c. 721; 2012, cc. 304, 318; 2014, c. 354; 2017, c. 398; 2018, c. 726; 2020, cc. 312, 402, 442, 443, 893, 894; 2024, c. 301; 2025, c. 519.

Va. Code § 15.2-2288.7

§ 15.2-2288.7. Local regulation of solar facilities.A. An owner of a residential dwelling unit may install a solar facility on the roof of such dwelling to serve the electricity or thermal needs of that dwelling, provided that such installation is (i) in compliance with any height and setback requirements in the zoning district where such property is located and (ii) in compliance with any provisions pertaining to any local historic, architectural preservation, or corridor protection district adopted pursuant to § 15.2-2306 where such property is located. Unless a local ordinance provides otherwise, a ground-mounted solar energy generation facility to be located on property zoned residential shall be permitted, provided that such installation is (a) in compliance with any height and setback requirements in the zoning district where such property is located and (b) in compliance with any provisions pertaining to any local historic, architectural preservation, or corridor protection district adopted pursuant to § 15.2-2306 where such property is located. Except as provided herein, any other solar facility proposed on property zoned residential, including any solar facility that is designed to serve, or serves, the electricity or thermal needs of any property other than the property where such facilities are located, shall be subject to any applicable zoning regulations of the locality. B. An owner of real property zoned agricultural may install a solar facility on the roof of a residential dwelling on such property, or on the roof of another building or structure on such property, to serve the electricity or thermal needs of that property upon which such facilities are located, provided that such installation is (i) in compliance with any height and setback requirements in the zoning district where such property is located and (ii) in compliance with any provisions pertaining to any local historic, architectural preservation, or corridor protection district adopted pursuant to § 15.2-2306 where such property is located. Unless a local ordinance provides otherwise, a ground-mounted solar energy generation facility to be located on property zoned agricultural and to be operated under § 56-594 or 56-594.2 shall be permitted, provided that such installation is (a) in compliance with any height and setback requirements in the zoning district where such property is located and (b) in compliance with any provisions pertaining to any local historic, architectural preservation, or corridor protection district adopted pursuant to § 15.2-2306 where such property is located. Except as otherwise provided herein, any other solar facility proposed on property zoned agricultural, including any solar facility that is designed to serve, or serves, the electricity or thermal needs of any property other than the property where such facilities are located, shall be subject to any applicable zoning regulations of the locality. C. An owner of real property zoned commercial, industrial, or institutional may install a solar facility on the roof of one or more buildings located on such property to serve the electricity or thermal needs of that property upon which such facilities are located, provided that such installation is (i) in compliance with any height and setback requirements in the zoning district where such property is located and (ii) in compliance with any provisions pertaining to any local historic, architectural preservation, or corridor protection district adopted pursuant to § 15.2-2306 where such property is located. Unless a local ordinance provides otherwise, a ground-mounted solar energy generation facility to be located on property zoned commercial, industrial, or institutional shall be permitted, provided that such installation is (a) in compliance with any height and setback requirements in the zoning district where such property is located and (b) in compliance with any provisions pertaining to any local historic, architectural preservation, or corridor protection district adopted pursuant to § 15.2-2306 where such property is located. Except as otherwise provided herein, any other solar facility proposed on property zoned commercial, industrial, or institutional, including any solar facility that is designed to serve, or serves, the electricity or thermal needs of any property other than the property where such facilities are located, shall be subject to any applicable zoning regulations of the locality. D. An owner of real property zoned mixed-use may install a solar facility on the roof of one or more buildings located on such property to serve the electricity or thermal needs of that property upon which such facilities are located, provided that such installation is (i) in compliance with any height and setback requirements in the zoning district where such property is located and (ii) in compliance with any provisions pertaining to any local historic, architectural preservation, or corridor protection district adopted pursuant to § 15.2-2306 where such property is located. Unless a local ordinance provides otherwise, a ground-mounted solar energy generation facility to be located on property zoned mixed-use shall be permitted, provided that such installation is (a) in compliance with any height and setback requirements in the zoning district where such property is located and (b) in compliance with any provisions pertaining to any local historic, architectural preservation, or corridor protection district adopted pursuant to § 15.2-2306 where such property is located. Except as provided herein, any other solar facility proposed on property zoned mixed-use, including any solar facility that is designed to serve, or serves, the electricity or thermal needs of any property other than the property where such facilities are located, shall be subject to any applicable zoning regulations of the locality. E. Nothing in this section shall be construed to supersede or limit contracts or agreements between or among individuals or private entities related to the use of real property, including recorded declarations and covenants, the provisions of condominium instruments of a condominium created pursuant to the Virginia Condominium Act (§ 55.1-1900 et seq.), the declaration of a common interest community as defined in § 54.1-2345, the cooperative instruments of a cooperative created pursuant to the Virginia Real Estate Cooperative Act (§ 55.1-2100 et seq.), or any declaration of a property owners' association created pursuant to the Property Owners' Association Act (§ 55.1-1800 et seq.). F. A locality, by ordinance, may provide by-right authority for installation of solar facilities in any zoning classification in addition to that provided in this section. A locality may also, by ordinance, require a property owner or an applicant for a permit pursuant to the Uniform Statewide Building Code (§ 36-97 et seq.) who removes solar panels to dispose of such panels in accordance with such ordinance in addition to other applicable laws and regulations affecting such disposal. 2018, cc. 495, 496.

Va. Code § 15.2-2288.8

§ 15.2-2288.8. Special exceptions for solar photovoltaic projects.A. Any locality may grant a special exception pursuant to § 15.2-2286, and include in its zoning ordinance reasonable regulations and provisions for a special exception as defined in § 15.2-2201, for any solar photovoltaic (electric energy) project or energy storage project. For the purposes of this section, "energy storage project" means energy storage equipment and technology within an energy storage project that is capable of absorbing energy, storing such energy for a period of time, and redelivering such energy after it has been stored. B. The governing body of such locality may grant a condition that includes (i) dedication of real property of substantial value or (ii) substantial cash payments for or construction of substantial public improvements, the need for which is not generated solely by the granting of a conditional use permit, so long as such conditions are reasonably related to the project. C. Once a condition is granted pursuant to subsection B, such condition shall continue in effect until a subsequent amendment changes the zoning on the property for which the conditions were granted. However, such conditions shall continue if the subsequent amendment is part of a comprehensive implementation of a new or substantially revised zoning ordinance. 2020, cc. 385, 414; 2021, Sp. Sess. I, cc. 57, 58.

Va. Code § 15.2-2292.1

§ 15.2-2292.1. Zoning provisions for temporary family health care structures.A. Zoning ordinances for all purposes shall consider temporary family health care structures (i) for use by a caregiver in providing care for a mentally or physically impaired person and (ii) on property owned or occupied by the caregiver as his residence as a permitted accessory use in any single-family residential zoning district on lots zoned for single-family detached dwellings. Such structures shall not require a special use permit or be subjected to any other local requirements beyond those imposed upon other authorized accessory structures, except as otherwise provided in this section. Such structures shall comply with all setback requirements that apply to the primary structure and with any maximum floor area ratio limitations that may apply to the primary structure. Only one family health care structure shall be allowed on a lot or parcel of land. B. For purposes of this section: "Caregiver" means an adult who provides care for a mentally or physically impaired person within the Commonwealth. A caregiver shall be either related by blood, marriage, or adoption to or the legally appointed guardian of the mentally or physically impaired person for whom he is caring. "Mentally or physically impaired person" means a person who is a resident of Virginia and who requires assistance with two or more activities of daily living, as defined in § 63.2-2200, as certified in a writing provided by a physician licensed by the Commonwealth. "Temporary family health care structure" means a transportable residential structure, providing an environment facilitating a caregiver's provision of care for a mentally or physically impaired person, that (i) is primarily assembled at a location other than its site of installation; (ii) is limited to one occupant who shall be the mentally or physically impaired person or, in the case of a married couple, two occupants, one of whom is a mentally or physically impaired person, and the other requires assistance with one or more activities of daily living as defined in § 63.2-2200, as certified in writing by a physician licensed in the Commonwealth; (iii) has no more than 300 gross square feet; and (iv) complies with applicable provisions of the Industrialized Building Safety Law (§ 36-70 et seq.) and the Uniform Statewide Building Code (§ 36-97 et seq.). Placing the temporary family health care structure on a permanent foundation shall not be required or permitted. C. Any person proposing to install a temporary family health care structure shall first obtain a permit from the local governing body, for which the locality may charge a fee of up to $100. The locality may not withhold such permit if the applicant provides sufficient proof of compliance with this section. The locality may require that the applicant provide evidence of compliance with this section on an annual basis as long as the temporary family health care structure remains on the property. Such evidence may involve the inspection by the locality of the temporary family health care structure at reasonable times convenient to the caregiver, not limited to any annual compliance confirmation. D. Any temporary family health care structure installed pursuant to this section may be required to connect to any water, sewer, and electric utilities that are serving the primary residence on the property and shall comply with all applicable requirements of the Virginia Department of Health. E. No signage advertising or otherwise promoting the existence of the structure shall be permitted either on the exterior of the temporary family health care structure or elsewhere on the property. F. Any temporary family health care structure installed pursuant to this section shall be removed within 60 days of the date on which the temporary family health care structure was last occupied by a mentally or physically impaired person receiving services or in need of the assistance provided for in this section. G. The local governing body, or the zoning administrator on its behalf, may revoke the permit granted pursuant to subsection C if the permit holder violates any provision of this section. Additionally, the local governing body may seek injunctive relief or other appropriate actions or proceedings in the circuit court of that locality to ensure compliance with this section. The zoning administrator is vested with all necessary authority on behalf of the governing body of the locality to ensure compliance with this section. 2010, c. 296; 2013, c. 178.

Va. Code § 15.2-2295.1

§ 15.2-2295.1. Regulation of mountain ridge construction.A. As used in this section, unless the context requires a different meaning: "Construction" means the building, alteration, repair, or improvement of any building or structure. "Crest" means the uppermost line of a mountain or chain of mountains from which the land falls away on at least two sides to a lower elevation or elevations. "Protected mountain ridge" means a ridge with (i) an elevation of 2,000 feet or more and (ii) an elevation of 500 feet or more above the elevation of an adjacent valley floor. "Ridge" means the elongated crest or series of crests at the apex or uppermost point of intersection between two opposite slopes or sides of a mountain and includes all land within 100 feet below the elevation of any portion of such line or surface along the crest. "Tall buildings or structures" means any building, structure or unit within a multi-unit building with a vertical height of more than 40 feet, as determined by ordinance, measured from the top of the natural finished grade of the crest or the natural finished grade of the high side of the slope of a ridge to the uppermost point of the building, structure or unit. "Tall buildings or structures" does not include (i) water, radio, telecommunications or television towers or any equipment for the transmission of electricity, telephone or cable television; (ii) structures of a relatively slender nature and minor vertical projections of a parent building, including, but not limited to, chimneys, flagpoles, flues, spires, steeples, belfries, cupolas, antennas, poles, wires or windmills; or (iii) any building or structure designated as a historic landmark, building or structure by the United States or by the Board of Historic Resources. B. Determinations by the governing body of heights and elevations under this section shall be conclusive. C. Any locality in which a protected mountain ridge is located may, by ordinance, provide for the regulation of the height and location of tall buildings or structures on protected mountain ridges. The ordinance may be designed and adopted by the locality as an overlay zone superimposed on any preexisting base zone. D. An ordinance adopted under this section may include criteria for the granting or denial of permits for the construction of tall buildings or structures on protected mountain ridges. Any such ordinance shall provide that permit applications shall be denied if a permit application fails to provide for (i) adequate sewerage, water, and drainage facilities, including, but not limited to, facilities for drinking water and the adequate supply of water for fire protection and (ii) compliance with the Erosion and Sediment Control Law (§ 62.1-44.15:51 et seq.). E. Any locality that adopts an ordinance providing for the regulation of the height and location of tall buildings or structures on protected mountain ridges shall send a copy of the ordinance to the Secretary of Natural and Historic Resources. F. Nothing in this section shall be construed to affect or impair a governing body's authority under this chapter to define and regulate uses in any existing zoning district or to adopt overlay districts regulating uses on mountainous areas as defined by the governing body. 2000, c. 732; 2013, cc. 516, 756, 793; 2021, Sp. Sess. I, c. 401.

Va. Code § 15.2-2316.3

§ 15.2-2316.3. Definitions.As used in this article, unless the context requires a different meaning: "Administrative review-eligible project" means a project that provides for: 1. The installation or construction of a new structure that is not more than 50 feet above ground level, provided that the structure with attached wireless facilities is (i) not more than 10 feet above the tallest existing utility pole located within 500 feet of the new structure within the same public right-of-way or within the existing line of utility poles; (ii) not located within the boundaries of a local, state, or federal historic district; (iii) not located inside the jurisdictional boundaries of a locality having expended a total amount equal to or greater than 35 percent of its general fund operating revenue, as shown in the most recent comprehensive annual financial report, on undergrounding projects since 1980; and (iv) designed to support small cell facilities; or 2. The co-location on any existing structure of a wireless facility that is not a small cell facility. "Antenna" means communications equipment that transmits or receives electromagnetic radio signals used in the provision of any type of wireless communications services. "Base station" means a station that includes a structure that currently supports or houses an antenna, transceiver, coaxial cables, power cables, or other associated equipment at a specific site that is authorized to communicate with mobile stations, generally consisting of radio transceivers, antennas, coaxial cables, power supplies, and other associated electronics. "Co-locate" means to install, mount, maintain, modify, operate, or replace a wireless facility on, under, within, or adjacent to a base station, building, existing structure, utility pole, or wireless support structure. "Co-location" has a corresponding meaning. "Department" means the Department of Transportation. "Existing structure" means any structure that is installed or approved for installation at the time a wireless services provider or wireless infrastructure provider provides notice to a locality or the Department of an agreement with the owner of the structure to co-locate equipment on that structure. "Existing structure" includes any structure that is currently supporting, designed to support, or capable of supporting the attachment of wireless facilities, including towers, buildings, utility poles, light poles, flag poles, signs, and water towers. "Micro-wireless facility" means a small cell facility that is not larger in dimension than 24 inches in length, 15 inches in width, and 12 inches in height and that has an exterior antenna, if any, not longer than 11 inches. "New structure" means a wireless support structure that has not been installed or constructed, or approved for installation or construction, at the time a wireless services provider or wireless infrastructure provider applies to a locality for any required zoning approval. "Project" means (i) the installation or construction by a wireless services provider or wireless infrastructure provider of a new structure or (ii) the co-location on any existing structure of a wireless facility that is not a small cell facility. "Project" does not include the installation of a small cell facility by a wireless services provider or wireless infrastructure provider on an existing structure to which the provisions of § 15.2-2316.4 apply. "Small cell facility" means a wireless facility that meets both of the following qualifications: (i) each antenna is located inside an enclosure of no more than six cubic feet in volume, or, in the case of an antenna that has exposed elements, the antenna and all of its exposed elements could fit within an imaginary enclosure of no more than six cubic feet and (ii) all other wireless equipment associated with the facility has a cumulative volume of no more than 28 cubic feet, or such higher limit as is established by the Federal Communications Commission. The following types of associated equipment are not included in the calculation of equipment volume: electric meter, concealment, telecommunications demarcation boxes, back-up power systems, grounding equipment, power transfer switches, cut-off switches, and vertical cable runs for the connection of power and other services. "Standard process project" means any project other than an administrative review-eligible project. "Utility pole" means a structure owned, operated, or owned and operated by a public utility, local government, or the Commonwealth that is designed specifically for and used to carry lines, cables, or wires for communications, cable television, or electricity. "Water tower" means a water storage tank, or a standpipe or an elevated tank situated on a support structure, originally constructed for use as a reservoir or facility to store or deliver water. "Wireless facility" means equipment at a fixed location that enables wireless communications between user equipment and a communications network, including (i) equipment associated with wireless services, such as private, broadcast, and public safety services, as well as unlicensed wireless services and fixed wireless services, such as microwave backhaul, and (ii) radio transceivers, antennas, coaxial, or fiber-optic cable, regular and backup power supplies, and comparable equipment, regardless of technological configuration. "Wireless infrastructure provider" means any person that builds or installs transmission equipment, wireless facilities, or wireless support structures, but that is not a wireless services provider. "Wireless services" means (i) "personal wireless services" as defined in 47 U.S.C. § 332(c)(7)(C)(i); (ii) "personal wireless service facilities" as defined in 47 U.S.C. § 332(c)(7)(C)(ii), including commercial mobile services as defined in 47 U.S.C. § 332(d), provided to personal mobile communication devices through wireless facilities; and (iii) any other fixed or mobile wireless service, using licensed or unlicensed spectrum, provided using wireless facilities. "Wireless services provider" means a provider of wireless services. "Wireless support structure" means a freestanding structure, such as a monopole, tower, either guyed or self-supporting, or suitable existing structure or alternative structure designed to support or capable of supporting wireless facilities. "Wireless support structure" does not include any telephone or electrical utility pole or any tower used for the distribution or transmission of electrical service. 2017, c. 835; 2018, cc. 835, 844.

Va. Code § 15.2-2316.6

§ 15.2-2316.6. Definitions.As used in this article, unless the context requires a different meaning: "Energy storage facilities" means the energy storage equipment and technology within an energy storage project that is capable of absorbing energy, storing such energy for a period of time, and redelivering such energy after it has been stored. "Energy storage project" means the energy storage facilities within the project site. "Host locality" means any locality within the jurisdictional boundaries of which construction of a commercial solar project or an energy storage project is proposed. "Solar facilities" means commercial solar photovoltaic (electric energy) generation facilities. "Solar facilities" does not include any solar project that is (i) described in § 56-594, 56-594.01, 56-594.02, or 56-594.2, or (ii) five megawatts or less. "Solar project" means the solar facilities, subject to this chapter, that are within the project site. 2020, c. 802; 2021, Sp. Sess. I, cc. 57, 58.

Va. Code § 15.2-2404

§ 15.2-2404. Authority to impose taxes or assessments for local improvements; purposes.A. A locality may impose taxes or assessments upon the owners of abutting property for constructing, improving, replacing or enlarging the sidewalks upon existing streets, for improving and paving existing alleys, and for the construction or the use of sanitary or storm water management facilities, retaining walls, curbs and gutters. Such taxes or assessments may include the legal, financial or other directly attributable costs incurred by the locality in creating a district, if a district is created, and financing the payment of the improvements. The taxes or assessments shall not be in excess of the peculiar benefits resulting from the improvements to such abutting property owners. No tax or assessment for retaining walls shall be imposed upon any property owner who does not agree to such tax or assessment. B. In addition to the foregoing, a locality may impose taxes or assessments upon the owners of abutting property for the construction, replacement or enlargement of waterlines; for the installation of street lights; for the construction or installation of canopies or other weather protective devices; for the installation of lighting in connection with the foregoing; and for permanent amenities, including, but not limited to, benches or waste receptacles. With regard to installation of street lights, a locality may provide by ordinance that upon a petition of at least 60 percent of the property owners within a subdivision, or such higher percent as provided in the ordinance, the locality may impose taxes or assessments upon all owners within the subdivision who benefit from such improvements. The taxes or assessments shall not be in excess of the peculiar benefits resulting from the improvements to such property owners. C. In the Cities of Chesapeake, Hampton, Hopewell, Newport News, Norfolk, Richmond, and Virginia Beach, the governing body may impose taxes or assessments upon the abutting property owners for the initial improving and paving of an existing street provided not less than 50 percent of such abutting property owners who own not less than 50 percent of the property abutting such street request the improvement or paving. The taxes or assessments permitted by this paragraph shall not be in excess of the peculiar benefits resulting from the improvements to such abutting property owners and in no event shall such amount exceed the sum of $10 per front foot of property abutting such street or the sum of $1,000 for any one subdivided lot or parcel abutting such street, whichever is the lesser. D. The governing bodies of the Cities of Buena Vista, Hampton, and Waynesboro and the County of Augusta may, by duly adopted ordinance, impose taxes or assessments upon abutting property owners subjected to frequent flooding for special benefits conferred upon that property by the installation or construction of flood control barriers, equipment or other improvements for the prevention of flooding in such area and shall provide for the payment of all or any part of the above projects out of the proceeds of such taxes or assessments, provided that such taxes or assessments shall not be in excess of the peculiar benefits resulting from the improvements to such abutting property owners. E. In the Cities of Hampton, Poquoson and Williamsburg, the governing body may impose taxes or assessments upon the owners of abutting property for the underground relocation of distribution lines for electricity, telephone, cable television and similar utilities. Notwithstanding the provisions of § 15.2-2405, such underground relocation of distribution lines may only be ordered by the governing body and the cost thereof apportioned in pursuance of an agreement between the governing body and the abutting landowners. Notice shall be given to the abutting landowners, notifying them when and where they may appear before the governing body, or some committee thereof, or the administrative board or other similar board of the locality to whom the matter may be referred, to be heard in favor of or against such improvements. F. The governing body of any locality may request an electric utility that proposes to construct an overhead electric transmission line of 150 kilovolts or more, any portion of which would be located in such locality, to enter into an agreement with the locality that provides (i) the locality will impose a tax or assessment on electric utility customers in a special rate district in an amount sufficient to cover the utility's additional costs of constructing that portion of the proposed line to be located in such locality, or any smaller portion thereof as the utility and the locality may agree, as an underground rather than an overhead line; (ii) the tax or assessment will be shown as a separate item on such customers' electric bills and will be collected by the utility on behalf of the locality; (iii) the utility will construct, operate, and maintain the agreed portion of the line underground; (iv) the locality will pay to the utility its full additional costs of constructing that portion of the line underground rather than overhead; and (v) such other terms and conditions as the parties may agree. This provision shall not apply, however, to lines in operation as of March 1, 2005. If the locality and the utility enter into such an agreement, the locality shall by ordinance (a) set the boundaries of the special rate district within a reasonable distance of the route of that portion of the line to be placed underground pursuant to the agreement, and (b) fix the amount of such tax or assessment, which shall be based on the assessed value of real property within such district. Thereafter, owners of real property comprising not less than 60 percent of the assessed value of real property within such district may petition the locality to impose such tax or assessment. If such petition is filed, the locality shall submit the agreement to the State Corporation Commission on or before the date by which respondents must prefile testimony and exhibits in any application for approval of the line before the State Corporation Commission, which, after notice and opportunity for hearing, shall approve the agreement if it finds it to be in the public interest. If there exists a practicably feasible overhead alternative for construction of the electric transmission line, the State Corporation Commission shall not approve the agreement unless the governing body of every locality in which the underground segment of the line would be located requests the electric utility to construct the line underground in accordance with this subdivision. If the agreement is approved by the State Corporation Commission, the locality shall impose such tax or assessment on electric utility customers within the district, and the locality and the utility shall carry out the agreement according to its terms and conditions. G. In the County of Loudoun, the governing body may impose taxes or assessments upon the abutting property owners of Crooked Bridge Lane, located in the Blue Ridge District, for the improvement of the bridge located on Crooked Bridge Lane, including construction, repair and maintenance, provided not less than 50 percent of such abutting property owners who own not less than 50 percent of the property abutting such street request the improvement. The taxes or assessments permitted by this paragraph shall not be in excess of the peculiar benefits resulting from the improvements to such abutting property owners. Code 1950, § 15-669; 1962, c. 623, § 15.1-239; 1966, c. 127; 1971, Ex. Sess., c. 126; 1972, cc. 704, 767; 1976, cc. 512, 617; 1977, c. 225; 1981, c. 581; 1985, c. 59; 1989, cc. 24, 564; 1991, c. 422; 1997, c. 587; 1998, cc. 324, 864; 1999, c. 386; 2005, c. 854; 2007, cc. 260, 813; 2008, c. 355; 2008, Sp. Sess. II, c. 8; 2009, c. 335; 2010, c. 392; 2012, cc. 186, 404.

Va. Code § 15.2-2430

§ 15.2-2430. Definitions.As used in this chapter, unless the context requires a different meaning: "Authority" means the Virginia Resources Authority created in Chapter 21 (§ 62.1-197 et seq.) of Title 62.1. "Cost," as applied to any project financed under the provisions of this chapter, means the total of all costs incurred by the local government as reasonable and necessary for carrying out all works and undertakings necessary or incident to the accomplishment of any project. "Fund" means the Virginia Infrastructure Project Loan Fund. "Local government" means any county, city, town, municipal corporation, authority, district, commission, or political subdivision created by the General Assembly or pursuant to the Constitution or laws of the Commonwealth. "Project" means any undertaking by a local government to build or facilitate the building of a facility, located at or adjacent to (i) a solid waste management facility permitted by the Department of Environmental Quality or (ii) a sewerage system or sewage treatment work described in § 62.1-44.18 that is constructed and operated for the purpose of treating sewage and wastewater for discharge to state waters, which facility or work is constructed and operated for the purpose of (a) reclaiming or collecting methane or other combustible gas from the biodegradation or decomposition of solid waste, as defined in § 10.1-1400, that has been deposited in the solid waste management facility or sewerage system or sewage treatment work and (b) either using such gas to generate electric energy or upgrading the gas to pipeline quality and transmitting it off premises for sale or delivery to commercial or industrial purchasers or to a public utility or locality. 2010, c. 724.

Va. Code § 15.2-2602

§ 15.2-2602. Definitions.As used in this chapter, the following words and terms have the following meanings, unless some other meaning is plainly intended: "Bonds" mean any obligations of a locality for the payment of money. "Cost" as applied to any project or to extensions or additions to any project, includes the purchase price of any project acquired by the locality or the cost of acquiring all of the capital stock of the corporation owning the project and the amount to be paid to discharge any obligations in order to vest title to the project or any part of it in the locality, the cost of improvements, property or equipment, the cost of construction or reconstruction, the cost of all labor, materials, machinery and equipment, the cost of all land, property, rights, easements and franchises acquired, financing charges, interest before and during construction and for up to one year after completion of construction, start-up costs and operating capital, the cost of plans and specifications, surveys and estimates of cost and of revenues, the cost of engineering, legal and other professional services, expenses incident to determining the feasibility or practicability of the project, payments by a locality of its share of the cost of any multi-jurisdictional project, administrative expense, any amounts to be deposited to reserve or replacement funds, and other expenses as may be necessary or incident to the financing of the project. Any obligation or expense incurred by the locality in connection with any of the foregoing items of cost may be regarded as a part of the cost and reimbursed to the locality out of the proceeds of bonds issued to finance the project. "General obligation bonds" mean the bonds of a locality for the payment of which the locality is required to levy ad valorem taxes, including any obligations which may be additionally secured by a pledge of revenues, special assessments or funds derived from any other source. "Governing body" means the board of supervisors, council, or other local legislative body, board, commission or authority having charge of the finances of any locality, and when the separate concurrence or approval of two or more sets of authorities is required by law for the making of appropriations, to the extent so required "governing body" includes both or all of them. "Project" means any public improvement, property or undertaking for which the locality is authorized by law to appropriate money, except for current expenses, and specific undertakings from which the locality may derive revenues (sometimes called "revenue-producing undertakings") including, without limitation, water, sewer, sewage disposal, and garbage and refuse collection and disposal systems and facilities as defined in § 15.2-5101, recycling facilities, facilities for the production of energy from waste, gasworks, electric light and other lighting systems, airports, off-street parking facilities, and facilities for public transit or transportation systems. "Revenue bonds" mean bonds of a locality for which only the specified revenues of the locality are pledged and to which no ad valorem or other taxes of the locality are pledged, including, without limitation bonds of a locality for which only the revenues of a revenue producing undertaking or undertakings, or such revenues together with a mortgage or deed of trust lien on the undertaking or undertakings, are pledged to their payment. Code 1950, § 15-666.15; 1958, c. 640; 1962, c. 623, § 15.1-172; 1970, c. 268; 1973, c. 513; 1991, c. 668, § 15.1-227.3; 1997, c. 587.

Va. Code § 15.2-4312

§ 15.2-4312. Effects of districts.A. Land lying within a district and used in agricultural or forestal production shall automatically qualify for an agricultural or forestal use-value assessment pursuant to Article 4 (§ 58.1-3229 et seq.) of Chapter 32 of Title 58.1, if the requirements for such assessment contained therein are satisfied. Any ordinance adopted pursuant to § 15.2-4303 shall extend such use-value assessment and taxation to eligible real property within such district whether or not a local ordinance pursuant to § 58.1-3231 has been adopted. B. No local government shall exercise any of its powers to enact local laws or ordinances within a district in a manner which would unreasonably restrict or regulate farm structures or farming and forestry practices in contravention of the purposes of this chapter unless such restrictions or regulations bear a direct relationship to public health and safety. The comprehensive plan and zoning and subdivision ordinances shall be applicable within said districts, to the extent that such ordinances are not in conflict with the conditions to creation or continuation of the district set forth in the ordinance creating or continuing the district or the purposes of this chapter. Nothing in this chapter shall affect the authority of the locality to regulate the processing or retail sales of agricultural or forestal products, or structures therefor, in accordance with the local comprehensive plan or any local ordinances. Local ordinances, comprehensive plans, land use planning decisions, administrative decisions and procedures affecting parcels of land adjacent to any district shall take into account the existence of such district and the purposes of this chapter. C. It shall be the policy of all agencies of the Commonwealth to encourage the maintenance of farming and forestry in districts and all administrative regulations and procedures of such agencies shall be modified to this end insofar as is consistent with the promotion of public health and safety and with the provisions of any federal statutes, standards, criteria, rules, regulations, or policies, and any other requirements of federal agencies, including provisions applicable only to obtaining federal grants, loans or other funding. D. No special district for sewer, water or electricity or for nonfarm or nonforest drainage may impose benefit assessments or special tax levies on the basis of frontage, acreage or value on land used for primarily agricultural or forestal production within a district, except a lot not exceeding one-half acre surrounding any dwelling or nonfarm structure located on such land. However, such benefit assessment or special ad valorem levies may continue if imposed prior to the formation of the district. 1977, c. 681, § 15.1-1512; 1979, c. 377; 1987, c. 552; 1997, c. 587.

Va. Code § 15.2-5000

§ 15.2-5000. Definitions.As used in this chapter: "Exempt project" for the purposes of the industrial development portion of the state ceiling means the following facilities: 1. Sewage, solid waste and qualified hazardous waste disposal facilities; and facilities for the local furnishing of electric energy or gas; 2. Certain facilities for the furnishing of water (including irrigation systems); 3. Mass commuting facilities; 4. Local district heating and cooling facilities. "Industrial development bond" means those obligations issued by the Commonwealth and its issuing authorities which constitute manufacturing and exempt facility private activity bonds and the private use portion of governmental projects over the fifteen million-dollar threshold amount. "Issuing authority" means any political subdivision, governmental unit, authority, or other entity of the Commonwealth which is empowered to issue private activity bonds. "Local housing authority" means any issuer of multifamily housing bonds or single family housing bonds, created and existing under the laws of the Commonwealth, excluding the Virginia Housing Development Authority. "Manufacturing facility" means (i) any facility which is used in the manufacturing or production of tangible personal property, including the processing resulting in a change of condition of such property, (ii) any facility which is used in the creation or production of intangible property as described in § 197(d)(1)(C)(iii) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended, to be any patent, copyright, formula, process, design, pattern, knowhow, format, or other similar item, or (iii) any facility which is functionally related and subordinate to a manufacturing facility if such facility is located on the same site as the manufacturing facility. This definition is for bonding purposes under this chapter only and shall not apply to local taxation under Title 58.1. "Multifamily housing bond" means any obligation which constitutes an exempt facility bond under federal law for the financing of a qualified residential rental project within the meaning of § 142 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended. "Private activity bond" means a part or all of any bond (or other instrument) required to obtain an allocation from the state's volume cap pursuant to § 146 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended, in order to be tax exempt, including but not limited to the following: 1. Exempt project bonds, 2. Manufacturing facility bonds, 3. Industrial development bonds, 4. Multifamily housing bonds, 5. Single family housing bonds, 6. Any other bond eligible for a tax exemption as a private activity bond pursuant to § 141 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended. "Single family housing bonds" means any obligation described as a qualified mortgage bond under § 143 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended. "State ceiling" means the maximum amount of private activity bonds that the Commonwealth of Virginia may issue in a calendar year as limited by federal law under the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended. 1987, c. 306, § 15.1-1399.10; 1990, c. 299; 1997, c. 587; 2008, c. 445; 2010, cc. 122, 360.

Va. Code § 15.2-5101

§ 15.2-5101. Definitions.As used in this chapter, unless the context requires a different meaning: "Authority" means an authority created under the provisions of § 15.2-5102 or Article 6 (§ 15.2-5152 et seq.) of this chapter or, if any such authority has been abolished, the entity succeeding to the principal functions thereof. "Bonds" and "revenue bonds" include notes, bonds, bond anticipation notes, and other obligations of an authority for the payment of money. "Cost," as applied to a system, includes the purchase price of the system or the cost of acquiring all of the capital stock of the corporation owning such system and the amount to be paid to discharge all of its obligations in order to vest title to the system or any part thereof in the authority; the cost of improvements; the cost of all land, properties, rights, easements, franchises and permits acquired; the cost of all labor, machinery and equipment; financing and credit enhancement charges; interest prior to and during construction and for one year after completion of construction; any deposit to any bond interest and principal reserve account, start-up costs and reserves and expenditures for operating capital; cost of engineering and legal services, plans, specifications, surveys, estimates of costs and revenues; other expenses necessary or incident to the determining of the feasibility or practicability of any such acquisition, improvement, or construction; administrative expenses and such other expenses as may be necessary or incident to the financing authorized in this chapter and to the acquisition, improvement, or construction of any such system and the placing of the system in operation by the authority. Any obligation or expense incurred by an authority in connection with any of the foregoing items of cost and any obligation or expense incurred by the authority prior to the issuance of revenue bonds under the provisions of this chapter for engineering studies, for estimates of cost and revenues, and for other technical or professional services which may be utilized in the acquisition, improvement or construction of such system is a part of the cost of such system. "Cost of improvements" means the cost of constructing improvements and includes the cost of all labor and material; the cost of all land, property, rights, easements, franchises, and permits acquired which are deemed necessary for such construction; interest during any period of disuse during such construction; the cost of all machinery and equipment; financing charges; cost of engineering and legal expenses, plans, specifications; and such other expenses as may be necessary or incident to such construction. "Federal agency" means the United States of America or any department, agency, instrumentality, or bureau thereof. "Green roof" means a roof or partially covered roof consisting of plants, soil, or another lightweight growing medium that is installed on top of a waterproof membrane and designed in accordance with the Virginia Stormwater Management Program's standards and specifications for green roofs, as set forth in the Virginia BMP Clearinghouse. "Improvements" means such repairs, replacements, additions, extensions and betterments of and to a system as an authority deems necessary to place or maintain the system in proper condition for the safe, efficient and economical operation thereof or to provide service in areas not currently receiving such service. "Owner" includes persons, federal agencies, and units of the Commonwealth having any title or interest in any system, or the services or facilities to be rendered thereby. "Political subdivision" means a locality or any institution or commission of the Commonwealth of Virginia. "Refuse" means solid waste, including sludge and other discarded material, such as solid, liquid, semi-solid or contained gaseous material resulting from industrial, commercial, mining, and agricultural operations or from community activities or residences. "Refuse" does not include (i) solid and dissolved materials in domestic sewage, (ii) solid or dissolved material in irrigation return flows or in industrial discharges which are sources subject to a permit from the Department of Environmental Quality, or (iii) source, special nuclear, or by-product material as defined by the Federal Atomic Energy Act of 1954 (42 U.S.C. § 2011, et seq.), as amended. "Refuse collection and disposal system" means a system, plant or facility designed to collect, manage, dispose of, or recover and use energy from refuse and the land, structures, vehicles and equipment for use in connection therewith. "Sewage" means the water-carried wastes created in and carried, or to be carried, away from residences, hotels, schools, hospitals, industrial establishments, commercial establishments or any other private or public buildings, together with such surface or ground water and household and industrial wastes as may be present. "Sewage disposal system" means any system, plant, disposal field, lagoon, pumping station, constructed drainage ditch or surface water intercepting ditch, incinerator, area devoted to sanitary landfills, or other works, installed for the purpose of treating, neutralizing, stabilizing or disposing of sewage, industrial waste or other wastes. "Sewer system" or "sewage system" means pipelines or conduits, pumping stations, and force mains, and all other constructions, devices, and appliances appurtenant thereto, used for conducting sewage, industrial wastes or other wastes to a plant of ultimate disposal. "Stormwater control system" means a structural system of any type that is designed to manage the runoff from land development projects or natural systems designated for such purposes, including, without limitation, retention basins, ponds, wetlands, sewers, conduits, pipelines, pumping and ventilating stations, and other plants, structures, and real and personal property used for support of the system. "System" means any sewage disposal system, sewer system, stormwater control system, water or waste system, and for authorities created under Article 6 (§ 15.2-5152 et seq.) of this chapter, such facilities as may be provided by the authority under § 15.2-5158. "Unit" means any department, institution or commission of the Commonwealth; any public corporate instrumentality thereof; any district; or any locality. "Water or waste system" means any water system, sewer system, sewage disposal system, or refuse collection and disposal system, or any combination of such systems. "Water system" means all plants, systems, facilities or properties used or useful or having the present capacity for future use in connection with the supply or distribution of water, or facilities incident thereto, and any integral part thereof, including water supply systems, water distribution systems, dams and facilities for the generation or transmission of hydroelectric power, reservoirs, wells, intakes, mains, laterals, pumping stations, standpipes, filtration plants, purification plants, hydrants, meters, valves and equipment, appurtenances, and all properties, rights, easements and franchises relating thereto and deemed necessary or convenient by the authority for the operation thereof but not including dams or facilities for the generation or transmission of hydroelectric power that are not incident to plants, systems, facilities or properties used or useful or having the present capacity for future use in connection with the supply or distribution of water. Code 1950, § 15-764.2; 1950, p. 1312; 1952, c. 430; 1962, c. 623, § 15.1-1240; 1970, c. 617; 1979, c. 280; 1982, c. 469; 1997, cc. 527, 573, 587; 2006, c. 219; 2009, cc. 402, 473; 2022, c. 356. Article 2. Creation and Dissolution of Authorities.

Va. Code § 15.2-5102

§ 15.2-5102. One or more localities may create authority.A. The governing body of a locality may by ordinance or resolution, or the governing bodies of two or more localities may by concurrent ordinances or resolutions or by agreement, create a water authority, a sewer authority, a sewage disposal authority, a stormwater control authority, a refuse collection and disposal authority, or any combination or parts thereof. The name of the authority shall contain the word "authority." The authority shall be a public body politic and corporate and a political subdivision of the Commonwealth. The ordinance, resolution or agreement creating the authority shall not be adopted or approved until a public hearing has been held on the question of its adoption or approval, and after approval at a referendum if one has been ordered pursuant to this chapter. B. Any authority, or any subsidiary thereof, organized pursuant to this section to operate a refuse collection and disposal system that, pursuant to statute, is specifically authorized to include in the system (i) facilities for processing solid waste as a fuel and (ii) facilities for generating steam and electricity for sale, shall not be subject to regulation under the Utilities Facilities Act (§ 56-265.1 et seq.), provided that sales of electricity generated at such facilities are made only to a federal agency whose primary responsibility is national defense and the energy is delivered directly from the generator to the customer's facilities or to a public utility. Code 1950, § 15-764.3; 1950, p. 1315; 1962, c. 623, § 15.1-1241; 1972, c. 370; 1973, c. 478; 1993, c. 850; 1995, c. 402; 1996, c. 897; 1997, cc. 527, 573, 587; 1999, cc. 896, 925; 2011, c. 199.

Va. Code § 15.2-5118

§ 15.2-5118. Powers of Authority; streetlights in King George County.Notwithstanding any contrary provision of law in this chapter, an authority may lease as lessee or otherwise contract for the provision of, operate, and maintain streetlights in King George County. The lessor or other contractual provider of such streetlights shall be a public service corporation that holds a certificate of public convenience and necessity to provide retail electric service in the territory in which such streetlights are located. King George County may contribute funds to the authority by act of its governing body for use by the authority in carrying out the authority's powers listed in this section. In addition, the authority may fix, charge, and collect fees, rates, and charges for the use of the service described in this section or for such service furnished by the authority. Such fees, rates, and charges shall be charged to and collected from any person contracting for the service, or lessee, or tenant, or any other person who uses or occupies any real estate served by or benefiting from the service. 1997, c. 587; 2019, c. 632.

Va. Code § 15.2-5119

§ 15.2-5119. Power to provide and operate electric energy systems.Notwithstanding any contrary provision of law in this chapter, an authority operating a water supply impoundment facility may, in connection with such facility, generate, produce, transmit, deliver, exchange, purchase or sell electric power and energy at wholesale and enter into contracts for such purposes. 1982, c. 469, § 15.1-1250.2; 1997, c. 587.

Va. Code § 15.2-5158

§ 15.2-5158. Additional powers of community development authorities.A. Each community development authority created under this article, in addition to the powers provided in Article 3 (§ 15.2-5110 et seq.) of Chapter 51 of this title, may: 1. Subject to any statutory or regulatory jurisdiction and permitting authority of all applicable governmental bodies and agencies having authority with respect to any area included therein, finance, fund, plan, establish, acquire, construct or reconstruct, enlarge, extend, equip, operate, and maintain the infrastructure improvements enumerated in the ordinance or resolution establishing the district, as necessary or desirable for development or redevelopment within or affecting the district or to meet the increased demands placed upon the locality as a result of development or redevelopment within or affecting the district, including, but not limited to: a. Roads, bridges, parking facilities, curbs, gutters, sidewalks, traffic signals, storm water management and retention systems, gas and electric lines and street lights within or serving the district which meet or exceed the specifications of the locality in which the roads are located. b. Parks and facilities for indoor and outdoor recreational, cultural and educational uses; entrance areas; security facilities; fencing and landscaping improvements throughout the district. c. Fire prevention and control systems, including fire stations, water mains and plugs, fire trucks, rescue vehicles and other vehicles and equipment. d. School buildings and related structures, which may be leased, sold or donated to the school district, for use in the educational system when authorized by the local governing body and the school board. e. Infrastructure and recreational facilities for age-restricted active adult communities, and any other necessary infrastructure improvements as provided above, with a minimum population approved under local zoning laws of 1,000 residents. Such development may include security facilities and systems or measures which control or restrict access to such community and its improvements. 2. Issue revenue bonds of the development authority as provided in § 15.2-5125, including but not limited to refunding bonds, subject to such limitation in amount, and terms and conditions regarding capitalized interest, reserve funds, contingent funds, and investment restrictions, as may be established in the ordinance or resolution establishing the district, for all costs associated with the improvements enumerated in subdivision 1 of this subsection. Such revenue bonds shall be payable solely from revenues received by the development authority. The revenue bonds issued by a development authority shall not require the consent of the locality, except where consent is specifically required by the provisions of the resolution authorizing the collection of revenues and/or the trust agreement securing the same, and shall not be deemed to constitute a debt, liability, or obligation of any other political subdivision, and shall not impact upon the debt capacity of any other political subdivision. 3. Request annually that the locality levy and collect a special tax on taxable real property within the development authority's jurisdiction to finance the services and facilities provided by the authority. Notwithstanding the provisions of Article 4 (§ 58.1-3229 et seq.) of Chapter 32 of Title 58.1, any such special tax imposed by the locality shall be levied upon the assessed fair market value of the taxable real property. Unless requested by every property owner within the proposed district, the rate of the special tax shall not be more than $.25 per $100 of the assessed fair market value of any taxable real estate or the assessable value of taxable leasehold property as specified by § 58.1-3203. The proceeds of the special taxes collected shall be kept in a separate account and be used only for the purposes provided in this chapter. All revenues received by the locality from such special tax shall be paid over to the development authority for its use pursuant to this chapter subject to annual appropriation. No other funds of the locality shall be loaned or paid to the development authority without the prior approval of the local governing body. 4. Provide special services, including: garbage and trash removal and disposal, street cleaning, snow removal, extra security personnel and equipment, recreational management and supervision, and grounds keeping. 5. Finance the services and facilities it provides to abutting property within the district by special assessment thereon imposed by the local governing body. All assessments pursuant to this section shall be subject to the laws pertaining to assessments under Article 2 (§ 15.2-2404 et seq.) of Chapter 24; provided that any other provision of law notwithstanding, (i) the taxes or assessments shall not exceed the full cost of the improvements, including without limitation the legal, financial and other directly attributable costs of creating the district and the planning, designing, operating and financing of the improvements which include administration of the collection and payment of the assessments and reserve funds permitted by applicable law; (ii) the taxes or assessments may be imposed upon abutting land which is later subdivided in accordance with the terms of the ordinance forming the district, in amounts which do not exceed the peculiar benefits of the improvements to the abutting land as subdivided; and (iii) the taxes or assessments may be made subject to installment payments for up to 40 years in an amount calculated to cover principal, interest and administrative costs in connection with any financing by the authority, without a penalty for prepayment. Notwithstanding any other provision of law, any assessments made pursuant to this section may be made effective as a lien upon a specified date, by ordinance, but such assessments may not thereafter be modified in a manner inconsistent with the terms of the debt instruments financing the improvements. All assessments pursuant to this section may also be made subject to installment payments and other provisions allowed for local assessments under this section or under Article 2 of Chapter 24. All revenues received by the locality pursuant to any such special assessments which the locality elects to impose upon request of the development authority shall be paid over to the development authority for its use under this chapter, subject to annual appropriation, and may be used for no other purposes. 6. Fix, charge, and collect rates, fees, and charges for the use of, or the benefit derived from, the services and/or facilities provided, owned, operated, or financed by the authority benefiting property within the district. Such rates, fees, and charges may be charged to and collected by such persons and in such manner as the authority may determine from (i) any person contracting for the services or using the facilities and/or (ii) the owners, tenants, or customers of the real estate and improvements that are served by, or benefit from the use of, any such services or facilities, in such manner as shall be authorized by the authority in connection with the provision of such services or facilities. 7. Purchase development rights that will be dedicated as easements for conservation, open space or other purposes pursuant to the Open-Space Land Act (§ 10.1-1700 et seq.). For purposes of this subdivision, "development rights" means the level and quantity of development permitted by the zoning ordinance expressed in terms of housing units per acre, floor area ratio or equivalent local measure. An authority shall not use the power of condemnation to acquire development rights. 8. Subject to any statutory or regulatory jurisdiction and permitting authority of all applicable governmental bodies and agencies having authority with respect to any area included therein, finance and fund the acquisition of land within the district. All financing authority and methods provided by subsections 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, and 7 shall be permitted for the acquisition of land as provided herein. 9. Any special tax levied pursuant to subdivision 3 and any special assessment imposed pursuant to subdivision 5, whether previously or hereafter levied or imposed, constitute a lien on real estate ranking on parity with real estate taxes, and any such delinquent special tax or delinquent special assessment may be collected in accordance with the procedures set forth in Article 4 (§ 58.1-3965 et seq.) of Chapter 39 of Title 58.1, provided that the enforcement of the lien for any special assessment under subdivision 5 made subject to installment payments shall be limited to the installment payments due or past due at the time the lien is enforced through sale in accordance with Article 4 (§ 58.1-3965 et seq.) of Chapter 39 of Title 58.1, and any sale to enforce payment of any delinquent taxes, assessments, or other levies shall not extinguish installment payments that are not yet due. B. Nothing contained in this chapter shall relieve the local governing body of its general obligations to provide services and facilities to the district to the same extent as would otherwise be provided were the district not formed. 1993, c. 850, § 15.1-1250.03; 1995, c. 402; 1997, cc. 363, 587; 2000, cc. 724, 747; 2004, c. 637; 2005, c. 547; 2009, c. 473; 2015, c. 39.

Va. Code § 15.2-5386

§ 15.2-5386. Limitations of the Authority.A. No provision related to the establishment, powers, or authorities of the Southwest Virginia Health Authority, its subsidiaries, or successors, shall apply to the facilities, equipment, or appropriations of any state agency including, but not limited to, the Virginia Department of Health and the Department of Behavioral Health and Developmental Services. B. The Authority, its subsidiaries or successors, shall not be exempt from the Certificate of Public Need law and regulations or licensure standards of the Virginia Department of Health. C. No provision of this chapter related to the establishment, power or authority of the Authority or participating localities shall apply to or affect any hospital as defined in § 32.1-123. 2007, c. 676; 2009, cc. 464, 813, 840. Chapter 54. Electric Authorities Act.

Va. Code § 15.2-5401

§ 15.2-5401. Intent of General Assembly.It is the intent of the General Assembly by the passage of this chapter to authorize the creation of electric authorities by localities of this Commonwealth, either acting jointly or separately, in order to provide facilities for the generation, transmission, and distribution of electric power and energy, and to vest such authorities with all powers that may be necessary to enable them to accomplish such purposes, which powers shall be exercised for the benefit of the inhabitants of the Commonwealth. It is further the intent of the General Assembly that in order to achieve the economies and efficiencies made possible by the proper planning, financing, sizing and location of facilities for the generation, transmission, and distribution of electric power and energy which are not practical for any locality or electric authority acting alone, and to insure an adequate, reliable and economical supply of electric power and energy to the inhabitants of the Commonwealth, electric authorities shall be authorized to jointly cooperate and plan, finance, develop, own and operate with other electric authorities and other public corporations and governmental entities and investor-owned electric power companies and electric power cooperative associations or corporations, within or outside the Commonwealth, electric generation, transmission, and distribution facilities in order to provide for the present and future requirements of the electric authorities and their participating localities. It is further the intent of the General Assembly that an authority that is created by the Town of Elkton and that is limited by its articles of incorporation to having the Town of Elkton as its sole member throughout its life is authorized to become an authority to distribute electric energy for retail sale. The distribution of electric energy for retail sale by an authority that is created by the Town of Elkton and that is limited by its articles of incorporation to having the Town of Elkton as its sole member throughout its life shall be limited to the geographic area that was served as of January 1, 2006, by the Town of Elkton. Accordingly, it is determined that the exercise of the powers granted herein will benefit the inhabitants of the Commonwealth and serve a valid public purpose in improving and otherwise promoting their health, welfare and prosperity. This chapter shall be liberally construed in conformity with these intentions. 1979, c. 416, § 15.1-1604; 1997, c. 587; 2006, cc. 929, 941.

Va. Code § 15.2-5402

§ 15.2-5402. Definitions.Wherever used in this chapter, unless a different meaning clearly appears in the context: "Authority" means a political subdivision and a body politic and corporate created, organized and existing pursuant to the provisions of this chapter, or if the authority is abolished, the board, body, commission, department or officer succeeding to the principal functions thereof or to whom the powers given by this chapter shall be given by law. "Bonds" or "revenue bonds" means bonds, notes and other evidences of indebtedness of an authority issued by the authority pursuant to the provisions of this chapter. "Cost" or "cost of a project" means, but shall not be limited to, the cost of acquisition, construction, reconstruction, improvement, enlargement, betterment or extension of any project, including the cost of studies, plans, specifications, surveys, and estimates of costs and revenues relating thereto, the cost of labor and materials; the cost of land, land rights, rights-of-way and easements, water rights, fees, permits, approvals, licenses, certificates, franchises, and the preparation of applications for and securing the same; administrative, legal, engineering and inspection expenses; financing fees, expenses and costs; working capital; costs of fuel and of fuel supply resources and related facilities; interest on bonds during the period of construction and for such reasonable period thereafter as may be determined by the issuing authority; establishment of reserves; and all other expenditures of the issuing authority incidental, necessary or convenient to the acquisition, construction, reconstruction, improvement, enlargement, betterment or extension of any project and the placing of the project in operation. "Governmental unit" means any incorporated city or town in the Commonwealth owning on January 1, 1979, a system or facilities for the generation, transmission or distribution of electric power and energy for public and private uses and engaged in the generation or retail distribution of electricity; any incorporated city in the Commonwealth which on January 1, 1979, has a population of 200,000 or more; or any county or incorporated city or town in the Commonwealth which after January 1, 1979, is authorized to participate in an authority pursuant to an act of the General Assembly. "Project" means any system of facilities for the generation, transmission, transformation, supply, or distribution of electric power and energy by any means whatsoever, including fuel and fuel supply resources and other related facilities, any interest therein and any right to output, capacity or services thereof, but does not include facilities for the distribution of electric energy for retail sale unless the facilities are owned by an authority created by a governmental unit that is exempt from the referendum requirement of § 15.2-5403, and the distribution is limited to retail sales within the geographic area that was served as of January 1, 2006, by the governmental unit that is the sole member of such authority. "Unit" means any governmental unit; any electric authority; any investor-owned electric power company; any electric cooperative association or corporation; the Commonwealth or any other state; or any department, institution, commission, public instrumentality or political subdivision of the Commonwealth, any other state, or the United States. 1979, c. 416, § 15.1-1605; 1997, c. 587; 2006, cc. 929, 941.

Va. Code § 15.2-5403

§ 15.2-5403. Creation of electric authority; referendum.The governing body of a governmental unit may by ordinance, or the governing bodies of two or more governmental units may by concurrent ordinances or agreement authorized by ordinance of each of the respective governmental units, create an electric authority, under any appropriate name and title containing the words "electric authority." Upon compliance with the provisions of this section and §§ 15.2-5404 and 15.2-5405, the authority shall be a political subdivision of the Commonwealth and a body politic and corporate. Any such ordinance shall be adopted in accordance with applicable general or special laws or charter provisions providing for the adoption of ordinances of the particular governmental unit, and shall be published twice in a newspaper of general circulation within the governmental unit, with the first notice appearing no more than 28 days before and the second notice appearing no less than seven days before adoption. No governmental unit shall participate as a member of such an authority unless and until such participation is authorized by a majority of the voters voting in a referendum held in the governmental unit on the question of whether or not the governmental unit should participate in the authority. The referendum shall be held as provided in §§ 24.2-682 and 24.2-684. The foregoing referendum requirement shall not apply to the Town of Elkton if the Town creates an authority by an ordinance that includes articles of incorporation which comply with the provisions of § 15.2-5404 and also set forth a statement that such authority shall have only the Town as its sole member throughout its life. 1979, c. 416, § 15.1-1606; 1997, c. 587; 2006, cc. 929, 941; 2024, cc. 225, 242.

Va. Code § 15.2-5406

§ 15.2-5406. Rights, powers and duties of authority.An authority shall have all of the rights and powers necessary and convenient to carry out and effectuate the purposes and provisions of this chapter, including, but without limiting the generality of the foregoing, the rights and powers: 1. To adopt bylaws or rules for the regulation of its affairs and the conduct of its business; 2. To adopt an official seal and alter the same at pleasure; 3. To maintain an office at such place or places as it may designate; 4. To sue and be sued; 5. To receive, administer and comply with the conditions and requirements respecting any gift, grant or donation of any property or money; 6. To study, plan, research, develop, finance, construct, reconstruct, acquire, improve, enlarge, extend, better, lease, own, operate and maintain any project or any interest in any project, within or outside the Commonwealth, including the acquisition of an ownership interest in any project as a tenant in common with any other unit or units whether public or private, and to enter into and perform contracts with respect thereto, and if the authority acquires an ownership interest as a tenant in common in any project within the Commonwealth, the surrender or waiver by any such owner of its right to partition such property for a period not exceeding the period for which the property is used or useful for electric utility purposes shall not be invalid and unenforceable by reason of length of such period or as unduly restricting the alienation of such property; 7. To acquire by private negotiated purchase or lease or otherwise an existing project, a project under construction, or other property within or outside the Commonwealth, either individually or jointly with any other unit or units whether public or private; to acquire by private negotiated purchase or lease or otherwise any facilities for the development, production, manufacture, procurement, handling, transportation, storage, fabrication, enrichment, processing or reprocessing of fuel of any kind or any facility or rights with respect to the supply of water; and to enter into agreements by private negotiation or otherwise, for such period as the authority shall determine, for the development, production, manufacture, procurement, handling, storage, fabrication, enrichment, processing or reprocessing of fuel of any kind or any facility or rights with respect to the supply of water; 8. To acquire by purchase, lease, gift, or otherwise, or to obtain options for the acquisition of, any property, real or personal, improved or unimproved, including an interest in land less than the fee thereof; 9. To sell, lease, exchange, transfer or otherwise dispose of, or to grant options for any such purposes with respect to, any real or personal property or interest therein; 10. To dispose of by private negotiated sale or lease or otherwise an existing project, a project under construction, or other property owned either individually or jointly, and to dispose of by private negotiated sale or lease or otherwise any facilities for the development, production, manufacture, procurement, handling, transportation, storage, fabrication, enrichment, processing or reprocessing of fuel of any kind or any facility or rights with respect to the supply of water; 11. To borrow money and issue revenue bonds of the authority in the manner hereinafter provided; 12. To accept advice and money from any member governmental unit of the authority; 13. To apply and contract for and to expend assistance from the United States or other public or private sources, whether in form of a grant or loan or otherwise; 14. To fix, charge and collect rents, rates, fees and charges for output or capacity of any project and for the use of, or for, the other services, facilities and commodities sold, furnished or supplied through any project; 15. To authorize the acquisition, construction, operation or maintenance of any project by any unit or individual on such terms as the authority shall deem proper, and, in connection with any project which is owned jointly by the authority and one or more units, to act as agent, or designate one or more of the other units to act as agent, for all the owners of the project for the construction, operation or maintenance of such project; 16. To generate, produce, transmit, deliver, exchange, purchase or sell electric power and energy at wholesale or retail, and to enter into contracts for any or all such purposes; 17. To negotiate and enter into contracts for the purchase, sale, exchange, interchange, wheeling, pooling, transmission or use of electric power and energy at wholesale or retail with any unit within or outside the Commonwealth; 18. To purchase power and energy and related services from any source on behalf of its member governmental units and other customers and to sell the same to its member governmental units and other customers in such amounts, with such characteristics, for such periods of time and under such terms and conditions as the authority shall determine; 19. In the event of any annexation by a governmental unit which is not a member governmental unit of the authority of lands, areas, or territory in which the authority's projects exist, to continue to do business and to exercise jurisdiction over its properties and facilities in and upon or over such lands, areas or territory as long as any bonds remain outstanding or unpaid, or any contracts or other obligations remain in force; 20. To amend the articles of incorporation with respect to the name or powers of such authority or in any other manner not inconsistent with this chapter by following the procedure prescribed by law for the creation of an authority; 21. To enter into contracts with any unit on such terms as the authority shall deem proper for the purposes of acting as a billing and collecting agent for electric service or electric service fees, rents or charges imposed by any such unit; 22. To pledge or assign any moneys, fees, rents, charges or other revenues and any proceeds derived by the authority from the sales of bonds, property, insurance or condemnation awards; 23. To make and execute contracts and other instruments necessary or convenient in the exercise of the powers and functions of the authority under this chapter, including contracts with persons, firms, corporations and others; 24. To apply to the appropriate agencies of the Commonwealth, the United States or any state thereof, and to any other proper agency for such permits, licenses, certificates or approvals as may be necessary, to construct, maintain and operate projects in accordance with such licenses, permits, certificates or approvals; and to obtain, hold and use such licenses, permits, certificates and approvals in the same manner as any other person or operating unit; 25. To employ such persons as may be required in the judgment of the authority and to fix and pay their compensation from funds available to the authority therefor; and 26. To do all acts and things necessary and convenient to carry out the purposes and to exercise the powers granted to the authority herein. In undertaking a project, an authority shall apply to the appropriate agencies of the Commonwealth, the United States, or any state therein, for such permits, licenses, certificates, or approvals as may be necessary, including, in any event, those referred to in §§ 56-46.1, 56-234.3, and 56-265.2; former § 62.1-3; and Chapter 7 (§ 62.1-80 et seq.) of Title 62.1 of the Code of Virginia. An authority shall construct, maintain and operate such projects in accordance with such permits, licenses, certificates and approvals. The foregoing sentence shall apply to an authority created by a governmental unit exempt from the referendum requirement of § 15.2-5403 only to the extent that it would have applied to the governmental unit that is the sole member of such authority if the governmental unit had directly undertaken the project. In determining which project or projects to undertake in furtherance of its purposes and powers under this chapter, an authority shall take into account estimated future power requirements of member governmental units which have entered into, or propose to enter into, contracts with the authority for the purchase of output, capacity, use or services of such project or projects, and in making such determinations the authority shall consider the following: 1. Economies and efficiencies to be achieved in constructing, on a large scale, facilities for the generation and distribution of electric power and energy; 2. Needs of the authority for reserve and peaking capacity and to meet obligations under pooling and reserve-sharing agreements reasonably related to its needs for power and energy to which the authority is or may become a party; 3. Estimated useful life of such project; 4. Estimated time necessary for the planning, development, acquisition, or construction of such project and length of time required in advance to obtain, acquire or construct an additional power supply for the member governmental units of the authority; and 5. Reliability and availability of alternative power supply sources and cost of such alternative power supply sources. Nothing herein contained shall prevent an authority from undertaking studies to determine whether there is a need for a project or whether such project is feasible. 1979, c. 416, § 15.1-1609; 1997, c. 587; 2006, cc. 929, 941.

Va. Code § 15.2-5406.1

§ 15.2-5406.1. Retail distribution of electric energy limited to certain authorities.Notwithstanding any other provision in this chapter to the contrary, an authority is not authorized to distribute electric energy for retail sale unless the authority is an authority created by a governmental unit exempt from the referendum requirement of § 15.2-5403. Such distribution shall be limited to retail sales within the geographic area that was, as of January 1, 2006, by the governmental unit of such authority. Nothing in this chapter shall be construed to impair or abridge the exclusive territorial electric distribution rights or property rights of any certificated incumbent public service company operating in the Commonwealth. No such authority is authorized or empowered to take by condemnation, eminent domain, or otherwise, the electric distribution system, utility facilities, or other utility property of any public service company without the consent of such public service company. 2006, cc. 929, 941.

Va. Code § 15.2-5408

§ 15.2-5408. Sale of power and energy, including capacity and output to member governmental units by authority; duration of contracts; source of payments; furnishing of money, property or services by member governmental units.Any member governmental unit of an authority may contract to buy from the authority power and energy required for its present or future requirements, including the capacity and output of one or more specified projects. Any such contract may provide that the governmental unit so contracting shall be obligated to make payments required by the contract whether or not a project is completed, operable or operating and notwithstanding the suspension, interruption, interference, reduction or curtailment of the output of a project or the power and energy contracted for, and that such payments under the contract shall not be subject to any reduction, whether by offset or otherwise, and shall not be conditioned upon the performance or nonperformance by the authority or any other member governmental unit under the contract or any other instrument. Such contracts with respect to any project may also provide, in the event of default by any member governmental unit which is a party to any such contract for such project in the performance of its obligations thereunder, for other member governmental units which are parties to any such contract for such project to succeed to the rights and interests and assume the obligations of the defaulting party, pro rata or otherwise as may be agreed upon in such contracts. Notwithstanding the provisions of any other law or local charter provision to the contrary, any such contracts with respect to the sale or purchase of capacity, output, power or energy from a project may extend for a period not exceeding fifty years from the date a project is estimated to be placed in normal continuous operation; the execution and effectiveness thereof shall not be subject to any authorizations or approvals by the Commonwealth or any agency, commission or instrumentality or political subdivision thereof except as specifically required and provided in this chapter. Payments by a governmental unit under any contract for the purchase of capacity and output from an authority shall be made solely from, and may be secured by a pledge of and lien upon, the revenues derived by such governmental unit from the ownership and operation of the electric system of such governmental unit, and such payments may be made as an operating expense of such electric system. No obligation under such contract shall constitute a legal or equitable pledge, charge, lien or encumbrance upon any property of the governmental unit or upon any of its income, receipts or revenues, except the revenues of its electric system, and neither the faith and credit nor the taxing power of the governmental unit are, or may be, pledged for the payment of any obligation under any such contract. A governmental unit shall be obligated to fix, charge and collect rents, rates, fees and charges for electric power and energy and other services, facilities and commodities sold, furnished or supplied through its electric system sufficient to provide revenues adequate to meet its obligations under any such contract and to pay any and all other amounts payable from or constituting a charge and lien upon such revenues, including amounts sufficient to pay the principal of and interest on bonds of such governmental unit heretofore or hereafter issued for purposes related to its electric system. Any pledge made by a governmental unit pursuant to this paragraph shall be governed by the laws of the Commonwealth. Any member governmental unit of an authority may furnish the authority with money and provide the authority with personnel, equipment and property, both real and personal. Any member governmental unit may also provide any services to an authority. Any member governmental unit may contract for, advance or contribute funds to an authority as may be agreed upon by the authority, and the member governmental unit and the authority shall repay such advances or contributions from proceeds of bonds, from operating revenues or from any other funds of the authority, together with interest thereon as may be agreed upon by the member governmental units and authority. 1979, c. 416, § 15.1-1611; 1997, c. 587.

Va. Code § 15.2-5409

§ 15.2-5409. Sale of capacity and output to nonmembers; limitations.An authority may sell or exchange the capacity or output of a project not then required by any of its member governmental units for such consideration, for such period, and upon such other terms and conditions as may be determined by the parties, to any person, firm, association or corporation, public or private within or outside the Commonwealth; however, this shall not authorize retail sales by an authority to any nongovernmental end user of electric capacity or energy, except as set forth in § 15.2-5406.1, and sales of such capacity or output of a project shall not be made in such amounts, for such periods of time, and under such terms and conditions as will cause the interest on bonds issued to finance the cost of a project to become taxable by the federal government. 1979, c. 416, § 15.1-1612; 1997, c. 587; 2006, cc. 929, 941.

Va. Code § 15.2-5410

§ 15.2-5410. Contents of agreement as to joint ownership of project; designation of party to agreement as agent for construction, operation and maintenance of project; powers and duties of agent.Any agreement between an authority and a unit with respect to the joint ownership of a project shall provide that each party to the agreement shall own a percentage of the project equal to the percentage of the money furnished or the value of property supplied by the respective parties for the acquisition and construction thereof and shall own and control a like percentage of the output thereof. The agreement shall further provide that an authority shall be liable only for its own acts thereunder and that no moneys or other contributions supplied by an authority shall be applied in any way to the account of any other party to the agreement. Any such agreement may contain such terms, conditions, and provisions as the board of directors of an authority shall deem to be in the best interest of such authority. The agreement may include, but shall not be limited to, provisions for the construction, operation and maintenance of a project by one of the parties thereto, which shall be designated in or pursuant to such agreement as agent on behalf of itself and the other parties, or by such other means as may be determined by the parties and provisions for a uniform method of determining, and allocating among the parties, costs of construction, operation, maintenance, renewals, replacements, and improvements with respect to such project. In carrying out its functions and activities as such agent with respect to the construction, operation, and maintenance of such a project, including without limitation the letting of contracts therefor, the agent shall be governed by the laws and regulations applicable to such agent as a separate legal entity and not by any laws or regulations which may be applicable to any of the other parties. Notwithstanding the provisions of any other law to the contrary, the authority may delegate its powers and duties with respect to the construction, operation and maintenance of such project to such agent, and all actions taken by the agent in accordance with the provisions of such agreement shall be binding upon each of the parties without further action or approval by their respective boards of directors or governing bodies. The agent shall be required to exercise all such powers and perform its duties and functions under the agreement in a manner consistent with prudent utility practice. As used in this section, "prudent utility practice" means any of the practices, methods, and acts at a particular time which, in the exercise of reasonable judgment in the light of the facts, including but not limited to the practices, methods, and acts engaged in or approved by a significant portion of the electrical utility industry prior thereto, known at the time the decision was made, would have been expected to accomplish the desired result at the lowest reasonable cost consistent with reliability, safety and expedition. 1979, c. 416, § 15.1-1613; 1997, c. 587.

Va. Code § 15.2-5415

§ 15.2-5415. Security for bonds; trust agreement; bond resolution.In the discretion of any authority, any revenue bonds issued under the provisions of this chapter may be secured by a trust agreement by and between the authority and a corporate trustee. Such corporate trustee, and any depository of funds of the authority, may be any trust company or bank having the powers of a trust company within the Commonwealth. The resolution authorizing the issuance of the bonds or the trust agreement may pledge or assign all or a portion of the revenues to be received by the authority in respect of any project or projects but shall not convey or mortgage any project, may contain such provisions for protecting and enforcing the rights and remedies of the bondholders as may be reasonable and proper and not in violation of law, and may restrict the individual right of action by bondholders. The trust agreement or the resolution providing for the issuance of such bonds may contain covenants including, but not limited to, the following: 1. The pledge of all or any part of the revenues derived from the project or projects to be financed by the bonds or from the electric system or facilities of the authority; 2. The rents, rates, fees and charges to be established, maintained, and collected, and the use and disposal of revenues, gifts, grants and funds received or to be received by the authority; 3. The setting aside of reserves and the investment, regulation and disposition thereof; 4. The custody, collection, securing, investment, and payment of any moneys held for the payment of bonds; 5. Limitations or restrictions on the purposes to which the proceeds of the sale of bonds then or thereafter to be issued may be applied; 6. Limitations or restrictions on the issuance of additional bonds, the terms upon which additional bonds may be issued and secured or the refunding of outstanding or other bonds; 7. The procedure, if any, by which the terms of any contract with bondholders may be amended, the percentage of bonds the bondholders of which must consent thereto, and the manner in which such consent may be given; 8. Events of default and the rights and liabilities arising thereupon, the terms and conditions upon which bonds issued under this chapter shall become or may be declared due before maturity, and the terms and conditions upon which such declaration and its consequences may be waived; 9. The preparation and maintenance of a budget; 10. The retention or employment of consulting engineers, independent auditors, and other technical consultants; 11. Limitations on or the prohibition of free service to any person, firm or corporation, public or private; 12. The acquisition and disposal of property, and the appointment of a receiver of the funds and property of the authority in the event of a default; 13. Provisions for insurance and for accounting reports and the inspection and audit thereof; and 14. The continuing operation and maintenance of the project or projects. Any pledge made by an authority pursuant to this chapter shall be governed by the laws of the Commonwealth. 1979, c. 416, § 15.1-1618; 1997, c. 587.

Va. Code § 15.2-5416

§ 15.2-5416. Rents, rates, fees and other charges.The authority is hereby authorized to fix, charge and collect rents, rates, fees and other charges for the purchase of output or capacity of, or for the use of and for the electric power and energy or services, facilities and commodities sold, furnished or supplied by, any project. Such rates, fees and charges shall be so fixed and revised as to provide funds, with other funds available for such purposes, sufficient at all times to (i) pay the cost of maintaining, operating and repairing the project or projects on account of which such bonds are issued, including reserves for such purposes and for replacement and depreciation and necessary extensions; (ii) pay the principal of and redemption premium, if any, and interest on the revenue bonds as the same shall become due and to create and maintain reserves therefor; (iii) comply with the terms of any resolution or trust agreement securing bonds of the authority; and (iv) pay any and all amounts which the authority may be obligated to pay from such revenues by law or contract. In fixing rents, rates, fees and other charges as provided in this section, the authority shall hold a public hearing, advertised as required in § 15.2-5403, at which hearing the public may submit comments with respect to such rents, rates, fees and other charges to the authority. The authority shall charge and collect the rates, fees and charges so fixed or revised. Rates, rentals, fees and charges for the sale or purchase of output or capacity of, or for the use of and for the electric power and energy or services, facilities and commodities sold, furnished or supplied by a project may be fixed and revised and charged and collected by the authority under this chapter without obtaining the approval or consent of any department, division, commission, board, bureau or agency of the Commonwealth, and without any other proceeding or the happening of any other condition or thing than those proceedings, conditions or things which are specifically required by this chapter. 1979, c. 416, § 15.1-1619; 1997, c. 587.

Va. Code § 15.2-5418

§ 15.2-5418. Bondholders' and trustees' remedies.Any holder of bonds issued under the provisions of this chapter or any of the coupons appertaining thereto, and the trustee under any trust agreement, except to the extent the rights herein given may be restricted by such trust agreement or the resolution authorizing the issuance of such bonds, may, either at law or in equity, by suit, action, mandamus or other proceeding, protect and enforce any and all rights under the laws of the Commonwealth or granted hereunder, or, to the extent permitted by law, under such trust agreement or resolution authorizing the issuance of such bonds or under any agreement or other contract executed by the authority pursuant to this chapter, and may enforce and compel the performance of all duties required by this chapter or by such trust agreement or resolution to be performed by any authority or by any officer thereof, including the fixing, charging and collecting of rents, rates, fees and charges for the purchase of output or capacity of any project or for the use of or for the electric power and energy or services furnished by any project. 1979, c. 416, § 15.1-1621; 1997, c. 587.

Va. Code § 15.2-5423

§ 15.2-5423. Payments in lieu of property taxes; license tax.A project owned by an authority shall be exempt from property taxes. However, an authority, other than an authority created by a governmental unit exempt from the referendum requirement of § 15.2-5403, owning a project shall, in lieu of property taxes, pay to any governmental body authorized to levy property taxes, the amount which would be assessed as taxes on real and personal property of a project if such project were otherwise subject to valuation and assessment by the State Corporation Commission, in the same manner as are public utility companies. Such payments in lieu of taxes shall be due and shall bear interest, if unpaid, as in the cases of taxes on other property. Authorities, other than an authority created by a governmental unit exempt from the referendum requirement of § 15.2-5403, shall pay the annual state license tax imposed by § 58.1-2626, or an equal amount in lieu of such tax, to the same extent as if § 58.1-2626 were by its terms expressly applicable to authorities. Payments in lieu of taxes made hereunder shall be treated in the same manner as taxes for purposes of all procedural and substantive provisions of law. The retail sales of an authority created by a governmental unit exempt from the referendum requirement of § 15.2-5403 shall be subject to the taxes imposed under § 58.1-2900. Except as herein expressly provided with respect to projects owned by an authority, no other property of such authority used or useful in the generation, transmission, transformation, and distribution of electric power and energy shall be subject to payment in lieu of taxes. 1979, c. 416, § 15.1-1626; 1997, c. 587; 2006, cc. 929, 941.

Va. Code § 15.2-5704

§ 15.2-5704. Powers of authority.Each authority shall be deemed to be performing essential governmental functions providing for the public health and welfare, and is authorized and empowered: 1. To have existence for such term of years as specified by the participating localities; 2. To adopt bylaws for the regulation of its affairs and the conduct of its business; 3. To adopt an official seal and alter the same at pleasure; 4. To maintain an office at such place or places as it may designate; 5. To sue and be sued; 6. To acquire, purchase, lease as lessee, construct, reconstruct, improve, extend, operate and maintain parks within, or partly within and partly outside, one or more of the participating localities; to acquire by gift, purchase or the exercise of the right of eminent domain lands or rights in land or water rights in connection therewith; and to sell, lease as lessor, transfer or dispose of any property or interest therein acquired by it; however, the power of eminent domain shall not extend beyond the geographical limits of the localities composing the authority; 7. To regulate the uses of all lands and facilities under control of the authority; 8. To locate and operate a retail fee-based electric vehicle charging station on property under the jurisdiction of the authority; to provide that the use of such station is restricted to the employees of the locality, authority, and authorized visitors; and to install signage that provides notice of such restriction; 9. To issue revenue bonds and revenue refunding bonds of the authority, such bonds to be payable solely from revenues derived from the use of the facilities or the furnishing of park services; 10. To accept grants and gifts from the localities forming or thereafter joining the authority, the Commonwealth, the federal government or any other governmental bodies or political subdivisions, and from any other person; 11. To enter into contracts with the federal government, the Commonwealth, any political subdivision, or any agency or instrumentality thereof, or with any other person providing for or relating to the furnishing of park services or facilities; 12. To contract with any municipality, county, person or any public authority or political subdivision of this or any adjoining state, on such terms as the authority shall deem proper, for the construction, operation and maintenance of any park which is partly in this Commonwealth and partly in such adjoining state; 13. To exercise the same rights for acquiring property for the construction or improvement, maintenance or operation of a park as the locality or localities by which such authority is created may exercise. The governing body of any participating locality, notwithstanding any contrary provision of law, general or special, is authorized and empowered to transfer jurisdiction over, to lease, lend, grant or convey to the authority, upon the request of the authority, upon such terms and conditions as the governing body of such locality may agree with the authority as reasonable and fair, real or personal property as may be necessary or desirable in connection with the acquisition, construction, improvement, operation or maintenance of a park, including public roads and other property already devoted to public use. Agreements may be entered into by the authority with the Commonwealth, or any agency acting on behalf of the Commonwealth, for the acquisition of any lands or property, owned or controlled by the Commonwealth, for the purposes of construction or improvement, maintenance or operation of a park; 14. In the event of annexation by a municipality not a member of the authority of lands, areas, or territory served by the authority, then such authority may continue to do business, exercise its jurisdiction over properties and facilities in and upon or over such lands, areas or territory as long as any bonds or indebtedness remain outstanding or unpaid, or any contracts or other obligations remain in force; 15. To make and enter into all contracts and agreements necessary or incidental to the performance of its duties and the execution of its powers under this chapter, including a trust agreement or trust agreements securing any revenue bonds or revenue refunding bonds issued hereunder; 16. To do all acts and things necessary or convenient to carry out the powers granted by this chapter; 17. To borrow, at such rates of interest as the law authorizes, from the federal government or any agency thereof, individuals, partnerships, or private or municipal corporations, for the purpose of acquiring parklands and improvements thereon; to issue its notes, bonds or other obligations; to secure such obligations by mortgage or pledge of the property and improvements being acquired and the income derived therefrom; and to use any revenues and other income of the authority for payment of interest and retirement of principal of such obligations provided that prior approval of the governing body of the locality shall be obtained by an authority that was created by a single locality. Any locality which has formed or joined an authority may lend money to the authority. The power to borrow set forth in this subdivision shall be in addition to the power to issue revenue bonds and revenue refunding bonds set forth in subdivision 9 and § 15.2-5712. Notes, bonds or other obligations issued under this subdivision shall not be deemed to constitute a debt of the Commonwealth or of any political subdivision of the Commonwealth or a pledge of the faith and credit of the Commonwealth or of any political subdivision of the Commonwealth; and 18. To adopt such rules and regulations from time to time, not in conflict with the laws of this Commonwealth, concerning the use of properties under its control as will tend to the protection of such property and the public thereon. No such rule or regulation shall be adopted until after notice of an intention to propose such rule or regulation for passage has been published in accordance with the procedures required for the adoption of general county ordinances and emergency county ordinances as set forth in § 15.2-1427, mutatis mutandis. Code 1950, § 15-714.5; 1950, p. 1246; 1952, c. 401; 1956, c. 472; 1962, c. 623, § 15.1-1232; 1968, c. 613; 1976, c. 483; 1977, c. 381; 1981, c. 182; 1996, c. 279; 1997, c. 587; 2022, c. 255; 2024, cc. 225, 242.

Va. Code § 15.2-6011

§ 15.2-6011. Eligible use of funds.The Authority is hereby empowered to pledge its funds, and make loans and grants to or for the benefit of for-profit enterprises or entities; governmental or corporate instrumentalities in the coalfield region of Virginia (including any political subdivision of the Commonwealth and the Breaks Interstate Park); not-for-profit enterprises or entities; nonprofit industrial development corporations; economic development authorities; or industrial development authorities for financing the following: 1. Purchase of real estate; 2. Grading of site(s); 3. Construction of flood control dams; 4. Water, sewer, natural gas and electrical line replacement and extensions; 5. Construction or rehabilitation or expansion of buildings; 6. Construction of parking facilities; 7. Access roads construction and street improvements; 8. Purchase, lease, or relocation of machinery, tools, equipment, furniture, software, or other personal property; 9. Construction of improvements outside the Commonwealth if in the Breaks Interstate Park; 10. Feasibility studies, site studies, preliminary engineering or architectural reports, and other studies and plans; 11. Such other improvements, projects, activities, or purposes as the Authority deems necessary to accomplish its purpose; and 12. Costs and expenses associated with any item listed in subdivisions 1 through 11, including, but not limited to, architectural, engineering, consulting, legal, closing, installation, delivery, and assembly expenses. 1988, c. 833, § 15.1-1646; 1990, c. 341; 1992, c. 32; 1993, c. 771; 1994, cc. 615, 674; 1997, c. 587; 2004, cc. 36, 177.

Va. Code § 15.2-6208

§ 15.2-6208. Eligible use of funds.From such funds as may be appropriated or received, the Authority may make loans and grants for the benefit of qualified private, for-profit enterprises and public or not-for-profit enterprises, nonprofit industrial development corporations, or industrial development authorities for financing the following: 1. Purchase of real estate; 2. Grading of sites; 3. Water, sewer, natural gas or electrical line improvements, replacement and extensions; 4. Construction, rehabilitation, and expansion of buildings; 5. Construction of parking facilities; 6. Access roads construction and street improvements; 7. Purchase or lease of machinery and tools; and 8. Any other improvements deemed necessary by the Authority to meet its objectives. 1993, c. 982, § 15.1-1669; 1997, c. 587.

Va. Code § 15.2-6405

§ 15.2-6405. Powers of the authority.Each authority is vested with the powers of a body corporate, including the power to sue and be sued in its own name, plead and be impleaded, and adopt and use a common seal and alter the same as may be deemed expedient. In addition to the powers set forth elsewhere in this chapter, an authority may: 1. Adopt bylaws, rules and regulations to carry out the provisions of this chapter; 2. Employ, either as regular employees or as independent contractors, consultants, engineers, architects, accountants, attorneys, financial experts, construction experts and personnel, superintendents, managers and other professional personnel, personnel, and agents as may be necessary in the judgment of the authority, and fix their compensation; 3. Determine the locations of, develop, establish, construct, erect, repair, remodel, add to, extend, improve, equip, operate, regulate, and maintain facilities to the extent necessary or convenient to accomplish the purposes of the authority; 4. Acquire, own, hold, lease, use, sell, encumber, transfer, or dispose of, in its own name, any real or personal property or interests therein; 5. Invest and reinvest funds of the authority; 6. Enter into contracts of any kind, and execute all instruments necessary or convenient with respect to its carrying out the powers in this chapter to accomplish the purposes of the authority; 7. Expend such funds as may be available to it for the purpose of developing facilities, including but not limited to (i) purchasing real estate; (ii) grading sites; (iii) improving, replacing, and extending water, sewer, natural gas, electrical, and other utility lines; (iv) constructing, rehabilitating, and expanding buildings; (v) constructing parking facilities; (vi) constructing access roads, streets, and rail lines; (vii) purchasing or leasing machinery and tools; and (viii) making any other improvements deemed necessary by the authority to meet its objectives; 8. Fix and revise from time to time and charge and collect rates, rents, fees, or other charges for the use of facilities or for services rendered in connection with the facilities; 9. Borrow money from any source for any valid purpose, including working capital for its operations, reserve funds, or interest; mortgage, pledge, or otherwise encumber the property or funds of the authority; and contract with or engage the services of any person in connection with any financing, including financial institutions, issuers of letters of credit, or insurers; 10. Issue bonds under this chapter; 11. Accept funds and property from the Commonwealth, persons, counties, cities, and towns and use the same for any of the purposes for which the authority is created; 12. Apply for and accept grants or loans of money or other property from any federal agency for any of the purposes authorized in this chapter and expend or use the same in accordance with the directions and requirements attached thereto or imposed thereon by any such federal agency; 13. Make loans or grants to, and enter into cooperative arrangements with, any person, partnership, association, corporation, business or governmental entity in furtherance of the purposes of this chapter, for the purposes of promoting economic and workforce development, provided that such loans or grants shall be made only from revenues of the authority that have not been pledged or assigned for the payment of any of the authority's bonds, and to enter into such contracts, instruments, and agreements as may be expedient to provide for such loans, and any security therefor. The word "revenues" as used in this subdivision includes grants, loans, funds and property, as set out in subdivisions 11 and 12; 14. Enter into agreements with any other political subdivision of the Commonwealth for joint or cooperative action in accordance with § 15.2-1300; and 15. Do all things necessary or convenient to carry out the purposes of this chapter. 1997, cc. 276, 587, § 15.1-1715; 2002, c. 691; 2003, c. 874.

Va. Code § 15.2-6617

§ 15.2-6617. Taxation.The exercise of the powers granted by this act shall in all respects be presumed to be for the benefit of the inhabitants of the Commonwealth, for the increase of their commerce, and for the promotion of their health, safety, welfare, convenience and prosperity, and as the operation and maintenance of any project that the Authority is authorized to undertake will constitute the performance of an essential governmental function, the Authority shall not be required to pay any taxes or assessments upon any facilities acquired and constructed by it under the provisions of this act and the bonds issued under the provisions of this act, their transfer and the income therefrom including any profit made on the sale thereof, shall at all times be free and exempt from taxation by the Commonwealth and by any political subdivision thereof. Persons, firms, partnerships, associations, corporations, and organizations leasing property of the Authority or doing business on property of the Authority shall be subject to and liable for payment of all applicable taxes of the political subdivision in which such leased property lies or in which business is conducted including, but not limited to, any leasehold tax on real property and taxes on hotel and motel rooms, taxes on the sale of tobacco products, taxes on the sale of meals and beverages, privilege taxes and local general retail sales and use taxes, taxes to be paid on licenses in respect to any business, profession, vocation or calling, and taxes upon consumers of gas, electricity, telephone, and other public utility services. 2002, c. 766.

Va. Code § 15.2-6643

§ 15.2-6643. Taxation.The exercise of the powers granted by this act shall in all respects be presumed to be for the benefit of the inhabitants of the Commonwealth, for the increase of their commerce, and for the promotion of their health, safety, welfare, convenience, and prosperity, and as the operation and maintenance of any project that the Authority is authorized to undertake will constitute the performance of an essential governmental function, the Authority shall not be required to pay any taxes or assessments upon any facilities acquired and constructed by it under the provisions of this act and the bonds issued under the provisions of this act, their transfer, and the income therefrom including any profit made on the sale thereof, shall at all times be free and exempt from taxation by the Commonwealth and by any political subdivision thereof. Persons, firms, partnerships, associations, corporations, and organizations leasing property of the Authority or doing business on property of the Authority shall be subject to and liable for payment of all applicable taxes of the political subdivision in which such leased property lies or in which business is conducted including, but not limited to, any leasehold tax on real property and taxes on hotel and motel rooms, taxes on the sale of tobacco products, taxes on the sale of meals and beverages, privilege taxes and local general retail sales and use taxes, taxes to be paid on licenses in respect to any business, profession, vocation, or calling, and taxes upon consumers of gas, electricity, telephone, and other public utility services. 2005, c. 842.

Va. Code § 15.2-7202

§ 15.2-7202. Definitions.As used in this chapter, unless the context requires a different meaning: "Authority" means the BVU Authority created by entity conversion of Bristol Virginia Utilities by this chapter. "Board," "Authority Board," or "Board of Directors" means the governing body of the Authority. "Bonds" means any bonds, notes, debentures, bond acceptance notes, or other evidence of financial indebtedness either issued or assumed by the Authority pursuant to this chapter. "Bristol Virginia Utilities Board" means the Board of Directors of Bristol Virginia Utilities governing that entity until the Authority Board takes office on July 1, 2010. "City" means the City of Bristol, Virginia. "City Council" means the City Council of the City of Bristol, Virginia. "Commission" means the Virginia State Corporation Commission. "Commonwealth" means the Commonwealth of Virginia. "Infrastructure" means all property, whether attached to real property or not, now used by Bristol Virginia Utilities and hereafter used by the Authority for the provision of (i) electric, water, sewer, telecommunications, internet, and cable television services and (ii) all other utility services the Authority may lawfully provide. "MLEC" means any city, county, or town certificated to provide local exchange and/or interexchange telecommunications services pursuant to § 56-265.4:4 and any authority granted such powers pursuant to § 15.2-7209. "Political subdivision" means, when referring to an entity other than the Authority, a locality, authority, or other public body of the Commonwealth or of any state in which the Authority does business. "Utility," "utilities," or "utility services" means and includes electric, water, sewer, and telecommunications, internet and cable television services, including all other services that might be lawfully rendered by use of its fiber optic system. 2010, cc. 117, 210; 2016, cc. 724, 725.

Va. Code § 15.2-7207

§ 15.2-7207. Powers generally.A. The Authority is hereby granted all powers reasonably necessary or appropriate to carry out the purposes of this chapter in order to provide electric, water, sewer, and telecommunication and related services, including without limitation, cable television internet, and all other services that might be lawfully rendered by use of the Authority's fiber optic system, subject to all applicable limitations and restrictions thereon. Such powers include, without limitation, except as set forth hereafter, the following: 1. To adopt bylaws for the regulation of its affairs and the conduct of its business; 2. To sue and be sued in the Authority's name; 3. To adopt a corporate seal and alter the same at its pleasure; 4. To maintain offices at such places as it may designate; 5. To appoint, employ, or engage such officers, employees, architects, engineers, attorneys, accountants, financial advisors, investment bankers, and other advisors, consultants, and agents as may be necessary or appropriate, and to fix their duties and compensation; 6. To establish personnel rules; 7. To make, assume, and enter into all contracts, leases, and arrangements necessary or incidental to the exercise of its powers, including contracts for the management or operation of all or any part of its facilities; 8. To borrow money, as hereinafter provided, and to borrow money for the purpose of meeting casual deficits in its revenues; 9. To provide electric, water, sewer, and telecommunication and related services, including without limitation, cable television, internet, and all other services that might be lawfully rendered by use of the Authority's fiber optic system as set forth in § 15.2-7208 subject to all applicable restrictions and limitations thereon; 10. To determine fees, rates, and charges for the services and products it provides, subject only to such state or federal regulation as the Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) or other cognizant state or federal agency may impose by order, rulemaking, contract or otherwise, including, without limitation, electric, water and sewer, and internet and cable television services, including all other services that might be rendered by use of its fiber optic system, furnished by the Authority. MLEC telephone service, including rates, is regulated by the Commission. All rate increases for services other than electric, which are set by the TVA, and telephone, which are set by the Commission and applicable law, shall require a favorable vote at two meetings, one of which must be a regular meeting of the BVU Authority Board; 11. To adopt, amend, and repeal rules and regulations for the use, maintenance, and operation of its facilities and utility services and governing the conduct of persons and organizations using its facilities or obtaining its utility services and to enforce such rules and regulations and all other rules, regulations, ordinances, and statutes relating to its facilities and services, as authorized by the enacting body of such rules, regulations, ordinances, and statutes. The civil penalty for violation of any such rules and regulations shall be set forth in the rules and may be enforced by the Authority by direct action in terminating services and by the imposition of monetary penalties to be billed to the customer. The Authority may request the governing body of each locality in which it does business to impose by ordinance such penal liability for violation of such rules and regulations as such body deems appropriate; 12. Subject to subdivision 20, to apply for and accept gifts or grants of money or gifts, grants or loans of other property or other financial assistance from the United States of America and agencies and instrumentalities thereof, this Commonwealth and political subdivisions, agencies and instrumentalities thereof, or any other person or entity, for or in aid of the construction, acquisition, ownership, operation, maintenance, or repair of its infrastructure or for the payment of principal of any indebtedness of the Authority, interest thereon, or other cost incident thereto, or for the operation of any of its services, or for any other purpose of the Authority, and to this end the Authority shall have the power to render such services, comply with such conditions, and execute such agreements and legal instruments as may be necessary, convenient or desirable or imposed as a condition to such financial aid; 13. Subject to subdivision 15 and all existing limitations and restrictions thereon, to acquire, establish, construct, enlarge, improve, maintain, equip, operate, and regulate electric, water, sewer, telecommunications, internet and cable television services, including all other services that might be rendered by use of its fiber optic system, and other infrastructure and facilities that are owned or managed by the Authority within the territorial areas in which it operates or provides services; 14. To construct, install, maintain, and operate facilities and infrastructure for managing its utility, consulting and operational management services. The Authority shall have the power and duty to manage and operate the electric, public lighting, water, sewerage, telecommunications, internet and cable television services, including all other services that might be rendered by use of its fiber optic system directly subject to all existing limitations and restrictions thereon, or it may subcontract such functions. The Authority shall construct, maintain, and operate all facilities necessary thereto; shall sell and distribute to the public electric power, light, water, sewer, telecommunications, internet and cable television, and other services as they now exist or may exist in the future subject to all existing limitations and restrictions thereon; and shall collect the rates and charges provided for all such services; 15. To own, purchase, lease, obtain options upon, acquire by gift, grant, or bequest or otherwise acquire any property, real or personal, or any interest therein, and in connection therewith to assume or take subject to any indebtedness secured by such property and dispose of any or all such properties as is deemed appropriate by the Board, including, notwithstanding the provisions of the Virginia Public Procurement Act (§ 2.2-4300 et seq.), executing, assigning, or transferring, without implementing the provisions of the Virginia Public Procurement Act, any internal contract between the divisions of the Authority that following such execution, assignment, or transfer will be between the Authority and the purchaser of the Authority's assets. The Authority shall have the power of eminent domain to acquire property and easements as needed for its electric power, light, water, and sewer services within the areas it provides or can provide such services. The power of eminent domain shall not include the power to acquire existing telecommunications, internet or cable facilities, which is expressly prohibited, and the Authority shall not accept or receive any telecommunications, internet or cable facilities from an entity that acquired such facilities by use of eminent domain for the purpose of conveying them to the Authority; 16. To purchase and maintain insurance or provide indemnification on behalf of any person who is or was a director, officer, employee, or agent of the Authority and on behalf of the Authority itself against any liability asserted against it or him or incurred by it or him in any such capacity or arising out of his status as such; 17. To establish and charge such fees as it deems appropriate for attachment to or inclusion in the Authority's infrastructure, including but not limited to its poles, conduits, and co-location sites, subject to all existing limitations and restrictions thereon; 18. To fund economic development projects and, in advance of economic development projects, to enter into contracts, to borrow money and to do all other such acts as will allow it to encourage and support economic development. Before the Authority expends any funds for an economic development project that is funded in whole or in part by funds allocated by the Board pursuant to a power purchase agreement with the Tennessee Valley Authority, a determination shall be made that the electric system benefit is expected to be commensurate with the expenditure. Within 30 days of the end of the Authority's fiscal year, the Authority shall publish on its website the details of any incentive awarded to an economic development project; 19. To have police powers on all of the properties of the Authority within the Commonwealth, exercised through appointment of an armed conservator of the peace. The president of the Authority may apply to the circuit court for any locality in which the Authority has property for the appointment of one or more special conservators of the peace under procedures specified by Chapter 2 (§ 19.2-12 et seq.) of Title 19.2 or any successor provisions. Any such special conservator of the peace shall have, within the lands and facilities controlled by the Authority, the powers, functions, duties, responsibilities, and authority of any other armed conservator of the peace. Nothing in this section shall be construed to prevent the conservator of the peace currently serving Bristol Virginia Utilities from continuing as an armed special conservator of the peace for the Authority during the remainder of his term, if not removed for cause; and 20. To build or facilitate the building of, as the first broadband priority of the Authority, wired broadband infrastructure to serve residents in the Authority's lawful service area who are not served by any wired broadband service provider. The president of the Authority shall annually provide the Board with a report detailing (i) the number of requests for broadband services received from residents in unserved areas, (ii) the number of such requests for which the Authority has provided a connection to broadband services, and (iii) the costs of providing such broadband service. B. The Authority is authorized to (i) operate only in Virginia and Tennessee; (ii) offer broadband services only in Sullivan, Unicoi, and Washington Counties, Tennessee; the City of Bristol, Virginia; and Bland, Buchanan, Dickenson, Russell, Scott, Smyth, Tazewell, Washington, Wise, and Wythe Counties in Virginia, together with any towns located in such counties; and (iii) offer cable television services or other video services only within the electric utility service territory of Bristol Virginia Utilities as it existed on December 31, 2009, in the City of Bristol, Virginia, Scott County, and Washington County, including within the Town of Abingdon. Notwithstanding the geographic limitations of this subsection, the Authority shall have the right to sell any of its non-electric utility services at wholesale to an independent third party in which the Authority has no ownership or management interest and no economic interest apart from the sale of utility services, to allow such independent third party to distribute and sell the utility services at retail in areas outside of the Authority's geographic limitations. C. Whenever any grant, loan, or application for such grant or loan includes or refers to funding for broadband deployment, the Authority shall ensure that (i) funds are allocated to the maximum extent possible to projects that expand broadband deployment to areas, residents, or businesses that are unserved by wired broadband; (ii) in any funding of grants for broadband deployment that include areas already served by wired broadband, such areas already served are incidental to and are crossed only for the purpose of reaching an unserved area; and (iii) any broadband network built will be operated on an open-access basis, available to multiple broadband providers, with dark fibers and capacity sufficient for competitive broadband providers to lease the same from the Authority at commercially reasonable rates. D. The Authority shall not seek to become or establish a wireless service authority under the Virginia Wireless Service Authorities Act (§ 15.2-5431.1 et seq.) or contract for services with such an authority. E. The Authority shall not solicit or contract with any locality or other entity possessing the power of eminent domain in order to cause such a third party to exercise its power of eminent domain to acquire any easements or other property where the Authority itself lacks such power. F. The Authority shall not have the power to make charitable donations. 2010, cc. 117, 210; 2016, cc. 724, 725; 2018, c. 839.

Va. Code § 15.2-7208

§ 15.2-7208. Powers.Unless limited elsewhere in this chapter, the Authority shall have those powers possessed by the City of Bristol necessary and convenient for the provision of electric, water and sanitary sewer services, and those powers possessed by the Bristol Virginia Utilities Board and the division of the city known as Bristol Virginia Utilities as they existed on July 1, 2001, in the Charter of the City of Bristol, Virginia, and the general laws of the Commonwealth. Unless limited elsewhere in this chapter, the Authority shall also possess all those powers, subject to the limitations and restrictions thereon, as granted to the City, the Bristol Virginia Utilities Board, and BVU by Chapter 479 of the Acts of Assembly of 2002, Chapters 539, 546, and 677 of the Acts of Assembly 2003, Chapter 586 of the Acts of Assembly of 2004, Chapter 258 of the Acts of Assembly of 2005, Chapters 607 and 682 of the Acts of Assembly of 2007, and Chapters 99 and 323 of the Acts of Assembly of 2008. 2010, cc. 117, 210; 2016, cc. 724, 725.

Va. Code § 15.2-7220

§ 15.2-7220. Taxation.The exercise of the powers granted by this Act shall in all respects be presumed to be for the benefit of the public, for the increase of their commerce and for the promotion of their health, safety, welfare, convenience, and prosperity, and as the operation and maintenance of any service that the Authority is authorized to provide will constitute the performance of an essential governmental function, the Authority shall not be required to pay any taxes or assessments upon any facilities acquired and constructed by it under the provisions of this Act and the bonds issued under the provisions of this Act, their transfer, and the income therefrom, including any profit made on the sale thereof, shall at all times be free and exempt from taxation by the Commonwealth and by any political subdivision thereof. Persons, firms, partnerships, associations, corporations, and organizations leasing property of the Authority or doing business on property of the Authority shall be subject to and liable for payment of all applicable taxes of the political subdivision in which such leased property lies or in which business is conducted including but not limited to any leasehold tax on real property and taxes on the sale of utility services and local general retail sales and use taxes, taxes to be paid on licenses in respect to any business, profession, vocation or calling, and taxes upon consumers of gas, electricity, telephone, and other public utility services. The Authority shall continue to pay or impute any taxes presently paid or imputed by Bristol Virginia Utilities and to collect and remit all taxes presently collected and remitted by Bristol Virginia Utilities. 2010, cc. 117, 210.

Va. Code § 15.2-7417

§ 15.2-7417. Taxation.The exercise of the powers granted by this act shall in all respects be presumed to be for the benefit of the inhabitants of the Commonwealth, for the increase of their commerce, and for the promotion of their health, safety, welfare, convenience, and prosperity, and as the operation and maintenance of any project that the Authority is authorized to undertake will constitute the performance of an essential governmental function, the Authority shall not be required to pay any taxes or assessments upon any facilities acquired and constructed by it under the provisions of this act, and the bonds issued under the provisions of this act, their transfer, and the income therefrom, including any profit made on the sale thereof, shall at all times be free and exempt from taxation by the Commonwealth and by any political subdivision thereof. Persons, firms, partnerships, associations, corporations, and organizations leasing property of the Authority or doing business on property of the Authority shall be subject to and liable for payment of all applicable taxes of the political subdivision in which such leased property lies or in which business is conducted, including, but not limited to, any leasehold tax on real property and taxes on hotel and motel rooms, taxes on the sale of tobacco products, taxes on the sale of meals and beverages, privilege taxes and local general retail sales and use taxes, taxes to be paid on licenses in respect to any business, profession, vocation, or calling, and taxes upon consumers of gas, electricity, telephone, and other public utility services. 2014, c. 471.

Va. Code § 15.2-816.1

§ 15.2-816.1. Underground electric distribution, telecommunications, cable, and other utility facilities.A. The governing body of any locality operating under the urban county executive form of government may request an electric utility, telecommunications provider, cable provider, or other utility to enter into an agreement with the locality to place underground electric distribution, facilities, telecommunications facilities, cable facilities, or other utility facilities as part of a transportation infrastructure improvement project, a commercial or industrial improvement project, or roads serving any such project that the Commonwealth Transportation Board or such locality identifies that reduce congestion, improve mobility, improve transit system infrastructure, improve safety, or improve service or access to such project. B. If the parties desire to proceed, the locality operating under the urban county executive form of government shall enter into an agreement with an electric utility, telecommunications provider, cable provider, or other utility that provides that (i) the locality shall pay to the utility or provider its full costs of relocating and converting that portion of the facility located in the locality underground rather than overhead, minus the net of relocation credits; (ii) the utility or provider shall convert, operate, and maintain the agreed portion of the facility underground in cooperation with any other utility or provider with facilities placed underground there; (iii) the agreement is contingent upon the adoption of the levy set forth in subsection C; and (iv) other terms and conditions on which the parties may agree shall be included in the agreement. No agreement shall require any telecommunications provider or cable provider to share conduit. C. If the locality operating under the urban county executive form of government and the utility enter into an agreement as described in subsection B, the locality may impose an additional levy on electric utility customers in the locality pursuant to § 58.1-3814. The locality shall by ordinance fix the amount of such additional levy, which shall not exceed $1 per month on residential customers and shall not exceed 6.67 percent of the monthly amount charged to nonresidential consumers of the utility service. The initial proceeds of such levy shall be dedicated to a project incorporating bus rapid transit on a road in the National Highway System serving a Metrorail station and an anticipated extension of Metrorail in a designated revitalization area in such locality. The provider of billing services shall bill the tax to all users who are subject to the tax and to whom it bills for electricity service and shall remit such tax to the appropriate locality. Any levy imposed pursuant to this section shall be in addition to the limit for any utility consumer tax prescribed in § 58.1-3814. If the provisions of this section are inconsistent with the provisions of § 58.1-3814, the provisions of this section shall be controlling. D. The locality may, or the Commissioner of Highways, upon presentation of the agreement to the Commonwealth Transportation Board, shall, be responsible for securing the necessary easements and permits for the utility or provider necessary for the conversion of the existing distribution, telecommunication, cable, or other utility facilities. E. With the exception of any local zoning ordinances and review under § 15.2-2232 or any cable franchise agreement, if the provisions of this section are inconsistent with the provisions of any other law or local ordinance, the provisions of this section shall be controlling. F. For purposes of this section, the term "electric utility" includes any cooperative, as that term is defined in § 56-231.15, operating within the locality. 2019, c. 792; 2021, Sp. Sess. I, c. 505.

Va. Code § 15.2-907.1

§ 15.2-907.1. Authority to require removal, repair, etc., of buildings that are declared to be derelict; civil penalty.Any locality that has a real estate tax abatement program in accordance with this section may, by ordinance, provide that: 1. The owners of property therein shall at such time or times as the governing body may prescribe submit a plan to demolish or renovate any building that has been declared a "derelict building." For purposes of this section, "derelict building" means a residential or nonresidential building or structure, whether or not construction has been completed, that might endanger the public's health, safety, or welfare and for a continuous period in excess of six months, it has been (i) vacant, (ii) boarded up in accordance with the building code, and (iii) not lawfully connected to electric service from a utility service provider or not lawfully connected to any required water or sewer service from a utility service provider. 2. If a building qualifies as a derelict building pursuant to the ordinance, the locality shall notify the owner of the derelict building that the owner is required to submit to the locality a plan, within 90 days, to demolish or renovate the building to address the items that endanger the public's health, safety, or welfare as listed in a written notification provided by the locality. Such plan may be on a form developed by the locality and shall include a proposed time within which the plan will be commenced and completed. The plan may include one or more adjacent properties of the owner, whether or not all of such properties may have been declared derelict buildings. The plan shall be subject to approval by the locality. The locality shall deliver the written notice to the address listed on the real estate tax assessment records of the locality. Written notice sent by first-class mail, with the locality obtaining a U.S. Postal Service Certificate of Mailing shall constitute delivery pursuant to this section. 3. If a locality delivers written notice and the owner of the derelict building has not submitted a plan to the locality within 90 days as provided in subdivision 2, the locality may exercise such remedies as provided in this section or as otherwise provided by law. Such remedy may include imposition of a civil penalty not exceeding $500 per month until such time as the owner has submitted a plan in accordance with this section; however, the total civil penalty imposed shall not exceed the cost to demolish the derelict building. Any such civil penalty shall be paid into the treasury of the locality. 4. The owner of a building may apply to the locality and request that such building be declared a derelict building for purposes of this section. 5. The locality, upon receipt of the plan to demolish or renovate the building, at the owner's request, shall meet with the owner submitting the plan and provide information to the owner on the land use and permitting requirements for demolition or renovation. 6. If the property owner's plan is to demolish the derelict building, the building permit application of such owner shall be expedited. If the owner has completed the demolition within 90 days of the date of the building permit issuance, the locality shall refund any building and demolition permit fees. This section shall not supersede any ordinance adopted pursuant to § 15.2-2306 relative to historic districts. 7. If the property owner's plan is to renovate the derelict building, and no rezoning is required for the owner's intended use of the property, the site plan or subdivision application and the building permit, as applicable, shall be expedited. The site plan or subdivision fees may be refunded, all or in part, but in no event shall the site plan or subdivision fees exceed the lesser of 50 percent of the standard fees established by the ordinance for site plan or subdivision applications for the proposed use of the property, or $5,000 per property. The building permit fees may be refunded, all or in part, but in no event shall the building permit fees exceed the lesser of 50 percent of the standard fees established by the ordinance for building permit applications for the proposed use of the property, or $5,000 per property. 8. Prior to commencement of a plan to demolish or renovate the derelict building, at the request of the property owner, the real estate assessor shall make an assessment of the property in its current derelict condition. On the building permit application, the owner shall declare the costs of demolition, or the costs of materials and labor to complete the renovation. At the request of the property owner, after demolition or renovation of the derelict building, the real estate assessor shall reflect the fair market value of the demolition costs or the fair market value of the renovation improvements, and reflect such value in the real estate tax assessment records. The real estate tax on an amount equal to the costs of demolition or an amount equal to the increase in the fair market value of the renovations shall be abated for a period of not less than 15 years, and is transferable with the property. The abatement of taxes for demolition shall not apply if the structure demolished is a registered Virginia landmark or is determined by the Department of Historic Resources to contribute to the significance of a registered historic district. However, if the locality has an existing tax abatement program for less than 15 years, as of July 1, 2009, the locality may provide for a tax abatement period of not less than five years. 9. Notwithstanding the provisions of this section, the locality may proceed to make repairs and secure the building under § 15.2-906, or the locality may proceed to abate or remove a nuisance under § 15.2-900. In addition, the locality may exercise such remedies as may exist under the Uniform Statewide Building Code and may exercise such other remedies available under general and special law. 2009, cc. 181, 551; 2020, c. 9; 2025, c. 61.

Va. Code § 15.2-911

§ 15.2-911. Regulation of alarm company operators.A. Any locality may by ordinance regulate the installation and maintenance of alarm systems operated by alarm company operators. B. As used in this section: "Alarm company operator" means and includes any business operated for profit, engaged in the installation, maintenance, alteration, or servicing of alarm systems or which responds to such alarm systems. Such term, however, shall not include alarm systems maintained by governmental agencies or departments, nor shall it include a business which merely sells from a fixed location or manufactures alarm systems unless such business services, installs, monitors or responds to alarm systems at the protected premises. "Alarm system" means an assembly of equipment and devices arranged to signal the presence of a hazard requiring urgent attention and to which police or firefighters are expected to respond. Such system may be installed, maintained, altered or serviced by an alarm company operator in both commercial and residential premises. "Battery-charged fence security system" means a system intended for security that includes a fence, a battery-operated energizer connected to the fence and designed to periodically deliver voltage impulses to the fence, a battery-charging device used exclusively to charge the battery, and any other ancillary components and attached equipment. "Battery-charged fence security system" does not include fencing engineered to exclude or contain deer or livestock. C. 1. Any battery-charged fence security system shall (i) interface with a monitored alarm device in a manner that enables the system to transmit a signal intended to alert the owner or law enforcement; (ii) have an energizer powered by a commercial storage battery that provides not more than 12 volts of direct current and meets the standards set forth in the International Electrotechnical Commission Standard 60335-2-76; (iii) be located behind a nonelectric perimeter fence or wall that is at least five feet tall; (iv) be on property not zoned for residential use; (v) not be taller than 10 feet or two feet taller than the height of the perimeter fence or wall, whichever is taller; (vi) be marked with warning signs posted conspicuously on the fence at 30-foot intervals that state "Warning - Electric Fence"; and (vii) include a mechanism that allows first responders to deactivate the system during an emergency. 2. A locality may require: (i) a person who provides or operates a battery-charged fence security system to comply with this subsection; (ii) a person who provides or operates a battery-charged fence security system to comply with the ministerial requirements of an alarm company operator, including a permit or registration and payment of any accompanying fee, prior to providing or operating such battery-charged fence security system; and (iii) an installer, on completion of a newly installed battery-charged fence security system, to submit to the locality an affidavit that includes the address of the installation, name of the installer, date of the installation, and an affirmation that the criteria in this subsection are satisfied. 3. A locality may inspect a newly installed battery-charged fence security system after receipt of an affidavit to ensure the system meets the requirements of this subsection. If the battery-charged fence security system fails to comply with the criteria set forth in this subsection, the locality may issue a citation describing the specific noncompliance and requiring the battery-charged fence security system to come into compliance within a reasonable period of time. The locality may also impose a penalty not to exceed $500 for the first instance if the battery-charged fence security system is not made compliant within the specified period of time. 4. If a battery-charged fence security system meets the requirements of subdivision 1, then a locality shall not establish or otherwise impose any product, installation, or operational requirements, fees, or approvals for a battery-charged fence security system nor prohibit the use of such a system. 1978, c. 587, § 15.1-28.2; 1997, c. 587; 2022, cc. 43, 44.

Va. Code § 15.2-958.3

§ 15.2-958.3. Commercial Property Assessed Clean Energy (C-PACE) financing programs.A. As used in this section: "Eligible improvements" means any of the following improvements made to eligible properties: 1. Energy efficiency improvements; 2. Water efficiency and safe drinking water improvements; 3. Renewable energy improvements; 4. Resiliency improvements; 5. Stormwater management improvements; 6. Environmental remediation improvements; and 7. Electric vehicle infrastructure improvements. A program administrator may include in its C-PACE loan program guide or other administrative documentation definitions, interpretations, and examples of these categories of eligible improvements. "Eligible properties" means all assessable commercial real estate located within the Commonwealth, with all buildings located or to be located thereon, whether vacant or occupied, whether improved or unimproved, and regardless of whether such real estate is currently subject to taxation by the locality. "Eligible properties" are eligible for the C-PACE loan program and may include multifamily properties with no fewer than five units, common areas of real estate owned by a cooperative or a property owners' association as defined in § 55.1-1800 that have a separate real property tax identification number, and commercial condominiums as defined in § 55.1-1900. Residential real estate with fewer than five units is not eligible for the C-PACE loan program. "Program administrator" means a third party that is contracted for professional services to administer a C-PACE loan program. "Property owner" means the fee simple owner of eligible property or the lessee under a long-term ground lease of eligible property, including a property that is owned by a public or private entity. To be eligible for a C-PACE loan (i) the term of the C-PACE loan shall not exceed the remaining term of the ground lease, (ii) there shall be no ground lease provisions or other circumstances that would prevent the property owner from participating in the C-PACE loan program, (iii) the fee simple owner shall consent to the C-PACE loan, and (iv) the fee simple owner and the lessee under a long-term ground lease shall comply with the requirements of the C-PACE loan program, including the program guide. "Resiliency improvement" means an improvement that increases the capacity of a structure or infrastructure to withstand or recover from natural disasters, the effects of climate change, and attacks and accidents, including, but not limited to: 1. Flood mitigation or the mitigation of the impacts of flooding; 2. Inundation adaptation; 3. Natural or nature-based features and living shorelines, as defined in § 28.2-104.1; 4. Enhancement of fire or wind resistance; 5. Microgrids; 6. Energy storage; and 7. Enhancement of the resilience capacity of a natural system, structure, or infrastructure. B. Any locality may, by ordinance, authorize contracts to provide C-PACE loans (loans) for the initial acquisition, installation, and refinancing of eligible improvements located on eligible properties by free and willing property owners of such eligible properties. The ordinance may refer to the mode of financing as Commercial Property Assessed Clean Energy (C-PACE) financing and shall include but not be limited to the following: 1. The kinds of eligible improvements that qualify for loans; 2. The proposed arrangement for such C-PACE loan program (loan program), including (i) a statement concerning the source of funding for the C-PACE loan; (ii) the time period during which contracting property owners would repay the C-PACE loan; and (iii) the method of apportioning all or any portion of the costs incidental to financing, administration, and collection of the C-PACE loan among the parties to the C-PACE transaction; 3. (i) A minimum dollar amount that may be financed with respect to an eligible property; (ii) if a locality or other public body is originating the loans, a maximum aggregate dollar amount that may be financed with respect to loans originated by the locality or other public body, and (iii) provisions that the loan program may approve a loan application submitted within three years of the locality's issuance of a certificate of occupancy or other evidence that eligible improvements comply substantially with the plans and specifications previously approved by the locality and that such loan may refinance or reimburse the property owner for the total costs of such eligible improvements; 4. In the case of a loan program described in clause (ii) of subdivision 3, a method for setting requests from owners of eligible properties for financing in priority order in the event that requests appear likely to exceed the authorization amount of the loan program. Priority shall be given to those requests from owners of eligible properties who meet established income or assessed property value eligibility requirements; 5. Identification of a local official authorized to enter into contracts on behalf of the locality. A locality may contract with a program administrator to administer such loan program; 6. Identification of any fee that the locality intends to impose on the property owner requesting to participate in the loan program to offset the cost of administering the loan program. The fee may be assessed as a program fee paid by the property owner requesting to participate in the program; and 7. A draft contract specifying the terms and conditions proposed by the locality. C. The locality may combine the loan payments required by the contracts with billings for water or sewer charges, real property tax assessments, or other billings; in such cases, the locality may establish the order in which loan payments will be applied to the different charges. The locality may not combine its billings for loan payments required by a contract authorized pursuant to this section with billings of another locality or political subdivision, including an authority operating pursuant to Chapter 51 (§ 15.2-5100 et seq.), unless such locality or political subdivision has given its consent by duly adopted resolution or ordinance. The locality may, either by ordinance or its program guide, delegate the billing; collection, including enforcement; and remittance of C-PACE loan payments to a third party. D. The locality shall offer private lending institutions the opportunity to participate in local C-PACE loan programs established pursuant to this section. E. In order to secure the loan authorized pursuant to this section, the locality shall place a voluntary special assessment lien equal in value to the loan against any property where such eligible improvements are being installed. The locality may bundle or package said loans for transfer to private lenders in such a manner that would allow the voluntary special assessment liens to remain in full force to secure the loans. The placement of a voluntary special assessment lien shall not require a new assessment on the value of the real property that is being improved under the loan program. F. A voluntary special assessment lien imposed on real property under this section: 1. Shall have the same priority status as a property tax lien against real property, except that such voluntary special assessment lien shall have priority over any previously recorded mortgage or deed of trust lien only if (i) a written subordination agreement, in a form and substance acceptable to each prior lienholder in its sole and exclusive discretion, is executed by the holder of each mortgage or deed of trust lien on the property and recorded with the special assessment lien in the land records where the property is located, and (ii) evidence that the property owner is current on payments on loans secured by a mortgage or deed of trust lien on the property and on property tax payments, that the property owner is not insolvent or in bankruptcy proceedings, and that the title of the benefited property is not in dispute is submitted to the locality prior to recording of the special assessment lien; 2. Shall run with the land, and that portion of the assessment under the assessment contract that has not yet become due is not eliminated by foreclosure of a property tax lien; 3. May be enforced by the local government in the same manner that a property tax lien against real property is enforced by the local government. A local government shall be entitled to recover costs and expenses, including attorney fees, in a suit to collect a delinquent installment of an assessment in the same manner as in a suit to collect a delinquent property tax; and 4. May incur interest and penalties for delinquent installments of the assessment in the same manner as delinquent property taxes. G. Prior to the enactment of an ordinance pursuant to this section, a public hearing shall be held at which interested persons may object to or inquire about the proposed loan program or any of its particulars. The public hearing shall be published twice, with the first notice appearing no more than 28 days before and the second notice appearing no less than seven days before the hearing, in a newspaper of general circulation in the locality. H. The Department of Energy shall serve as a statewide sponsor for a loan program that meets the requirements of this section. The Department of Energy shall engage a private program administrator through a competitive selection process to develop the statewide loan program. A locality, by its adoption or amendment of its C-PACE ordinance described in subsection B, may opt into the statewide C-PACE loan program sponsored by the Department of Energy without undertaking any competitive procurement process, provided that the locality agrees to execute a locality agreement within 30 days after the adoption or amendment of its C-PACE ordinance. 2009, c. 773; 2010, c. 141; 2015, cc. 389, 427; 2019, cc. 564, 753; 2020, c. 664; 2021, c. 6; 2021, Sp. Sess. I, c. 532; 2022, c. 402; 2023, cc. 506, 507; 2024, cc. 225, 242; 2025, c. 205.

Va. Code § 15.2-967.2

§ 15.2-967.2. Electric vehicle charging stations.Any locality may locate and operate a retail fee-based electric vehicle charging station on property the locality owns or leases. A locality may provide that the use of such station is restricted to employees of the locality and authorized visitors and may install signage that provides notice of such restriction. 2018, cc. 295, 446.

Va. Code § 17.1-281

§ 17.1-281. Assessment for courthouse construction, renovation or maintenance.A. Any county or city, through its governing body, may assess a sum not in excess of two dollars as part of the costs in (i) each civil action filed in the district or circuit courts located within its boundaries and (ii) each criminal or traffic case in its district or circuit court in which the defendant is charged with a violation of any statute or ordinance. If a town provides court facilities for a county, the governing body of the county shall return to the town a portion of the assessments collected based on the number of civil, criminal and traffic cases originating and heard in the town. B. The imposition of such assessment shall be by ordinance of the governing body which may provide for different sums in circuit courts and district courts. The assessment shall be collected by the clerk of the court in which the action is filed, remitted to the treasurer of the appropriate county or city and held by such treasurer subject to disbursements by the governing body for the construction, renovation, or maintenance of courthouse or jail and court-related facilities and to defray increases in the cost of heating, cooling, electricity, and ordinary maintenance. C. Any county or city which, on or after January 1, 2008, operated a courthouse not in compliance with the current safety and security guidelines contained in the Virginia Courthouse Facility Guidelines, as certified by the Department of General Services upon application to the Department by the county or city, and which cannot be feasibly renovated to correct such non-compliance, through its governing body, may assess an additional sum not in excess of three dollars as part of the costs in (i) each civil action filed in the district or circuit courts located within its boundaries and (ii) each criminal or traffic case in its district or circuit court in which the defendant is charged with a violation of any statute or ordinance. Such additional fee assessed under this subsection shall not be assessed in any civil action if the amount in controversy is $500 or less. Any locality which applies for certification from the Department under this subsection shall reimburse the Department for the actual costs incurred by the Department in complying with the certification request. D. The imposition of such assessment shall be by ordinance of the governing body, which may provide for different sums in circuit courts and district courts. The assessment shall be collected by the clerk of the court in which the action is filed, remitted to the treasurer of the appropriate county or city, and held by such treasurer subject to disbursements by the governing body solely for the construction, reconstruction, renovation of, or adaptive re-use of a structure for a courthouse. E. The assessments provided for herein shall be in addition to any other fees prescribed by law. The assessments shall be required in each felony, misdemeanor, or traffic infraction case, regardless of the existence of a local ordinance requiring their payment. 1990, c. 543, § 14.1-133.2; 1991, c. 689; 1992, cc. 698, 863; 1998, c. 872; 1999, c. 9; 2002, c. 831; 2009, cc. 814, 857.

Va. Code § 18.2-152.4

§ 18.2-152.4. Computer trespass; penalty.A. It is unlawful for any person, with malicious intent, or through intentionally deceptive means and without authority, to: 1. Temporarily or permanently remove, halt, or otherwise disable any computer data, computer programs or computer software from a computer or computer network; 2. Cause a computer to malfunction, regardless of how long the malfunction persists; 3. Alter, disable, or erase any computer data, computer programs or computer software; 4. Effect the creation or alteration of a financial instrument or of an electronic transfer of funds; 5. Use a computer or computer network to cause physical injury to the property of another; 6. Use a computer or computer network to make or cause to be made an unauthorized copy, in any form, including, but not limited to, any printed or electronic form of computer data, computer programs or computer software residing in, communicated by, or produced by a computer or computer network; 7. [Repealed.] 8. Install or cause to be installed, or collect information through, computer software that records all or a majority of the keystrokes made on the computer of another; or 9. Install or cause to be installed on the computer of another, computer software for the purpose of (i) taking control of that computer so that it can cause damage to another computer or (ii) disabling or disrupting the ability of the computer to share or transmit instructions or data to other computers or to any related computer equipment or devices, including but not limited to printers, scanners, or fax machines. B. Any person who violates this section is guilty of computer trespass, which is a Class 1 misdemeanor. Any person who violates this section for the purposes of affecting a computer that is exclusively for the use of, or exclusively used by or for, (i) the Commonwealth or any local government within the Commonwealth or any department or agency thereof or (ii) a provider of telephone, including wireless or voice over Internet protocol, oil, electric, gas, sewer, wastewater, or water service to the public is guilty of a Class 6 felony. If there is damage to the property of another valued at $1,000 or more caused by such person's act done with malicious intent in violation of this section, the offense is a Class 6 felony. If a person, with malicious intent, installs or causes to be installed computer software in violation of this section on more than five computers of another, the offense is a Class 6 felony. If a person violates subdivision A 8 with malicious intent, the offense is a Class 6 felony. C. Nothing in this section shall be construed to interfere with or prohibit terms or conditions in a contract or license related to computers, computer data, computer networks, computer operations, computer programs, computer services, or computer software or to create any liability by reason of terms or conditions adopted by, or technical measures implemented by, a Virginia-based electronic mail service provider to prevent the transmission of unsolicited electronic mail in violation of this article. Nothing in this section shall be construed to prohibit the monitoring of the location of a minor or a person with a disability or mental impairment as those terms are defined in § 51.5-40.1 or to prohibit the monitoring of the computer usage of, the otherwise lawful copying of data of, or the denial of computer or Internet access to a minor by a parent or legal guardian of the minor. Nothing in this section shall be construed to require notice to a computer user of the activities of a computer hardware or software provider, an interactive computer service, or a telecommunications or cable operator that a reasonable computer user should expect may occur in the context of a computer user's transaction or relationship with that entity or that are required or specifically authorized by law. 1984, c. 751; 1985, c. 322; 1990, c. 663; 1998, c. 892; 1999, cc. 886, 904, 905; 2002, c. 195; 2003, cc. 987, 1016; 2005, cc. 761, 812, 827; 2007, c. 483; 2017, c. 562; 2020, c. 821.

Va. Code § 18.2-153

§ 18.2-153. Obstructing or injuring canal, railroad, power line, etc.If any person maliciously obstruct, remove or injure any part of a canal, railroad or urban, suburban or interurban electric railway, or any lines of any electric power company, or any bridge or fixture thereof, or maliciously obstruct, tamper with, injure or remove any machinery, engine, car, trolley, supply or return wires or any other work thereof, or maliciously open, close, displace, tamper with or injure any switch, switch point, switch lever, signal lever or signal of any such company, whereby the life of any person on such canal, railroad, urban, suburban or interurban electric railway, is put in peril, he shall be guilty of a Class 4 felony; and, in the event of the death of any such person resulting from such malicious act, the person so offending shall be deemed guilty of murder, the degree to be determined by the jury or the court trying the case without a jury. If any such act be committed unlawfully, but not maliciously, the person so offending shall be guilty of a Class 6 felony; and in the event of the death of any such person resulting from such unlawful act, the person so offending shall be deemed guilty of involuntary manslaughter. Code 1950, § 18.1-147; 1960, c. 358; 1975, cc. 14, 15.

Va. Code § 18.2-156

§ 18.2-156. Taking or removing waste or packing from journal boxes.If any person shall willfully and maliciously take or remove the waste or packing from any journal box of any locomotive, engine, tender, carriage, coach, car, caboose or truck used or operated upon any railroad, whether the same be operated by steam or electricity, he shall be guilty of a Class 6 felony. Code 1950, § 18.1-151; 1960, c. 358; 1975, cc. 14, 15.

Va. Code § 18.2-162

§ 18.2-162. Damage or trespass to public services or utilities.Any person who shall intentionally destroy or damage any facility which is used to furnish oil, telegraph, telephone, electric, gas, sewer, wastewater or water service to the public, shall be guilty of a Class 4 felony, provided that in the event that the destruction or damage may be remedied or repaired for less than $1,000 such act shall constitute a Class 3 misdemeanor. On electric generating property marked with no trespassing signs, the security personnel of a utility may detain a trespasser for a period not to exceed one hour pending arrival of a law-enforcement officer. Notwithstanding any other provisions of this title, any person who shall intentionally destroy or damage, or attempt to destroy or damage, any such facility, equipment or material connected therewith, the destruction or damage of which might, in any manner, threaten the release of radioactive materials or ionizing radiation beyond the areas in which they are normally used or contained, shall be guilty of a Class 4 felony, provided that in the event the destruction or damage results in the death of another due to exposure to radioactive materials or ionizing radiation, such person shall be guilty of a Class 2 felony; provided further, that in the event the destruction or damage results in injury to another, such person shall be guilty of a Class 3 felony. Code 1950, § 18.1-158; 1960, c. 358; 1964, c. 224; 1966, c. 446; 1975, cc. 14, 15; 1980, c. 548; 1981, c. 197; 1985, c. 299; 1992, c. 352; 2018, cc. 764, 765; 2020, cc. 89, 401.

Va. Code § 18.2-165

§ 18.2-165. Unlawful use of, or injury to, television or radio signals and equipment.Any person who shall willfully or maliciously break, injure or otherwise destroy or damage any of the posts, wires, towers or other materials or fixtures employed in the construction or use of any line of a television coaxial cable, or a microwave radio system, or willfully or maliciously interfere with such structure so erected, or in any way attempt to lead from its uses or make use of the electrical signal or any portion thereof properly belonging to or in use or in readiness to be made use of for the purpose of using said electrical signal from any television coaxial cable company or microwave system or owner of such property, shall be guilty of a Class 3 misdemeanor. Code 1950, § 18.1-157; 1960, c. 358; 1975, cc. 14, 15.

Va. Code § 18.2-165.1

§ 18.2-165.1. Tampering with or unlawful use of cable television service.Any person who (i) shall knowingly obtain or attempt to obtain cable television service from another by means, artifice, trick, deception or device without the payment to the operator of such service of all lawful compensation for each type of service obtained; (ii) shall knowingly, and with intent to profit thereby from any consideration received or expected, assist or instruct any other person in obtaining or attempting to obtain any cable television service without the payment to the operator of said service of all lawful compensation; (iii) shall knowingly tamper or otherwise interfere with or connect to by any means whether mechanical, electrical, acoustical or other, any cables, wires, or other devices used for the distribution of cable television service without authority from the operator of such service; or (iv) shall knowingly sell, rent, lend, promote, offer or advertise for sale, rental or use any device of any description or any plan for making or assembling the same to any person, with knowledge that the person intends to use such device or plan to do any of the acts hereinbefore mentioned or if the device or plan was represented either directly or indirectly by the person distributing it as having the ability to facilitate the doing of any of the acts hereinbefore mentioned, shall be guilty of a Class 6 felony if convicted under clause (ii) or (iv) above and shall be guilty of a Class 1 misdemeanor if convicted under clause (i) or (iii) above. As used herein, cable television service shall include any and all services provided by or through the facilities of any cable television system or closed circuit coaxial cable communications system or any microwave, satellite or similar transmission service used in connection with any cable television system or other similar closed circuit coaxial cable communications system. In any prosecution under this section, the existence on property in the actual possession of the accused, of any connection, wire, conductor, or any device whatsoever, which permits the use of cable television service without the same being reported for payment to and specifically authorized by the operator of the cable television service shall be prima facie evidence of intent to violate and of the violation of this section by the accused. Nothing contained in this section shall be construed so as to abrogate or interfere with any contract right or remedy of any person having a contract with the owner of a television coaxial cable, or a cablevision system, or a microwave radio system. 1978, c. 712; 1979, c. 500; 1981, c. 197; 1991, c. 502.

Va. Code § 18.2-187.1

§ 18.2-187.1. Obtaining or attempting to obtain oil, electric, gas, water, telephone, telegraph, cable television or electronic communication service without payment; penalty; civil liability.A. It shall be unlawful for any person knowingly, with the intent to defraud, to obtain or attempt to obtain, for himself or for another, oil, electric, gas, water, telephone, telegraph, cable television or electronic communication service by the use of any false information, or in any case where such service has been disconnected by the supplier and notice of disconnection has been given. B. It shall be unlawful for any person to obtain or attempt to obtain oil, electric, gas, water, telephone, telegraph, cable television or electronic communication service by the use of any scheme, device, means or method, or by a false application for service with intent to avoid payment of lawful charges therefor. B1. It shall be unlawful for any person to obtain, or attempt to obtain, electronic communication service as defined in § 18.2-190.1 by the use of an unlawful electronic communication device as defined in § 18.2-190.1. C. The word "notice" as used in subsection A shall be notice given in writing to the person to whom the service was assigned. The sending of a notice in writing by registered or certified mail in the United States mail, duly stamped and addressed to such person at his last known address, requiring delivery to the addressee only with return receipt requested, and the actual signing of the receipt for such mail by the addressee, shall be prima facie evidence that such notice was duly received. D. Any person who violates any provisions of this section, if the value of service, credit or benefit procured is $1,000 or more, shall be guilty of a Class 6 felony; or if the value is less than $1,000, shall be guilty of a Class 1 misdemeanor. In addition, the court may order restitution for the value of the services unlawfully used and for all costs. Such costs shall be limited to actual expenses, including the base wages of employees acting as witnesses for the Commonwealth, and suit costs. However, the total amount of allowable costs granted hereunder shall not exceed $250, excluding the value of the service. E. Any party providing oil, electric, gas, water, telephone, telegraph, cable television or electronic communication service who is aggrieved by a violation of this section may, in a civil proceeding in any court of competent jurisdiction, seek both injunctive and equitable relief, and an award of damages, including attorney fees and costs. In addition to any other remedy provided by law, the party aggrieved may recover an award of actual damages or $500, whichever is greater, for each action. 1978, c. 807; 1981, c. 197; 1992, c. 525; 1993, c. 439; 2002, c. 671; 2003, c. 354; 2018, cc. 764, 765; 2020, cc. 89, 401.

Va. Code § 18.2-215

§ 18.2-215. Removal or alteration of identification numbers on household electrical appliances; possession of such appliances.No person, firm, association or corporation, either individually or in association with one or more other persons, firms, associations or corporations shall remove, change or alter the serial number or other identification number stamped upon, cut into or attached as a permanent part of any household or electrical or electronic appliance where such number was stamped upon, cut into or attached to such appliance by the manufacturer thereof. No person, firm, association or corporation shall knowingly have in his or its possession for the purpose of resale or keep in his possession for a period in excess of forty-eight hours without reporting such possession to the appropriate law-enforcement agency in his county, town or city a household or electrical or electronic appliance, with knowledge that the serial number or other identification number has been removed, changed or altered. Any person, firm, association or corporation violating the provisions of this section shall be guilty of a Class 1 misdemeanor. Code 1950, § 59.1-43; 1968, c. 439; 1975, cc. 14, 15; 1976, c. 305.

Va. Code § 18.2-265.1

§ 18.2-265.1. Definition.As used in this article, "drug paraphernalia" means all equipment, products, and materials of any kind which are either designed for use or which are intended by the person charged with violating § 18.2-265.3 for use in planting, propagating, cultivating, growing, harvesting, manufacturing, compounding, converting, producing, processing, preparing, strength testing, analyzing, packaging, repackaging, storing, containing, concealing, injecting, ingesting, inhaling, or otherwise introducing into the human body marijuana or a controlled substance. "Drug paraphernalia" includes: 1. Kits intended for use or designed for use in planting, propagating, cultivating, growing, or harvesting marijuana or any species of plant which is a controlled substance or from which a controlled substance can be derived; 2. Kits intended for use or designed for use in manufacturing, compounding, converting, producing, processing, or preparing marijuana or controlled substances; 3. Isomerization devices intended for use or designed for use in increasing the potency of marijuana or any species of plant which is a controlled substance; 4. Testing equipment intended for use or designed for use in identifying or in analyzing the strength or effectiveness of marijuana or controlled substances, other than drug checking products used to determine the presence or concentration of a contaminant that can cause physical harm or death; 5. Scales and balances intended for use or designed for use in weighing or measuring marijuana or controlled substances; 6. Diluents and adulterants, such as quinine hydrochloride, mannitol, or mannite, intended for use or designed for use in cutting controlled substances; 7. Separation gins and sifters intended for use or designed for use in removing twigs and seeds from, or in otherwise cleaning or refining, marijuana; 8. Blenders, bowls, containers, spoons, and mixing devices intended for use or designed for use in compounding controlled substances; 9. Capsules, balloons, envelopes, and other containers intended for use or designed for use in packaging small quantities of marijuana or controlled substances; 10. Containers and other objects intended for use or designed for use in storing or concealing marijuana or controlled substances; 11. Hypodermic syringes, needles, and other objects intended for use or designed for use in parenterally injecting controlled substances into the human body; 12. Objects intended for use or designed for use in ingesting, inhaling, or otherwise introducing marijuana, cocaine, hashish, or hashish oil into the human body, such as: a. Metal, wooden, acrylic, glass, stone, plastic, or ceramic pipes with or without screens, permanent screens, hashish heads, or punctured metal bowls; b. Water pipes; c. Carburetion tubes and devices; d. Smoking and carburetion masks; e. Roach clips, meaning objects used to hold burning material, such as a marijuana cigarette, that has become too small or too short to be held in the hand; f. Miniature cocaine spoons and cocaine vials; g. Chamber pipes; h. Carburetor pipes; i. Electric pipes; j. Air-driven pipes; k. Chillums; l. Bongs; m. Ice pipes or chillers. 1981, c. 598; 1983, c. 535; 2019, c. 215; 2025, cc. 266, 281.

Va. Code § 18.2-308.1

§ 18.2-308.1. Possession of firearm, stun weapon, or other weapon on school property prohibited; penalty.A. If any person knowingly possesses any (i) stun weapon as defined in this section; (ii) knife, except a pocket knife having a folding metal blade of less than three inches; or (iii) weapon, including a weapon of like kind, designated in subsection A of § 18.2-308, other than a firearm; upon (a) the property of any child day center or public, private, or religious preschool, elementary, middle, or high school, including buildings and grounds; (b) that portion of any property open to the public and then exclusively used for school-sponsored functions or extracurricular activities while such functions or activities are taking place; or (c) any school bus owned or operated by any such school, he is guilty of a Class 1 misdemeanor. B. If any person knowingly possesses any firearm designed or intended to expel a projectile by action of an explosion of a combustible material while such person is upon (i) the property of any child day center or public, private, or religious preschool, elementary, middle, or high school, including buildings and grounds; (ii) that portion of any property open to the public and then exclusively used for school-sponsored functions or extracurricular activities while such functions or activities are taking place; or (iii) any school bus owned or operated by any such school, he is guilty of a Class 6 felony. C. If any person knowingly possesses any firearm designed or intended to expel a projectile by action of an explosion of a combustible material within the building of a child day center or public, private, or religious preschool, elementary, middle, or high school and intends to use, or attempts to use, such firearm, or displays such weapon in a threatening manner, such person is guilty of a Class 6 felony and sentenced to a mandatory minimum term of imprisonment of five years to be served consecutively with any other sentence. D. The child day center and private or religious preschool provisions of this section (i) shall apply only during the operating hours of such child day center or private or religious preschool and (ii) shall not apply to any person (a) whose residence is on the property of a child day center or a private or religious preschool and (b) who possesses a firearm or other weapon prohibited under this section while in his residence. E. The exemptions set out in §§ 18.2-308 and 18.2-308.016 shall apply, mutatis mutandis, to the provisions of this section. The provisions of this section shall not apply to (i) persons who possess such weapon or weapons as a part of the school's curriculum or activities; (ii) a person possessing a knife customarily used for food preparation or service and using it for such purpose; (iii) persons who possess such weapon or weapons as a part of any program sponsored or facilitated by either the school or any organization authorized by the school to conduct its programs either on or off the school premises; (iv) any law-enforcement officer, or retired law-enforcement officer qualified pursuant to subsection C of § 18.2-308.016; (v) any person who possesses a knife or blade which he uses customarily in his trade; (vi) a person who possesses an unloaded firearm or a stun weapon that is in a closed container, or a knife having a metal blade, in or upon a motor vehicle, or an unloaded shotgun or rifle in a firearms rack in or upon a motor vehicle; (vii) a person who has a valid concealed handgun permit and possesses a concealed handgun or a stun weapon while in a motor vehicle in a parking lot, traffic circle, or other means of vehicular ingress or egress to the school; (viii) a school security officer authorized to carry a firearm pursuant to § 22.1-280.2:1; or (ix) an armed security officer, licensed pursuant to Article 4 (§ 9.1-138 et seq.) of Chapter 1 of Title 9.1, hired by a child day center or a private or religious school for the protection of students and employees as authorized by such school. For the purposes of this subsection, "weapon" includes a knife having a metal blade of three inches or longer and "closed container" includes a locked vehicle trunk. F. Nothing in subsection E or any other provision of law shall be construed as providing an exemption to the provisions of this section for a special conservator of the peace appointed pursuant to § 19.2-13, other than the specifically enumerated exemptions that apply to the general population as provided in subsection E. G. As used in this section: "Child day center" means a child day center, as defined in § 22.1-289.02, that is licensed in accordance with the provisions of Chapter 14.1 (§ 22.1-289.02 et seq.) of Title 22.1 and is not operated at the residence of the provider or of any of the children. "Stun weapon" means any device that emits a momentary or pulsed output, which is electrical, audible, optical or electromagnetic in nature and which is designed to temporarily incapacitate a person. 1979, c. 467; 1988, c. 493; 1990, cc. 635, 744; 1991, c. 579; 1992, cc. 727, 735; 1995, c. 511; 1999, cc. 587, 829, 846; 2001, c. 403; 2003, cc. 619, 976; 2004, cc. 128, 461; 2005, cc. 830, 928; 2007, c. 519; 2011, c. 282; 2013, c. 416; 2015, c. 289; 2016, c. 257; 2017, c. 311; 2020, cc. 693, 1037, 1249.

Va. Code § 18.2-371.4

§ 18.2-371.4. Prohibiting the sale of novelty lighters to juveniles.A. "Novelty lighter" means a mechanical or electrical device containing a combustible fuel typically used for lighting cigarettes, cigars, or pipes that is (i) designed to resemble a cartoon character, toy, gun, watch, musical instrument, vehicle, animal, food, or beverage, or (ii) a fanciful article that plays musical notes, has flashing lights, or has other entertaining features that are appealing to or intended for use by juveniles. A novelty lighter may operate on any fuel, including butane, isobutene, or liquid fuel. B. "Novelty lighter" does not include (i) a lighter without fuel and that is incapable of being fueled, (ii) a lighter lacking a device necessary to produce combustion or a flame, (iii) a mechanical or electrical device primarily used to ignite fuel for fireplaces or for charcoal or gas grills, (iv) a lighter manufactured prior to 1980, or (v) a standard disposable lighter that is printed or decorated with logos, labels, decals, or artwork, or heat shrinkable sleeves. C. Novelty lighters that are available for purchase at a retail establishment shall be located in a place that is not open to the general public. D. Any individual who sells a novelty lighter to a person he knows or has reason to know is a juvenile is subject to a civil penalty of no more than $100. E. This section may be enforced by the State Fire Marshal's Office, local fire marshals appointed pursuant to § 27-34.2 or 27-34.2:1, or law-enforcement officers. 2009, c. 668. Article 5. Obscenity and Related Offenses.

Va. Code § 18.2-85

§ 18.2-85. Manufacture, possession, use, etc., of fire bombs or explosive materials or devices; penalties.For the purpose of this section: "Device" means any instrument, apparatus or contrivance, including its component parts, that is capable of producing or intended to produce an explosion but shall not include fireworks as defined in § 27-95. "Explosive material" means any chemical compound, mechanical mixture or device that is commonly used or can be used for the purpose of producing an explosion and which contains any oxidizing and combustive agents or other ingredients in such proportions, quantities or packaging that an ignition by fire, friction, concussion, percussion, detonation or by any part of the compound or mixture may cause a sudden generation of highly heated gases. These materials include, but are not limited to, gunpowder, powders for blasting, high explosives, blasting materials, fuses (other than electric circuit breakers), detonators, and other detonating agents and smokeless powder. "Fire bomb" means any container of a flammable material such as gasoline, kerosene, fuel oil, or other chemical compound, having a wick composed of any material or a device or other substance which, if set or ignited, is capable of igniting such flammable material or chemical compound but does not include a similar device commercially manufactured and used solely for the purpose of illumination or cooking. "Hoax explosive device" means any device which by its design, construction, content or characteristics appears to be or to contain a bomb or other destructive device or explosive but which is an imitation of any such device or explosive. Any person who (i) possesses materials with which fire bombs or explosive materials or devices can be made with the intent to manufacture fire bombs or explosive materials or devices or, (ii) manufactures, transports, distributes, possesses or uses a fire bomb or explosive materials or devices shall be guilty of a Class 5 felony. Any person who constructs, uses, places, sends, or causes to be sent any hoax explosive device so as to intentionally cause another person to believe that such device is a bomb or explosive shall be guilty of a Class 6 felony. Nothing in this section shall prohibit the authorized manufacture, transportation, distribution, use or possession of any material, substance, or device by a member of the armed forces of the United States, fire fighters or law-enforcement officers, nor shall it prohibit the manufacture, transportation, distribution, use or possession of any material, substance or device to be used solely for scientific research, educational purposes or for any lawful purpose, subject to the provisions of §§ 27-97 and 27-97.2. Code 1950, § 18.1-78.6; 1968, c. 249; 1972, c. 126; 1975, cc. 14, 15, 497; 1976, c. 526; 1977, c. 326; 1990, cc. 644, 647; 1992, c. 540; 2000, cc. 951, 1065; 2002, cc. 588, 623; 2005, c. 204.

Va. Code § 19.2-166

§ 19.2-166. Court reporters.Each judge of a court of record having jurisdiction over criminal proceedings shall be authorized, in all felony cases and habeas corpus proceedings to appoint a court reporter to report proceedings or to operate mechanical or electrical devices for recording proceedings, to transcribe the report or record of such proceedings, to perform any stenographic work related to such report, record or transcript including work pertinent to the court's findings of fact and conclusions of law pertinent thereto. Such reporter shall be paid by the Commonwealth on a per diem or work basis as appropriate out of the appropriation for criminal charges. Code 1950, § 17-30.1:1; 1968, c. 486; 1975, c. 495; 2003, c. 140. Chapter 11. Proceedings on Question of Insanity.

Va. Code § 2.2-1112

§ 2.2-1112. Standardization of materials, equipment and supplies.A. So far as practicable, all materials, equipment and supplies, purchased by or for the officers, departments, agencies or institutions of the Commonwealth, shall be standardized by the Division, and no variation shall be allowed from any established standard without the written approval of the Division. The standard shall be determined upon the needs of all using agencies, so far as their needs are in common, and for groups of using agencies or single using agencies so far as their needs differ. When changes or alterations in equipment are necessary in order to permit the application of any standard, the changes and alterations shall be made as rapidly as possible. B. The Division shall determine the proper equipment or electrical devices used to monitor the speed of any motor vehicle pursuant to § 46.2-882 and shall so advise the respective law-enforcement officials. Police chiefs and sheriffs shall ensure that all such equipment and devices meet or exceed the standards established by the Division. This subsection shall apply only to equipment and devices purchased on or after July 1, 1986. C. The Division shall determine the proper equipment to be used to determine the decibel level of sound and shall so advise the respective law-enforcement officials. Police chiefs and sheriffs shall ensure that all such equipment and devices meet or exceed the standards established by the Division and shall maintain, inspect, calibrate, and test for accuracy all such equipment and devices on a schedule and in accordance with standards established by the Division. Code 1950, §§ 2-255, 2-256; 1958 c. 124; 1966, c. 677, §§ 2.1-279, 2.1-280; 1972, c. 494; 1977, c. 672, § 2.1-446; 1986, c. 530; 1991, c. 345; 2001, c. 844; 2010, c. 558.

Va. Code § 2.2-1143

§ 2.2-1143. Services for Capitol and other state facilities.The Division shall contract for water, electricity, gas, sewer service, fuel for heating, and such other services required to serve the facilities within the master site plan of Capitol Square and for such other facilities as the Governor may designate. The cost of the services shall be paid out of funds appropriated for that purpose. Code 1950, § 2-70; 1966, c. 677, § 2.1-88; 1972, c. 763; 1974, c. 27; 1977, c. 672, § 2.1-498; 2001, c. 844.

Va. Code § 2.2-1151

§ 2.2-1151. Conveyance of easements and appurtenances thereto to cable television companies, utility companies, public service companies, political subdivisions by state departments, agencies or institutions; communication towers; telecommunications companies.A. When it is deemed to be in the public interest and subject to guidelines adopted by the Department: 1. Any state department, agency or institution, through its executive head or governing board may convey to public utility companies, public service corporations or companies, political subdivisions, cable television companies, or telecommunications companies right-of-way easements over property owned by the Commonwealth and held in its possession and any wires, pipes, conduits, fittings, supports and appurtenances thereto for the transmission of electricity, telephone, cable television, telecommunications, water, gas, steam, or sewage placed on, over or under the property. 2. Any state department, agency or institution having responsibility for a state-owned office building, through its executive head or governing board, may lease space to a credit union in the building for the purpose of providing credit union services that are readily accessible to state employees. The lease shall be for a term of not more than five years, with annual renewals or new leases permitted thereafter. Such lease may be granted for no consideration or for less than the fair market value. 3. Property owned by the Commonwealth may be sold or leased or other interests or rights therein granted or conveyed to political subdivisions or persons providing communication or information services for the purpose of erecting, operating, using or maintaining communication towers, antennas, or other radio distribution devices. If any tower proposed to be erected on property owned by the Commonwealth is to be used solely by private persons providing communication or information services, and there is no immediate use planned or anticipated by any department, agency or institution of the Commonwealth or political subdivision, the guidelines shall provide a means to obtain comments from the local governing body where the property is located. The conveyances shall be for such consideration as the Director of the Department deems appropriate, and may include shared use of the facilities by other political subdivisions or persons providing the same or similar services, and by departments, agencies, or institutions of the Commonwealth. B. No transaction authorized by this section shall be made without the prior written recommendation by the Department to the Governor, the written approval by the Governor of the transaction itself, and the approval by the Attorney General as to the form of the instruments prior to execution. C. This section shall not (i) apply to any lease or conveyance of a license or other interest in a communication tower for use in the deployment of wireless broadband service within an unserved area of the Commonwealth made pursuant to § 2.2-1150.2 or (ii) be construed to alter the control or ownership of towers currently maintained by other agencies of the Commonwealth. 1984, c. 641, § 2.1-504.4; 1986, c. 536; 1989, c. 710; 1996, c. 442; 2001, c. 844; 2008, cc. 356, 676, 690; 2022, cc. 67, 68.

Va. Code § 2.2-1176

§ 2.2-1176. Approval of purchase, lease, or contract rental of motor vehicle.A. No motor vehicle shall be purchased, leased, or subject to a contract rental with public funds by the Commonwealth or by any officer or employee on behalf of the Commonwealth without the prior written approval of the Director. No lease or contract rental shall be approved by the Director except upon demonstration that the cost of such lease or contract rental plus operating costs of the vehicle shall be less than comparable costs for a vehicle owned by the Commonwealth. Notwithstanding the provisions of this subsection, the Virginia Department of Transportation shall be exempted from the approval of purchase, lease, or contract rental of motor vehicles used directly in carrying out its maintenance, operations, and construction programs. B. Notwithstanding other provisions of law, on or before January 1, 2012, the Director, in conjunction with the Secretary of Administration and the Secretary of Natural and Historic Resources, shall establish a plan providing for the replacement of state-owned or operated vehicles with vehicles that operate using natural gas, electricity, or other alternative fuels, to the greatest extent practicable, considering available infrastructure, the location and use of vehicles, capital and operating costs, and potential for fuel savings. The plan shall be submitted to the Governor for his review and approval. Once the plan is approved by the Governor, the Director shall implement the plan for the centralized fleet. All state agencies and institutions shall cooperate with the Director in developing and implementing the plan. 1989, c. 479, § 33.1-403; 1997, c. 48; 1998, c. 329; 2001, cc. 815, 842, § 2.1-548.04; 2011, c. 813; 2021, Sp. Sess. I, c. 401.

Va. Code § 2.2-1176.2

§ 2.2-1176.2. Declaration of policy supporting cost-effective vehicle purchase and lease; total cost of ownership calculator; report.A. It is the policy of the Commonwealth to encourage and promote the use of cost-effective vehicles by considering the total cost of ownership by agencies of the Commonwealth. B. By October 1, 2022, the Department shall identify a publicly available total cost of ownership calculator that will be used to assess and compare the total cost to purchase, own, lease, and operate light-duty internal combustion-engine vehicles (ICEVs) versus comparable electric vehicles (EVs). Beginning on January 1, 2023, the Department and all agencies of the Commonwealth shall utilize the calculator prior to purchasing or leasing any light-duty vehicles and shall purchase or lease an EV unless the calculator clearly indicates that purchasing or leasing an ICEV has a lower cost of ownership. 1. The calculator shall, at a minimum, account for the vehicle's make, model, and age; the average miles traveled per year for similarly used vehicles; the expected life expectancy of the vehicle and average annual depreciation; the upfront and annual costs of purchasing such vehicle and all other costs of vehicle ownership or lease; and all costs the agency must incur to add chargers or other fueling facilities to support such vehicles. The calculator shall be updated at least annually to account for updates in information, including information on the latest light-duty vehicle models available. 2. The Department shall make the calculator available to all state and local public bodies and transit agencies. The Department shall also provide technical assistance to such public bodies utilizing the calculator upon request. For purposes of this subsection, "light-duty vehicle" means a motor vehicle with a gross vehicle weight of 14,000 pounds or less. C. Beginning January 1, 2026, and every three years thereafter, the Department shall submit to the Governor and the General Assembly a report summarizing the Department's vehicle procurements and the vehicle procurements of other agencies of the Commonwealth. The report shall, at a minimum, include a compilation of types of vehicles by size, fuel sources, and the total estimated cost savings and avoided emissions attributable to purchasing or leasing of EVs instead of ICEVs. D. Emergency vehicles, as defined in § 46.2-920, and any vehicles used by an agency of the Commonwealth in law-enforcement, incident response, or other emergency response activities shall be exempt from the requirements of this section. The Department may authorize other exemptions from the requirements of this section upon finding that an EV is not a practicable alternative to an ICEV for a particular use, or for some other compelling reason. E. The Department shall develop guidance documents regarding the procedure for requesting exemptions from the requirements of this section and the criteria for evaluating such exemption requests. Before adopting or revising such guidance documents, the Department shall publish the document on its website and provide a 30-day period for public review and comment. F. The Department may issue any directives or guidance documents or promulgate any regulations as may be necessary to implement the requirements of this section. 2022, c. 789.

Va. Code § 2.2-1182

§ 2.2-1182. Definitions.A. This article shall be known and may be cited as the High Performance Buildings Act. B. As used in this article, unless the context requires a different meaning: "Centralized fleet" means the same as that term is defined in § 2.2-1173. "High performance building certification program" means a public building design, construction, and renovation program that meets the requirements of VEES. "Sufficient electric vehicle charging infrastructure" means provision or reservation of sufficient space to provide electric vehicle charging stations and related infrastructure, including transformers, service equipment, and large conduit, to support every centralized fleet vehicle that will be located at such building. "VEES" means the Virginia Energy Conservation and Environmental Standards developed by the Department considering the U.S. Green Building Council (LEED) green building rating standard, the Green Building Initiative "Green Globes" building standard, and other appropriate requirements as determined by the Department. 2012, cc. 680, 793; 2021, Sp. Sess. I, c. 473.

Va. Code § 2.2-1183

§ 2.2-1183. Building standards; exemption; report.A. Any executive branch agency or institution entering the design phase for the construction of a new building greater than 5,000 gross square feet in size, or the renovation of a building where the cost of the renovation exceeds 50 percent of the value of the building, shall ensure that such building: 1. Is designed, constructed, verified, and operated to comply with the high performance building certification program and VEES; 2. Has sufficient electric vehicle charging infrastructure. However, the provisions of this subdivision shall not apply to buildings located in the right-of-way of the Interstate System as that term is defined in § 33.2-100; and 3. Has features that permit the agency or institution to track the building's energy efficiency and associated carbon emissions, including metering of all electricity, gas, water, and other utilities. B. Any executive branch agency or institution may exceed the design and construction standards required by subsection A, provided that such agency or institution obtains prior written approval from the Director of the Department. C. The Director of the Department may grant an exemption from the design and construction standards required by subsection A upon a finding that special circumstances make the construction or renovation to the standards impracticable. Such exemption shall be made in writing and shall explain the basis for granting such exemption. If the Director cites cost as a factor in granting an exemption, the Director shall include a comparison of the cost the agency or institution will incur over the next 20 years if the agency does not comply with the standards required by subsection A versus the costs to the agency or institution if the agency or institution were to comply with such standards. D. Each agency or institution shall submit an annual report to the Governor by January 1 of each year detailing the energy-efficiency and associated carbon emissions metrics for each building built or renovated in accordance with the design and construction standards required by subsection A and completed during the prior fiscal year. 2012, cc. 680, 793; 2021, Sp. Sess. I, c. 473. Chapter 12. Department of Human Resource Management.

Va. Code § 2.2-1825

§ 2.2-1825. Issuance of warrants for payment of claims; Comptroller to keep and sign register of warrants issued; signing of checks drawn on such warrants; electronic payment systems.After the allowance of any claim that is payable out of the state treasury, under any of the provisions of this title, a warrant shall be issued for the sum to be paid. A register of all warrants so issued shall be kept by the Comptroller, which register and a duplicate register shall, from time to time, be signed by the Comptroller or by such deputy he may designate for that purpose. The Comptroller shall not be required to sign the warrants. All checks drawn upon warrants shown by the register and duplicate register, signed by the Comptroller or his deputy, shall be signed by the State Treasurer, or by such deputy as he may designate for that purpose. The signature may be made by means of a mechanical or electrical device selected by the State Treasurer. The device shall be safely kept so that no one will have access to it except the State Treasurer and his deputies authorized to sign warrants. However, when deemed appropriate, the State Treasurer may utilize various electronic payment systems in lieu of issuing checks drawn upon warrants. Code 1950, § 2-206; 1966, c. 677, § 2.1-231; 1984, c. 374; 2001, c. 844.

Va. Code § 2.2-2046

§ 2.2-2046. Commissioner to administer article; requirements for certain programs.A. The Commissioner, with the advice and guidance of the Council, shall be responsible for administering the provisions of this article. B. The Commissioner shall: 1. Approve, if approval is in the best interests of the apprentice, any apprenticeship agreement that meets the standards established under this article; 2. Terminate or cancel any apprenticeship agreement in accordance with the provisions of such agreement; 3. Keep a record of apprenticeship agreements and their disposition; 4. Issue certificates of completion upon the completion of the apprenticeship; 5. Initiate deregistration proceedings when an apprenticeship program is not conducted, operated, and administered in accordance with the registered provisions, except that deregistration proceedings for violation of equal opportunity requirements shall be processed in accordance with the provisions of the Virginia State Plan for Equal Employment Opportunity in Apprenticeship; 6. Establish policies governing the provision of apprenticeship-related instruction delivered by state and local public education agencies and provide for the administration and supervision of related and supplemental instruction for apprentices; and 7. Perform such other duties as are necessary to carry out the intent of this article. C. Any apprenticeship program designed to prepare individuals to engage in a career as a tradesman shall be a program of registered apprenticeships that meet or exceed the U.S. Department of Labor standards for registered apprenticeships, and such program shall meet or exceed the standards that were in place with the Apprenticeship Division of the Virginia Department of Labor and Industry as of January 31, 2023. As used in this subsection, "tradesman" means an individual engaged in the electrical, plumbing and heating, ventilation and air conditioning, carpentry, pipe fitting, boiler making, iron working, steel working, painting, or welding profession. D. No state agency or locality shall sponsor, recognize, or establish any apprenticeship program designed to prepare individuals to engage in a career as a tradesman unless such apprenticeship program meets the requirements established in subsection C. 2023, cc. 624, 625; 2024, c. 507.

Va. Code § 2.2-2279

§ 2.2-2279. Short title; definitions.A. This article shall be known and may be cited as the "Virginia Small Business Financing Act." B. As used in this article, unless the context requires a different meaning: "Business enterprise" means any (i) industry for the manufacturing, processing, assembling, storing, warehousing, servicing, distributing, or selling of any products of agriculture, mining, or industry or professional services; (ii) commercial enterprise making sales or providing services to industries described in clause (i); (iii) enterprise for research and development, including scientific laboratories; (iv) not-for-profit entity operating in the Commonwealth; (v) entity acquiring, constructing, improving, maintaining, or operating a qualified transportation facility under the Public-Private Transportation Act of 1995 (§ 33.2-1800 et seq.); (vi) entity acquiring, constructing, improving, maintaining, or operating a qualified energy project; (vii) entity acquiring, constructing, improving, maintaining, or operating a qualified pollution control project; (viii) entity that modernizes public school buildings or facilities pursuant to Article 3 (§ 22.1-141.1 et seq.) of Chapter 9 of Title 22.1; or (ix) other business as will be in furtherance of the public purposes of this article. "Cost," as applied to the eligible business, means the cost of construction; the cost of acquisition of all lands, structures, rights-of-way, franchises, easements, and other property rights and interests; the cost of demolishing, removing, rehabilitating, or relocating any buildings or structures on lands acquired, including the cost of acquiring any such lands to which such buildings or structures may be moved, rehabilitated, or relocated; the cost of all labor, materials, machinery and equipment, financing charges, letter of credit or other credit enhancement fees, insurance premiums, interest on all bonds prior to and during construction or acquisition and, if deemed advisable by the Authority, for a period not exceeding one year after completion of such construction or acquisition, cost of engineering, financial and legal services, plans, specifications, studies, surveys, estimates of cost and of revenues, commissions, guaranty fees, other expenses necessary or incident to determining the feasibility or practicality of constructing, financing, or operating a project of an eligible business; administrative expenses, provisions for working capital, reserves for interest and for extensions, enlargements, additions, improvements and replacements, and such other expenses as may be necessary or incidental to the construction or acquisition of a project of an eligible business or the financing of such construction, acquisition, or expansion and the placing of a project of an eligible business in operation. Any obligation or expense incurred by the Commonwealth or any agency thereof, with the approval of the Authority for studies, surveys, borings, preparation of plans and specifications, or other work or materials in connection with the construction or acquisition of a project of an eligible business may be regarded as a part of the cost of a project of an eligible business and may be reimbursed to the Commonwealth or any agency thereof out of the proceeds of the bonds issued therefor. "Eligible business" means any person engaged in one or more business enterprises in the Commonwealth that satisfies one or more of the following requirements: (i) is a for-profit enterprise that (a) has received $10 million or less in annual gross income under generally accepted accounting principles for each of its last three fiscal years or lesser time period if it has been in existence less than three years, (b) has fewer than 250 employees, (c) has a net worth of $2 million or less, (d) exists for the sole purpose of developing or operating a qualified transportation facility under the Public-Private Transportation Act of 1995 (§ 33.2-1800 et seq.), (e) exists for the primary purpose of developing or operating a qualified energy project, (f) is required by state or federal law to develop or operate a qualified pollution control project, or (g) meets such other satisfactory requirements as the Board shall determine from time to time if it finds and determines such person is in need of its assistance or (ii) is a not-for-profit entity granted tax-exempt status under § 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code and operating in the Commonwealth. "Federal Act" means the Small Business Investment Act of 1958, 15 U.S.C. § 661 et seq., as amended from time to time. "Indenture" means any trust agreement, deed of trust, mortgage, or other security agreement under which bonds authorized pursuant to this article shall be issued or secured. "Internal Revenue Code" means the federal Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended. "Lender" means any federal- or state-chartered bank, federal land bank, production credit association, bank for cooperatives, federal- or state-chartered savings institution, building and loan association, small business investment company, or any other financial institution qualified within the Commonwealth to originate and service loans, including insurance companies, credit unions, investment banking or brokerage companies, and mortgage loan companies. "Loan" means any lease, loan agreement, or sales contract defined as follows: 1. "Lease" means any lease containing an option to purchase the project or projects of the eligible business being financed for a nominal sum upon payment in full, or provision thereof, of all bonds issued in connection with the eligible business and all interest thereon and principal of and premium, if any, thereon and all other expenses in connection therewith. 2. "Loan agreement" means an agreement providing for a loan of proceeds from the sale and issuance of bonds by the Authority or by a lender with which the Authority has contracted to loan such proceeds to one or more contracting parties to be used to pay the cost of one or more projects of an eligible business and providing for the repayment of such loan including all interest thereon, and principal of and premium, if any, thereon and all other expenses in connection therewith, by such contracting party or parties and which may provide for such loans to be secured or evidenced by one or more notes, debentures, bonds, or other secured or unsecured debt obligations of such contracting party or parties, delivered to the Authority or to a trustee under an indenture pursuant to which the bonds were issued. 3. "Sales contract" means a contract providing for the sale of one or more projects of an eligible business to one or more contracting parties and includes a contract providing for payment of the purchase price including all interest thereon, and principal of and premium, if any, thereon and all other expenses in connection therewith, in one or more installments. If the sales contract permits title to a project being sold to an eligible business to pass to such contracting party or parties prior to payment in full of the entire purchase price, it also shall provide for such contracting party or parties to deliver to the Authority or to the trustee under the indenture pursuant to which the bonds were issued, one or more notes, debentures, bonds, or other secured or unsecured debt obligations of such contracting party or parties providing for timely payments of the purchase price thereof. "Municipality" means any county or incorporated city or town in the Commonwealth. "Preferred lender" means a bank that is subject to continuing supervision and examination by state or federal chartering, licensing, or similar regulatory authority satisfactory to the Authority and that meets the eligibility requirements established by the Authority. "Qualified energy project" means a solar-powered or wind-powered electricity generation facility located in the Commonwealth on premises owned or leased by an eligible customer-generator, as defined in § 56-594, the electricity generated from which is sold exclusively to the eligible customer-generator under a power purchase agreement used to provide third party financing of the costs of such a renewable generation facility (third party power purchase agreement) pursuant to a pilot program established under Chapter 382 of the Acts of Assembly of 2013. "Qualified pollution control project" means environmental pollution control and prevention equipment certified by the business enterprise or eligible business as being needed to comply with the federal Clean Air Act (42 U.S.C. § 7401 et seq.), the federal Clean Water Act (33 U.S.C. § 1251 et seq.), or the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (42 U.S.C. § 6901 et seq.). "Revenues" means any and all fees, rates, rentals, profits, and receipts collected by, payable to, or otherwise derived by, the Authority, and all other moneys and income of whatsoever kind or character collected by, payable to, or otherwise derived by, the Authority in connection with loans to any eligible business in furtherance of the purposes of this article. "Statewide Development Company" means the corporation chartered under this article for purposes of qualification as a state development company as such term is defined in the Federal Act. 1984, c. 749, §§ 9-197, 9-199; 1996, c. 77; 2001, c. 844; 2003, c. 339; 2008, c. 744; 2009, c. 565; 2014, c. 732; 2019, cc. 818, 819.

Va. Code § 2.2-2340

§ 2.2-2340. Additional declaration of policy; powers of the Authority; penalty.A. It is the policy of the Commonwealth that the historic, cultural, and natural resources of Fort Monroe be protected in any conveyance or alienation of real property interests by the Authority. Real property in the Area of Operation at Fort Monroe may be maintained as Commonwealth-owned land that is leased, whether by short-term operating/revenue lease or long-term ground lease, to appropriate public, private, or joint venture entities, with such historic, cultural, and natural resources being protected in any such lease, to be approved as to form by the Attorney General of the Commonwealth of Virginia. If sold as provided in this article, real property interests in the Area of Operation at Fort Monroe may only be sold under covenants, historic conservation easements, historic preservation easements, or other appropriate legal restrictions approved as to form by the Attorney General that protect these historic and natural resources. Properties in the Wherry Quarter and Inner Fort areas identified in the Fort Monroe Reuse Plan may only be sold with the consent of both the Governor and the General Assembly, except that any transfer to the National Park Service shall require only the approval of the Governor. The proceeds from the sale or pre-paid lease of any real or personal property within the Area of Operation shall be retained by the Authority and used for infrastructure improvements in the Area of Operation. B. The Authority shall have the power and duty: 1. To sue and be sued; to adopt and use a common seal and to alter the same as may be deemed expedient; to have perpetual succession; to make and execute contracts and other instruments necessary or convenient to the exercise of the powers of the Authority; and to make and from time to time amend and repeal bylaws, rules, and regulations, not inconsistent with law, to carry into effect the powers and purposes of the Authority; 2. To foster and stimulate the economic and other development of Fort Monroe, including without limitation development for business, employment, housing, commercial, recreational, educational, and other public purposes; to prepare and carry out plans and projects to accomplish such objectives; to provide for the construction, reconstruction, rehabilitation, reuse, improvement, alteration, maintenance, removal, equipping, or repair of any buildings, structures, or land of any kind; to lease or rent to others or to develop, operate, or manage with others in a joint venture or other partnering arrangement, on such terms as it deems proper and which are consistent with the provisions of the Programmatic Agreement, Design Standards, and Reuse Plan governing any lands, dwellings, houses, accommodations, structures, buildings, facilities, or appurtenances embraced within Fort Monroe; to establish, collect, and revise the rents charged and terms and conditions of occupancy thereof; to terminate any such lease or rental obligation upon the failure of the lessee or renter to comply with any of the obligations thereof; to arrange or contract for the furnishing by any person or agency, public or private, of works, services, privileges, or facilities in connection with any activity in which the Authority may engage, provided, however, that if services are provided by the City of Hampton pursuant to § 2.2-2341 for which the City is compensated pursuant to subsection B of § 2.2-2342, then the Authority may provide for additional, more complete, or more timely services than are generally available in the City of Hampton as a whole if deemed necessary or appropriate by the Authority; to acquire, own, hold, and improve real or personal property; to purchase, lease, obtain options upon, acquire by gift, grant, bequest, devise, easement, dedication, or otherwise any real or personal property or any interest therein, which purchase, lease, or acquisition may only be made for less than fair market value if the Board of Trustees determines, upon the advice of the Attorney General, that the transaction is consistent with the fiduciary obligation of the Authority to the Commonwealth and if necessary or appropriate to further the purposes of the Authority; as provided in this article, to sell, lease, exchange, transfer, assign, or pledge any real or personal property or any interest therein, which sale, lease, or other transfer or assignment may be made for less than fair market value; as provided in this article, to dedicate, make a gift of, or lease for a nominal amount any real or personal property or any interest therein to the Commonwealth, the City of Hampton, or other localities or agencies, public or private, within the Area of Operation or adjacent thereto, jointly or severally, for public use or benefit, such as, but not limited to, game preserves, playgrounds, park and recreational areas and facilities, hospitals, clinics, schools, and airports; to acquire, lease, maintain, alter, operate, improve, expand, sell, or otherwise dispose of onsite utility and infrastructure systems or sell any excess service capacity for offsite use; to acquire, lease, construct, maintain, and operate and dispose of tracks, spurs, crossings, terminals, warehouses, and terminal facilities of every kind and description necessary or useful in the transportation and storage of goods, wares, and merchandise; and to insure or provide for the insurance of any real or personal property or operation of the Authority against any risks or hazards; 3. To invest any funds held in reserves or sinking funds, or any funds not required for immediate disbursements, in property or security in which fiduciaries may legally invest funds subject to their control; to purchase its bonds at a price not more than the principal amount thereof and accrued interest, all bonds so purchased to be cancelled; 4. To undertake and carry out examinations, investigations, studies, and analyses of the business, industrial, agricultural, utility, transportation, and other economic development needs, requirements, and potentialities of its Area of Operation or offsite needs, requirements, and potentialities that directly affect the success of the Authority at Fort Monroe, and the manner in which such needs and requirements and potentialities are being met, or should be met, in order to accomplish the purposes for which it is created; to make use of the facts determined in such research and analyses in its own operation; and to make the results of such studies and analyses available to public bodies and to private individuals, groups, and businesses, except as such information may be exempted pursuant to the Virginia Freedom of Information Act (§ 2.2-3700 et seq.); 5. To administer, develop, and maintain at Fort Monroe permanent commemorative cultural and historical museums and memorials; 6. To adopt names, flags, seals, and other emblems for use in connection with such shrines and to copyright the same in the name of the Commonwealth; 7. To enter into any contracts not otherwise specifically authorized in this article to further the purposes of the Authority, after approval as to form by the Attorney General; 8. To establish nonprofit corporations as instrumentalities to assist in administering the affairs of the Authority; 9. To exercise the power of eminent domain in the manner provided by Chapter 3 (§ 25.1-300 et seq.) of Title 25.1 within the Authority's Area of Operation; however, eminent domain may only be used to obtain easements across property on Fort Monroe for the provision of water, sewer, electrical, ingress and egress, and other necessary or useful services to further the purposes of the Authority, unless the Governor has expressly granted authority to obtain interests for other purposes; 10. To fix, charge, and collect rents, fees, and charges (i) for the use of, or the benefit derived from, the services or facilities provided, owned, operated, or financed by the Authority benefiting property within the Authority's Area of Operation and (ii) for the consumption within the Area of Operation of goods and services being provided in exchange for value by any person or business located and operating, permanently or temporarily, within the Area of Operation. Such rents, fees, and charges may be charged to and collected by such persons and in such manner as the Authority may determine from (a) any person contracting for the services or using the Authority facilities or (b) the owners, tenants, or customers of the real estate and improvements that are served by, or benefit from the use of, any such services or facilities, in such manner as shall be authorized by the Authority in connection with the provision of such services or facilities. Such rents, fees, and charges shall not be chargeable to the Commonwealth or, where such rents, fees or charges relate to services or facilities utilized by the City of Hampton to provide municipal services, to the City of Hampton except as may be provided by lease or other agreement and may be used to fund the provision of the additional, more complete, or more timely services authorized under subdivision 6 of § 2.2-2339, the payments provided under § 2.2-2342, or for other purposes as the Authority may determine to be appropriate, subject to the provisions of subsection B of § 2.2-2342; 11. To receive and expend gifts, grants, and donations from whatever source derived for the purposes of the Authority; 12. To employ a chief executive officer and such deputies and assistants as may be required; 13. To elect any past chairman of the Board of Trustees to the honorary position of chairman emeritus. Chairmen emeriti shall serve as honorary members for life. Chairmen emeriti shall be elected in addition to the nonlegislative citizen member positions defined in § 2.2-2338; 14. To determine what paintings, statuary, works of art, manuscripts, and artifacts may be acquired by purchase, gift, or loan and to exchange or sell the same if not inconsistent with the terms of such purchase, gift, loan, or other acquisition; 15. To change the form of investment of any funds, securities, or other property, real or personal, provided the same are not inconsistent with the terms of the instrument under which the same were acquired, and to sell, grant, or convey any such property, subject to the provisions of subsection A of § 2.2-2340; 16. To cooperate with the federal government, the Commonwealth, the City of Hampton, or other nearby localities in the discharge of its enumerated powers; 17. To exercise all or any part or combination of powers granted in this article; 18. To do any and all other acts and things that may be reasonably necessary and convenient to carry out its purposes and powers; 19. To adopt, amend or repeal, by the Board of Trustees, or the executive committee thereof, regulations concerning the use of, access to and visitation of properties under the control of the Authority in order to protect or secure such properties and the public enjoyment thereof, with any violation of such regulations being punishable by a civil penalty of up to $100 for the first violation and up to $250 for any subsequent violation, such civil penalty to be paid to the Authority; 20. To provide parking and traffic rules and regulations on property owned by the Authority; and 21. To provide that any person who knowingly violates a regulation of the Authority may be requested by an agent or employee of the Authority to leave the property and upon the failure of such person so to do shall be guilty of a trespass as provided in § 18.2-119. 2011, c. 716; 2012, cc. 436, 482; 2014, cc. 676, 681; 2023, cc. 209, 210; 2024, cc. 34, 114.

Va. Code § 2.2-2699.3

§ 2.2-2699.3. Broadband Advisory Council; purpose; membership; compensation; chairman.A. The Broadband Advisory Council (the Council) is established as an advisory council, within the meaning of § 2.2-2100, in the executive branch of state government. The purpose of the Council shall be to advise the Governor on policy and funding priorities to expedite deployment and reduce the cost of broadband access in the Commonwealth. B. The Council shall have a total membership of 17 members that shall consist of seven legislative members, six nonlegislative citizen members, and four ex officio members. Members shall be appointed as follows: four members of the House of Delegates to be appointed by the Speaker of the House of Delegates in accordance with the principles of proportional representation contained in the Rules of the House of Delegates; three members of the Senate to be appointed by the Senate Committee on Rules; and six nonlegislative citizen members to be appointed by the Governor, of whom one shall be a representative of the Virginia Cable Telecommunications Association, one shall be a representative of the Virginia Telecommunications Industry Association, one shall be a representative from local government recommended by the Virginia Municipal League and Virginia Association of Counties, one shall be a representative of the Virginia Wireless Internet Service Providers Association, one shall be a representative of a wireless service authority, and one shall be a representative of the Virginia, Maryland and Delaware Association of Electric Cooperatives. The executive director of the Senator Frank M. Ruff, Jr. Center for Rural Virginia and three Secretaries as defined in § 2.2-200 to be appointed by the Governor shall serve ex officio. Legislative and ex officio members shall serve terms coincident with their terms of office. Other members shall be appointed for terms of two years. Appointments to fill vacancies, other than by expiration of a term, shall be for the unexpired terms. Vacancies shall be filled in the same manner as the original appointments. All members may be reappointed. C. Legislative members of the Council shall receive such compensation as provided in § 30-19.12. Nonlegislative citizen members shall serve without compensation. All members shall be reimbursed for all reasonable and necessary expenses incurred in the performance of their duties as provided in §§ 2.2-2813 and 2.2-2825. Funding for compensation and expenses of legislative members shall be provided by the operating budgets of the Clerk of the House of Delegates and the Clerk of the Senate upon approval of the Joint Rules Committee. The Governor shall designate the office of one of the secretaries appointed pursuant to subsection B to provide funding for the costs of expenses of the nonlegislative citizen members and all other expenses of the Council. D. The Council shall elect a chairman and a vice-chairman annually from among its membership. A majority of the members shall constitute a quorum. The Council shall meet at such times as may be called by the chairman or a majority of the Council. E. Staff to the Council shall be provided by the Secretary of Commerce and Trade. The Division of Legislative Services shall provide additional staff support to legislative members serving on the Council. 2009, cc. 818, 852; 2012, c. 528; 2015, c. 239; 2019, cc. 709, 710; 2024, cc. 132, 133.

Va. Code § 2.2-3701

§ 2.2-3701. Definitions.As used in this chapter, unless the context requires a different meaning: "All-virtual public meeting" means a public meeting (i) conducted by a public body, other than those excepted pursuant to subsection C of § 2.2-3708.3, using electronic communication means, (ii) during which all members of the public body who participate do so remotely rather than being assembled in one physical location, and (iii) to which public access is provided through electronic communication means. "Caregiver" means an adult who provides care for a person with a disability as defined in § 51.5-40.1. A caregiver shall be either related by blood, marriage, or adoption to or the legally appointed guardian of the person with a disability for whom he is caring. "Closed meeting" means a meeting from which the public is excluded. "Electronic communication" means the use of technology having electrical, digital, magnetic, wireless, optical, electromagnetic, or similar capabilities to transmit or receive information. "Emergency" means an unforeseen circumstance rendering the notice required by this chapter impossible or impracticable and which circumstance requires immediate action. "Information," as used in the exclusions established by §§ 2.2-3705.1 through 2.2-3705.7, means the content within a public record that references a specifically identified subject matter, and shall not be interpreted to require the production of information that is not embodied in a public record. "Meeting" or "meetings" means the meetings including work sessions, when sitting physically, or through electronic communication means pursuant to § 2.2-3708.2 or 2.2-3708.3, as a body or entity, or as an informal assemblage of (i) as many as three members or (ii) a quorum, if less than three, of the constituent membership, wherever held, with or without minutes being taken, whether or not votes are cast, of any public body. Neither the gathering of employees of a public body nor the gathering or attendance of two or more members of a public body (a) at any place or function where no part of the purpose of such gathering or attendance is the discussion or transaction of any public business, such gathering or attendance was not called or prearranged with any purpose of discussing or transacting any business of the public body, and no discussion or transaction of public business takes place among the members of the public body or (b) at a public forum, informational gathering, candidate appearance, meeting of another public body, or debate, the purpose of which is to inform the electorate or to gather information from the public and not to transact public business or to hold discussions relating to the transaction of public business, where no discussion or transaction of public business takes place among the members of the public body, even though the performance of the members individually or collectively in the conduct of public business may be a topic of discussion, debate, or question presented by others at such public meeting, shall be deemed a "meeting" subject to the provisions of this chapter. The appointment of more than two members of a public body to another public body does not constitute a meeting of the first public body. For purposes of this definition of "meeting" only, the term "public business" means any activity a public body has undertaken or proposes to undertake on behalf of the people it represents. "Official public government website" means any Internet site controlled by a public body and used, among any other purposes, to post required notices and other content pursuant to this chapter on behalf of the public body. "Open meeting" or "public meeting" means a meeting at which the public may be present. "Public body" means any legislative body, authority, board, bureau, commission, district, or agency of the Commonwealth or of any political subdivision of the Commonwealth, including counties, cities, and towns, municipal councils, governing bodies of counties, school boards, and planning commissions; governing boards of public institutions of higher education; and other organizations, corporations, or agencies in the Commonwealth supported wholly or principally by public funds. It shall include (i) the Virginia Birth-Related Neurological Injury Compensation Program and its board of directors established pursuant to Chapter 50 (§ 38.2-5000 et seq.) of Title 38.2 and (ii) any committee, subcommittee, or other entity however designated of the public body created to perform delegated functions of the public body or to advise the public body. It shall not exclude any such committee, subcommittee, or entity because it has private sector or citizen members. Corporations organized by the Virginia Retirement System are "public bodies" for purposes of this chapter. For the purposes of the provisions of this chapter applicable to access to public records, constitutional officers and private police departments as defined in § 9.1-101 shall be considered public bodies and, except as otherwise expressly provided by law, shall have the same obligations to disclose public records as other custodians of public records. "Public records" means all writings and recordings that consist of letters, words, or numbers, or their equivalent, set down by handwriting, typewriting, printing, photostatting, photography, magnetic impulse, optical or magneto-optical form, mechanical or electronic recording, or other form of data compilation, however stored, and regardless of physical form or characteristics, prepared or owned by, or in the possession of a public body or its officers, employees, or agents in the transaction of public business. "Regional public body" means a unit of government organized as provided by law within defined boundaries, as determined by the General Assembly, which unit includes two or more localities. "Remote participation" means participation by an individual member of a public body by electronic communication means in a public meeting where a quorum of the public body is otherwise physically assembled. "Scholastic records" means those records containing information directly related to a student or an applicant for admission and maintained by a public body that is an educational agency or institution or by a person acting for such agency or institution. "Trade secret" means the same as that term is defined in the Uniform Trade Secrets Act (§ 59.1-336 et seq.). 1968, c. 479, § 2.1-341; 1970, c. 456; 1974, c. 332; 1975, c. 307; 1977, c. 677; 1978, cc. 573, 826; 1979, cc. 369, 687; 1980, c. 754; 1984, c. 252; 1989, c. 358; 1990, c. 538; 1993, cc. 270, 720; 1994, cc. 845, 931; 1996, c. 609; 1997, c. 641; 1999, cc. 703, 726; 2001, c. 844; 2002, c. 393; 2003, c. 897; 2007, c. 945; 2008, cc. 233, 789; 2010, c. 706; 2011, c. 242; 2015, cc. 131, 195, 224; 2016, cc. 620, 716; 2017, cc. 616, 778; 2018, cc. 54, 55; 2019, c. 358; 2022, cc. 325, 597; 2024, cc. 610, 617, 733, 756.

Va. Code § 2.2-3705.2

§ 2.2-3705.2. Exclusions to application of chapter; records relating to public safety.The following information contained in a public record is excluded from the mandatory disclosure provisions of this chapter but may be disclosed by the custodian in his discretion, except where such disclosure is prohibited by law. Redaction of information excluded under this section from a public record shall be conducted in accordance with § 2.2-3704.01. 1. Confidential information, including victim identity, provided to or obtained by staff in a rape crisis center or a program for battered spouses. 2. Information that describes the design, function, operation, or access control features of any security system, whether manual or automated, which is used to control access to or use of any automated data processing or telecommunications system. 3. Information that would disclose the security aspects of a system safety program plan adopted pursuant to Federal Transit Administration regulations by the Commonwealth's designated Rail Fixed Guideway Systems Safety Oversight agency; and information in the possession of such agency, the release of which would jeopardize the success of an ongoing investigation of a rail accident or other incident threatening railway safety. 4. Information concerning security plans and specific assessment components of school safety audits, as provided in § 22.1-279.8. Nothing in this subdivision shall be construed to prevent the disclosure of information relating to the effectiveness of security plans after (i) any school building or property has been subjected to fire, explosion, natural disaster, or other catastrophic event or (ii) any person on school property has suffered or been threatened with any personal injury. 5. Information concerning the mental health assessment of an individual subject to commitment as a sexually violent predator under Chapter 9 (§ 37.2-900 et seq.) of Title 37.2 held by the Commitment Review Committee; except that in no case shall information identifying the victims of a sexually violent predator be disclosed. 6. Subscriber data provided directly or indirectly by a communications services provider to a public body that operates a 911 or E-911 emergency dispatch system or an emergency notification or reverse 911 system if the data is in a form not made available by the communications services provider to the public generally. Nothing in this subdivision shall prevent the disclosure of subscriber data generated in connection with specific calls to a 911 emergency system, where the requester is seeking to obtain public records about the use of the system in response to a specific crime, emergency or other event as to which a citizen has initiated a 911 call. For the purposes of this subdivision: "Communications services provider" means the same as that term is defined in § 58.1-647. "Subscriber data" means the name, address, telephone number, and any other information identifying a subscriber of a communications services provider. 7. Subscriber data collected by a local governing body in accordance with the Enhanced Public Safety Telephone Services Act (§ 56-484.12 et seq.) and other identifying information of a personal, medical, or financial nature provided to a local governing body in connection with a 911 or E-911 emergency dispatch system or an emergency notification or reverse 911 system if such records are not otherwise publicly available. Nothing in this subdivision shall prevent the disclosure of subscriber data generated in connection with specific calls to a 911 emergency system, where the requester is seeking to obtain public records about the use of the system in response to a specific crime, emergency or other event as to which a citizen has initiated a 911 call. For the purposes of this subdivision: "Communications services provider" means the same as that term is defined in § 58.1-647. "Subscriber data" means the name, address, telephone number, and any other information identifying a subscriber of a communications services provider. 8. Information held by the Virginia Military Advisory Council or any commission created by executive order for the purpose of studying and making recommendations regarding preventing closure or realignment of federal military and national security installations and facilities located in Virginia and relocation of such facilities to Virginia, or a local or regional military affairs organization appointed by a local governing body, that would (i) reveal strategies under consideration or development by the Council or such commission or organizations to prevent the closure or realignment of federal military installations located in Virginia or the relocation of national security facilities located in Virginia, to limit the adverse economic effect of such realignment, closure, or relocation, or to seek additional tenant activity growth from the Department of Defense or federal government or (ii) disclose trade secrets provided to the Council or such commission or organizations in connection with their work. In order to invoke the trade secret protection provided by clause (ii), the submitting entity shall, in writing and at the time of submission (a) invoke this exclusion, (b) identify with specificity the information for which such protection is sought, and (c) state the reason why such protection is necessary. Nothing in this subdivision shall be construed to prevent the disclosure of all or part of any record, other than a trade secret that has been specifically identified as required by this subdivision, after the Department of Defense or federal agency has issued a final, unappealable decision, or in the event of litigation, a court of competent jurisdiction has entered a final, unappealable order concerning the closure, realignment, or expansion of the military installation or tenant activities, or the relocation of the national security facility, for which records are sought. 9. Information, as determined by the State Comptroller, that describes the design, function, operation, or implementation of internal controls over the Commonwealth's financial processes and systems, and the assessment of risks and vulnerabilities of those controls, including the annual assessment of internal controls mandated by the State Comptroller, if disclosure of such information would jeopardize the security of the Commonwealth's financial assets. Nothing in this subdivision shall be construed to authorize the withholding of (i) the name of the public employee, officer, or official as it appears on a purchase card statement or other payment record or (ii) the description of individual purchases. Additionally, records relating to the investigation of and findings concerning the soundness of any fiscal process shall be disclosed in a form that does not compromise internal controls. Nothing in this subdivision shall be construed to prohibit the Auditor of Public Accounts or the Joint Legislative Audit and Review Commission from reporting internal control deficiencies discovered during the course of an audit. 10. Information relating to the Statewide Agencies Radio System (STARS) or any other similar local or regional public safety communications system that (i) describes the design, function, programming, operation, or access control features of the overall system, components, structures, individual networks, and subsystems of the STARS or any other similar local or regional communications system or (ii) relates to radio frequencies assigned to or utilized by STARS or any other similar local or regional communications system, code plugs, circuit routing, addressing schemes, talk groups, fleet maps, encryption, or programming maintained by or utilized by STARS or any other similar local or regional public safety communications system. 11. Information concerning a salaried or volunteer Fire/EMS company or Fire/EMS department if disclosure of such information would reveal the telephone numbers for cellular telephones, pagers, or comparable portable communication devices provided to its personnel for use in the performance of their official duties. 12. Information concerning the disaster recovery plans or the evacuation plans in the event of fire, explosion, natural disaster, or other catastrophic event for hospitals and nursing homes regulated by the Board of Health pursuant to Chapter 5 (§ 32.1-123 et seq.) of Title 32.1 provided to the Department of Health. Nothing in this subdivision shall be construed to prevent the disclosure of information relating to the effectiveness of executed evacuation plans after the occurrence of fire, explosion, natural disaster, or other catastrophic event. 13. Records received by the Department of Criminal Justice Services pursuant to §§ 9.1-184, 22.1-79.4, and 22.1-279.8 or for purposes of evaluating threat assessment teams established by a public institution of higher education pursuant to § 23.1-805 or by a private nonprofit institution of higher education, to the extent such records reveal security plans, walk-through checklists, or vulnerability and threat assessment components. 14. Information contained in (i) engineering, architectural, or construction drawings; (ii) operational, procedural, tactical planning, or training manuals; (iii) staff meeting minutes; or (iv) other records that reveal any of the following, the disclosure of which would jeopardize the safety or security of any person; governmental facility, building, or structure or persons using such facility, building, or structure; or public or private commercial office, multifamily residential, or retail building or its occupants: a. Critical infrastructure information or the location or operation of security equipment and systems of any public building, structure, or information storage facility, including ventilation systems, fire protection equipment, mandatory building emergency equipment or systems, elevators, electrical systems, telecommunications equipment and systems, or utility equipment and systems; b. Vulnerability assessments, information not lawfully available to the public regarding specific cybersecurity threats or vulnerabilities, or security plans and measures of an entity, facility, building structure, information technology system, or software program; c. Surveillance techniques, personnel deployments, alarm or security systems or technologies, or operational or transportation plans or protocols; or d. Interconnectivity, network monitoring, network operation centers, master sites, or systems related to the Statewide Agencies Radio System (STARS) or any other similar local or regional public safety communications system. The same categories of records of any person or entity submitted to a public body for the purpose of antiterrorism response planning or cybersecurity planning or protection may be withheld from disclosure if such person or entity in writing (a) invokes the protections of this subdivision, (b) identifies with specificity the records or portions thereof for which protection is sought, and (c) states with reasonable particularity why the protection of such records from public disclosure is necessary to meet the objective of antiterrorism, cybersecurity planning or protection, or critical infrastructure information security and resilience. Such statement shall be a public record and shall be disclosed upon request. Any public body receiving a request for records excluded under clauses (a) and (b) of this subdivision 14 shall notify the Secretary of Public Safety and Homeland Security or his designee of such request and the response made by the public body in accordance with § 2.2-3704. Nothing in this subdivision 14 shall prevent the disclosure of records relating to (1) the structural or environmental soundness of any such facility, building, or structure or (2) an inquiry into the performance of such facility, building, or structure after it has been subjected to fire, explosion, natural disaster, or other catastrophic event. As used in this subdivision, "critical infrastructure information" means the same as that term is defined in 6 U.S.C. § 671. 15. Information held by the Virginia Commercial Space Flight Authority that is categorized as classified or sensitive but unclassified, including national security, defense, and foreign policy information, provided that such information is exempt under the federal Freedom of Information Act, 5 U.S.C. § 552. 1999, cc. 485, 518, 703, 726, 793, 849, 852, 867, 868, 881, § 2.1-342.01; 2000, cc. 66, 237, 382, 400, 430, 583, 589, 592, 594, 618, 632, 657, 720, 932, 933, 947, 1006, 1064; 2001, cc. 288, 518, 844, § 2.2-3705; 2002, cc. 87, 155, 242, 393, 478, 481, 499, 522, 571, 572, 633, 655, 715, 798, 830; 2003, cc. 274, 307, 327, 332, 358, 704, 801, 884, 891, 893, 897, 968; 2004, cc. 398, 482, 690, 770; 2005, c. 410; 2008, c. 721; 2009, c. 418; 2010, c. 672; 2011, cc. 111, 536; 2012, cc. 617, 803, 835; 2013, c. 600; 2015, c. 183; 2016, cc. 554, 620, 716, 717; 2017, c. 778; 2018, cc. 52, 741; 2019, c. 358; 2024, c. 671. This section has more than one version with varying effective dates. To view a complete list of the versions of this section see Table of Contents.

Va. Code § 2.2-4329.1

§ 2.2-4329.1. Energy forward pricing mechanisms.A. As used in this section, unless the context requires a different meaning: "Energy" means natural gas, heating oil, propane, diesel fuel, unleaded fuel, and any other energy source except electricity. "Forward pricing mechanism" means either: (i) a contract or financial instrument that obligates a public body to buy or sell a specified quantity of energy at a future date at a set price or (ii) an option to buy or sell the contract or financial instrument. B. Notwithstanding any other law to the contrary but subject to available appropriation, a public body may use forward pricing mechanisms for budget risk reduction. C. Forward pricing mechanism transactions shall be made only under the following conditions: 1. The quantity of energy affected by the forward pricing mechanism shall not exceed the estimated energy use for the public body for the same period, which shall not exceed 48 months from the trade date of the transaction; and 2. A separate account shall be established for operational energy for each public body using a forward pricing mechanism. D. Before exercising the authority under this section, the public body shall develop written policies and procedures governing the use of forward pricing mechanisms and disclosure of the same to the public. E. Before exercising authority under subsection B, the public body shall establish an oversight process that provides for review of the public body's use of forward pricing mechanisms. The oversight process shall include internal or external audit reviews; annual reports to, and review by, an internal investment committee; and internal management control. 2012, cc. 204, 359.

Va. Code § 2.2-4334

§ 2.2-4334. Deposit of certain retained funds on certain contracts with local governments; penalty for failure to timely complete.A. Any county, city, town or agency thereof or other political subdivision of the Commonwealth when contracting directly with contractors for public contracts of $200,000 or more for construction of highways, roads, streets, bridges, parking lots, demolition, clearing, grading, excavating, paving, pile driving, miscellaneous drainage structures, and the installation of water, gas, sewer lines and pumping stations where portions of the contract price are to be retained, shall include in the Bid Proposal an option for the contractor to use an escrow account procedure for utilization of the political subdivision's retainage funds by so indicating in the space provided in the proposal documents. In the event the contractor elects to use the escrow account procedure, the escrow agreement form included in the Bid Proposal and Contract shall be executed and submitted to the political subdivision within fifteen calendar days after notification. If the escrow agreement form is not submitted within the fifteen-day period, the contractor shall forfeit his rights to the use of the escrow account procedure. B. In order to have retained funds paid to an escrow agent, the contractor, the escrow agent, and the surety shall execute an escrow agreement form. The contractor's escrow agent shall be a trust company, bank or savings institution with its principal office located in the Commonwealth. The escrow agreement and all regulations adopted by the political subdivision entering into the contract shall be substantially the same as that used by the Virginia Department of Transportation. C. This section shall not apply to public contracts for construction for railroads, public transit systems, runways, dams, foundations, installation or maintenance of power systems for the generation and primary and secondary distribution of electric current ahead of the customer's meter, the installation or maintenance of telephone, telegraph or signal systems for public utilities and the construction or maintenance of solid waste or recycling facilities and treatment plants. D. Any such public contract for construction with a county, city, town or agency thereof or other political subdivision of the Commonwealth, which includes payment of interest on retained funds, may require a provision whereby the contractor, exclusive of reasonable circumstances beyond the control of the contractor stated in the contract, shall pay a specified penalty for each day exceeding the completion date stated in the contract. E. Any subcontract for such public project that provides for similar progress payments shall be subject to the provisions of this section. 1989, c. 1, § 11-56.1; 2001, c. 844.

Va. Code § 2.2-4345

§ 2.2-4345. Exemptions from competitive sealed bidding and competitive negotiation for certain transactions; limitations.A. The following public bodies may enter into contracts without competitive sealed bidding or competitive negotiation: 1. The Director of the Department of Medical Assistance Services for special services provided for eligible recipients pursuant to subsection H of § 32.1-325, provided that the Director has made a determination in advance after reasonable notice to the public and set forth in writing that competitive sealed bidding or competitive negotiation for such services is not fiscally advantageous to the public, or would constitute an imminent threat to the health or welfare of such recipients. The writing shall document the basis for this determination. 2. The State Health Commissioner for the compilation, storage, analysis, evaluation, and publication of certain data submitted by health care providers and for the development of a methodology to measure the efficiency and productivity of health care providers pursuant to Chapter 7.2 (§ 32.1-276.2 et seq.) of Title 32.1, if the Commissioner has made a determination in advance, after reasonable notice to the public and set forth in writing, that competitive sealed bidding or competitive negotiation for such services is not fiscally advantageous to the public. The writing shall document the basis for this determination. Such agreements and contracts shall be based on competitive principles. 3. The Virginia Code Commission when procuring the services of a publisher, pursuant to §§ 30-146 and 30-148, to publish the Code of Virginia or the Virginia Administrative Code. 4. The Virginia Alcoholic Beverage Control Authority for the purchase of alcoholic beverages. 5. The Department for Aging and Rehabilitative Services, for the administration of elder rights programs, with (i) nonprofit Virginia corporations granted tax-exempt status under § 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code with statewide experience in Virginia in conducting a state long-term care ombudsman program or (ii) designated area agencies on aging. 6. The Department of Health for (a) child restraint devices, pursuant to § 46.2-1097; (b) health care services with Virginia corporations granted tax-exempt status under § 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code and operating as clinics for the indigent and uninsured that are organized for the delivery of primary health care services in a community (i) as federally qualified health centers designated by the Health Care Financing Administration or (ii) at a reduced or sliding fee scale or without charge; or (c) contracts with laboratories providing cytology and related services if competitive sealed bidding and competitive negotiations are not fiscally advantageous to the public to provide quality control as prescribed in writing by the Commissioner of Health. 7. Virginia Correctional Enterprises, when procuring materials, supplies, or services for use in and support of its production facilities, provided that the procurement is accomplished using procedures that ensure as efficient use of funds as practicable and, at a minimum, includes obtaining telephone quotations. Such procedures shall require documentation of the basis for awarding contracts under this section. 8. The Virginia Baseball Stadium Authority for the operation of any facilities developed under the provisions of Chapter 58 (§ 15.2-5800 et seq.) of Title 15.2, including contracts or agreements with respect to the sale of food, beverages and souvenirs at such facilities. 9. With the consent of the Governor, the Jamestown-Yorktown Foundation for the promotion of tourism through marketing with private entities provided a demonstrable cost savings, as reviewed by the Secretary of Education, can be realized by the Foundation and such agreements or contracts are based on competitive principles. 10. The Chesapeake Hospital Authority in the exercise of any power conferred under Chapter 271, as amended, of the Acts of Assembly of 1966, provided that it does not discriminate against any person on the basis of race, color, religion, national origin, sex, pregnancy, childbirth or related medical conditions, age, marital status, or disability in the procurement of goods and services. 11. Richmond Eye and Ear Hospital Authority, any authorities created under Chapter 53 (§ 15.2-5300 et seq.) of Title 15.2 and any hospital or health center commission created under Chapter 52 (§ 15.2-5200 et seq.) of Title 15.2 in the exercise of any power conferred under their respective authorizing legislation, provided that these entities shall not discriminate against any person on the basis of race, color, religion, national origin, sex, pregnancy, childbirth or related medical conditions, age, marital status, or disability in the procurement of goods and services. 12. The Patrick Hospital Authority sealed in the exercise of any power conferred under the Acts of Assembly of 2000, provided that it does not discriminate against any person on the basis of race, color, religion, national origin, sex, pregnancy, childbirth or related medical conditions, age, marital status, or disability in the procurement of goods and services. 13. Public bodies for insurance or electric utility services if purchased through an association of which it is a member if the association was formed and is maintained for the purpose of promoting the interest and welfare of and developing close relationships with similar public bodies, provided that such association has procured the insurance or electric utility services by use of competitive principles and that the public body has made a determination in advance after reasonable notice to the public and set forth in writing that competitive sealed bidding and competitive negotiation are not fiscally advantageous to the public. The writing shall document the basis for this determination. 14. Public bodies administering public assistance and social services programs as defined in § 63.2-100, community services boards as defined in § 37.2-100, or any public body purchasing services under the Children's Services Act (§ 2.2-5200 et seq.) or the Virginia Juvenile Community Crime Control Act (§ 16.1-309.2 et seq.) for goods or personal services for direct use by the recipients of such programs if the procurement is made for an individual recipient. Contracts for the bulk procurement of goods or services for the use of recipients shall not be exempted from the requirements of § 2.2-4303. B. No contract for the construction of any building or for an addition to or improvement of an existing building by any local government or subdivision of local government for which state funds of not more than $50,000 in the aggregate or for the sum of all phases of a contract or project either by appropriation, grant-in-aid or loan, are used or are to be used for all or part of the cost of construction shall be let except after competitive sealed bidding or after competitive negotiation as provided under subsection D of § 2.2-4303 or Chapter 43.1 (§ 2.2-4378 et seq.). The procedure for the advertising for bids or for proposals and for letting of the contract shall conform, mutatis mutandis, to this chapter. 1982, c. 647, § 11-45; 1984, c. 764; 1987, cc. 194, 248; 1989, c. 235; 1990, c. 395; 1991, c. 175; 1993, cc. 110, 505, 638, 971; 1996, cc. 145, 897, 902, 950, 1038; 1998, cc. 222, 619, 666, 697, 791; 1999, cc. 160, 194, 1021, 1024; 2000, cc. 242, 696, 927; 2001, c. 844; 2002, cc. 87, 478, 747; 2006, c. 658; 2011, c. 538; 2012, cc. 803, 835; 2015, cc. 38, 366, 730; 2017, cc. 699, 704; 2023, cc. 756, 778.

Va. Code § 2.2-4519

§ 2.2-4519. Investment of funds by the Virginia Housing Development Authority and the Virginia Resources Authority.A. For purposes of §§ 36-55.44 and 62.1-221 only, the following investments shall be considered lawful investments and shall be conclusively presumed to have been prudent: 1. Obligations of the Commonwealth. Stocks, bonds, notes, and other evidences of indebtedness of the Commonwealth, and those unconditionally guaranteed as to the payment of principal and interest by the Commonwealth. 2. Obligations of the United States. Stocks, bonds, treasury notes, and other evidences of indebtedness of the United States, including the guaranteed portion of any loan guaranteed by the Small Business Administration, an agency of the United States government, and those unconditionally guaranteed as to the payment of principal and interest by the United States; bonds of the District of Columbia; bonds and notes of the Federal National Mortgage Association and the Federal Home Loan Banks; bonds, debentures, or other similar obligations of federal land banks, federal intermediate credit banks, or banks of cooperatives, issued pursuant to acts of Congress; and obligations issued by the United States Postal Service when the principal and interest thereon is guaranteed by the government of the United States. The evidences of indebtedness enumerated by this subdivision may be held directly, in the form of repurchase agreements collateralized by such debt securities, or in the form of securities of any open-end or closed-end management type investment company or investment trust registered under the federal Investment Company Act of 1940, provided that the portfolio of such investment company or investment trust is limited to such evidences of indebtedness or repurchase agreements collateralized by such debt securities, or securities of other such investment companies or investment trusts whose portfolios are so restricted. 3. Obligations of other states. Stocks, bonds, notes, and other evidences of indebtedness of any state of the United States upon which there is no default and upon which there has been no default for more than 90 days, provided that within the 20 fiscal years next preceding the making of such investment, such state has not been in default for more than 90 days in the payment of any part of principal or interest of any debt authorized by the legislature of such state to be contracted. 4. Obligations of Virginia counties, cities, or other public bodies. Stocks, bonds, notes, and other evidences of indebtedness of any county, city, town, district, authority, or other public body in the Commonwealth upon which there is no default, provided that if the principal and interest is payable from revenues or tolls and the project has not been completed, or if completed, has not established an operating record of net earnings available for payment of principal and interest equal to estimated requirements for that purpose according to the terms of the issue, the standards of judgment and care required in the Uniform Prudent Investor Act (§ 64.2-780 et seq.), without reference to this section, shall apply. In any case in which an authority, having an established record of net earnings available for payment of principal and interest equal to estimated requirements for that purpose according to the terms of the issue, issues additional evidences of indebtedness for the purposes of acquiring or constructing additional facilities of the same general character that it is then operating, such additional evidences of indebtedness shall be governed fully by the provisions of this section without limitation. 5. Obligations of cities, counties, towns, or districts of other states. Legally authorized stocks, bonds, notes, and other evidences of indebtedness of any city, county, town, or district situated in any one of the states of the United States upon which there is no default and upon which there has been no default for more than 90 days, provided that (i) within the 20 fiscal years next preceding the making of such investment, the city, county, town, or district has not been in default for more than 90 days in the payment of any part of principal or interest of any stock, bond, note, or other evidence of indebtedness issued by it; (ii) the city, county, town, or district shall have been in continuous existence for at least 20 years; (iii) the city, county, town, or district has a population, as shown by the federal census next preceding the making of such investment, of not less than 25,000 inhabitants; (iv) the stocks, bonds, notes, or other evidences of indebtedness in which such investment is made are the direct legal obligations of the city, county, town, or district issuing the same; (v) the city, county, town, or district has power to levy taxes on the taxable real property therein for the payment of such obligations without limitation of rate or amount; and (vi) the net indebtedness of the city, county, town, or district, including the issue in which such investment is made, after deducting the amount of its bonds issued for self-sustaining public utilities, does not exceed 10 percent of the value of the taxable property in the city, county, town, or district, to be ascertained by the valuation of such property therein for the assessment of taxes next preceding the making of such investment. 6. Obligations subject to repurchase. Investments set forth in subdivisions 1 through 5 may also be made subject to the obligation or right of the seller to repurchase these on a specific date. 7. Bonds secured on real estate. Bonds and negotiable notes directly secured by a first lien on improved real estate or farm property in the Commonwealth, or in any state contiguous to the Commonwealth within a 50-mile area from the borders of the Commonwealth, not to exceed 80 percent of the fair market value of such real estate, including any improvements thereon at the time of making such investment, as ascertained by an appraisal thereof made by two reputable persons who are not interested in whether or not such investment is made. 8. Bonds secured on city property in Fifth Federal Reserve District. Bonds and negotiable notes directly secured by a first lien on improved real estate situated in any incorporated city in any of the states of the United States which lie wholly or in part within the Fifth Federal Reserve District of the United States as constituted on June 18, 1928, pursuant to the act of Congress of December 23, 1913, known as the Federal Reserve Act, as amended, not to exceed 60 percent of the fair market value of such real estate, with the improvements thereon, at the time of making such investment, as ascertained by an appraisal thereof made by two reputable persons who are not interested in whether or not such investment is made, provided that such city has a population, as shown by the federal census next preceding the making of such investments, of not less than 5,000 inhabitants. 9. Bonds of Virginia educational institutions. Bonds of any of the educational institutions of the Commonwealth that have been or may be authorized to be issued by the General Assembly. 10. Securities of the Richmond, Fredericksburg and Potomac Railroad Company. Stocks, bonds, and other securities of the Richmond, Fredericksburg and Potomac Railroad Company, including bonds or other securities guaranteed by the Richmond, Fredericksburg and Potomac Railroad Company. 11. Obligations of railroads. Bonds, notes, and other evidences of indebtedness, including equipment trust obligations, which are direct legal obligations of or which have been unconditionally assumed or guaranteed as to the payment of principal and interest by, any railroad corporation operating within the United States that meets the following conditions and requirements: a. The gross operating revenue of such corporation for the fiscal year preceding the making of such investment, or the average of the gross operating revenue for the five fiscal years next preceding the making of such investment, whichever of these two is the larger, shall have not been less than $10 million; b. The total fixed charges of such corporation, as reported for the fiscal year next preceding the making of the investment, shall have been earned an average of at least two times annually during the seven fiscal years preceding the making of the investment and at least one and one-half times during the fiscal year immediately preceding the making of the investment. The term "total fixed charges" as used in this subdivision and subdivision c shall be deemed to refer to the term used in the accounting reports of common carriers as prescribed by the regulations of the Interstate Commerce Commission; and c. The aggregate of the average market prices of the total amounts of each of the individual securities of such corporation junior to its bonded debt and outstanding at the time of the making of such investment shall be equal to at least two-thirds of the total fixed charges for such railroad corporation for the fiscal year next preceding the making of such investment capitalized at an annual interest rate of five percent. Such average market price of any one of such individual securities shall be determined by the average of the highest quotation and the lowest quotation of the individual security for a period immediately preceding the making of such investment, which period shall be the full preceding calendar year plus the then-expired portion of the calendar year in which such investment is made, provided that if more than six months of the calendar year in which such investment is made shall have expired, then such period shall be only the then-expired portion of the calendar year in which such investment is made, and provided further that if such individual security shall not have been outstanding during the full extent of such period, such period shall be deemed to be the length of time such individual security shall have been outstanding. 12. Obligations of leased railroads. Stocks, bonds, notes, other evidences of indebtedness, and any other securities of any railroad corporation operating within the United States, the railroad lines of which have been leased by a railroad corporation, either alone or jointly with other railroad corporations, whose bonds, notes, and other evidences of indebtedness shall, at the time of the making of such investment, qualify as lawful investments for fiduciaries under the terms of subdivision 11, provided that the terms of such lease shall provide for the payment by such lessee railroad corporation individually, irrespective of the liability of other joint lessee railroad corporations, if any, in this respect, of an annual rental of an amount sufficient to defray the total operating expenses and maintenance charges of the lessor railroad corporation plus its total fixed charges, plus, in the event of the purchase of such a stock, a fixed dividend upon any issue of such stock in which such investment is made, and provided that if such investment so purchased shall consist of an obligation of definite maturity, such lease shall be one which shall, according to its terms, provide for the payment of the obligation at maturity or extend for a period of not less than 20 years beyond the maturity of such obligations so purchased, or if such investment so purchased shall be a stock or other form of investment having no definite date of maturity, such lease shall be one which shall, according to its terms, extend for a period of at least 50 years beyond the date of the making of such investment. 13. Equipment trust obligations. Equipment trust obligations issued under the "Philadelphia Plan" in connection with the purchase for use on railroads of new standard gauge rolling stock, provided that the owner, purchaser, or lessee of such equipment, or one or more of such owners, purchasers, or lessees, shall be a railroad corporation whose bonds, notes, and other evidences of indebtedness shall, at the time of the making of such investment, qualify as lawful investments for fiduciaries under the terms of subdivision 11, and provided that all of such owners, purchasers, or lessees shall be both jointly and severally liable under the terms of such contract of purchase or lease, or both, for the fulfillment thereof. 14. Preferred stock of railroads. Any preference stock of any railroad corporation operating within the United States, provided such stock and such railroad corporation meet the following conditions and requirements: a. Such stock shall be preferred as to dividends, such dividends shall be cumulative, and such stock shall be preferred as to assets in the event of liquidation or dissolution; b. The gross operating revenue of such corporation for the fiscal year preceding the making of such investment, or the average of the gross operating revenue for the five fiscal years next preceding the making of such investment, whichever of these two is the larger, shall have been not less than $10 million; c. The total fixed charges, as defined in subdivision 11 b, of such corporation, as reported for the fiscal year next preceding the making of such investment, plus the amount, at the time of making such investment, of the annual dividend requirements on such preference stock and any preference stock having the same or senior rank, such fixed charges and dividend requirements being considered the same for every year, shall have been earned an average of at least two and one-half times annually for the seven fiscal years preceding the making of such investment and at least two times for the fiscal year immediately preceding the making of such investment; and d. The aggregate of the average market prices of the total amount of each of the individual securities of such corporation, junior to such preference stock and outstanding at the time of the making of such investment, shall be at least equal to the par value of the total issue of the preference stock in question plus the total par value of all other issues of its preference stock having either the same rank as, or a senior rank to, the issue of such preference stock plus total fixed charges, as defined in subdivision 11 b, for such railroad corporation for the fiscal year next preceding the making of such investment capitalized at an annual interest rate of five percent. Such average market price of any one of such individual securities shall be determined in the same manner as prescribed in subdivision 11 c. 15. Obligations of public utilities. Bonds, notes, and other evidences of indebtedness of any public utility operating company operating within the United States, provided such company meets the following conditions and requirements: a. The gross operating revenue of such public utility operating company for the fiscal year preceding the making of such investment, or the average of the gross operating revenue for the five fiscal years next preceding the making of such investment, whichever of these two is the larger, shall have been not less than $5 million; b. The total fixed charges of such corporation, as reported for the fiscal year next preceding the making of the investment, shall have been earned, after deducting operating expenses, depreciation, and taxes, other than income taxes, an average of at least one and three-quarters times annually during the seven fiscal years preceding the making of the investment and at least one and one-half times during the fiscal year immediately preceding the making of the investment; c. In the fiscal year next preceding the making of such investment, the ratio of the total par value of the bonded debt of such public utility operating company, including the total bonded indebtedness of all its subsidiary companies, whether assumed by the public utility operating company in question or not, to its gross operating revenue shall not be greater than four to one; and d. Such public utility operating company shall be subject to permanent regulation by a state commission or other duly authorized and recognized regulatory body. The term "public utility operating company" as used in this subdivision and subdivision 16 means a public utility or public service corporation (i) of whose total income available for fixed charges for the fiscal year next preceding the making of such investment at least 55 percent thereof shall have been derived from direct payments by customers for service rendered them; (ii) of whose total operating revenue for the fiscal year next preceding the making of such investment at least 60 percent thereof shall have been derived from the sale of electric power, gas, water, or telephone service and not more than 10 percent thereof shall have been derived from traction operations; and (iii) whose gas properties are all within the limits of one state, if more than 20 percent of its total operating revenues are derived from gas. 16. Preferred stock of public utilities. Any preference stock of any public utility operating company operating within the United States, provided such stock and such company meet the following conditions and requirements: a. Such stock shall be preferred as to dividends, such dividends shall be cumulative, and such stock shall be preferred as to assets in the event of liquidation or dissolution; b. The gross operating revenue of such public utility operating company for the fiscal year preceding the making of such investment, or the average of the gross operating revenue for the five fiscal years next preceding the making of such investment, whichever of these two is the larger, shall have been not less than $5 million; c. The total fixed charges of such public utility operating company, as reported for the fiscal year next preceding the making of such investment, plus the amount, at the time of making such investment, of the annual dividend requirements on such preference stock and any preference stock having the same or senior rank, such fixed charges and dividend requirements being considered the same for every year, shall have been earned, after deducting operating expenses, depreciation, and taxes, including income taxes, an average of at least two times annually for the seven fiscal years preceding the making of such investment and at least two times for the fiscal year immediately preceding the making of such investment; d. In the fiscal year next preceding the making of such investment, the ratio of the sum of the total par value of the bonded debt of such public utility operating company, the total par value of the issue of such preference stock, and the total par value of all other issues of its preference stock having the same or senior rank to its gross operating revenue shall not be greater than four to one; and e. Such public utility operating company shall be subject to permanent regulation by a state commission or other duly authorized and recognized regulatory body. 17. Obligations of the following telephone companies. Bonds, notes, and other evidences of indebtedness of American Telephone and Telegraph, Bell Atlantic, Bell South, Southwestern Bell, Pacific Telesis, Nynex, American Information Technologies, or U.S. West, and bonds, notes, and other evidences of indebtedness unconditionally assumed or guaranteed as to the payment of principal and interest by any such company, provided that the total fixed charges, as reported for the fiscal year next preceding the making of the investment, of such company and all of its subsidiary corporations on a consolidated basis shall have been earned, after deducting operating expenses, depreciation, and taxes, other than income taxes, an average of at least one and three-fourths times annually during the seven fiscal years preceding the making of the investment and at least one and one-half times during the fiscal year immediately preceding the making of the investment. 18. Obligations of municipally owned utilities. The stocks, bonds, notes, and other evidences of indebtedness of any electric, gas, or water department of any state, county, city, town, or district whose obligations would qualify as legal for purchase under subdivision 3, 4, or 5, the interest and principal of which are payable solely out of the revenues from the operations of the facility for which the obligations were issued, provided that the department issuing such obligations meets the requirements applying to public utility operating companies as set out in subdivisions 15 a through c. 19. Obligations of industrial corporations. Bonds, notes, and other evidences of indebtedness of any industrial corporation incorporated under the laws of the United States or of any state thereof, provided such corporation meets the following conditions and requirements: a. The gross operating revenue of such corporation for the fiscal year preceding the making of such investment, or the average of the gross operating revenue for the five fiscal years next preceding the making of such investment, whichever of these two is the larger, shall have been not less than $10 million; b. The total fixed charges of such corporation, as reported for the fiscal year next preceding the making of the investment, shall have been earned, after deducting operating expenses, depreciation, and taxes, other than income taxes, and depletion in the case of companies commonly considered as depleting their natural resources in the course of business, an average of at least three times annually during the seven fiscal years preceding the making of the investment and at least two and one-half times during the fiscal year immediately preceding the making of the investment; c. The net working capital of such industrial corporation, as shown by its last published fiscal year-end statement prior to the making of such investment, or in the case of a new issue, as shown by the financial statement of such corporation giving effect to the issuance of any new security, shall be at least equal to the total par value of its bonded debt as shown by such statement; and d. The aggregate of the average market prices of the total amounts of each of the individual securities of such industrial corporation, junior to its bonded debt and outstanding at the time of the making of such investment, shall be at least equal to the total par value of the bonded debt of such industrial corporation at the time of the making of such investment, such average market price of any one of such individual securities being determined in the same manner as prescribed in subdivision 11 c. 20. Preferred stock of industrial corporations. Any preference stock of any industrial corporation incorporated under the laws of the United States or of any state thereof, provided such stock and such industrial corporation meet the following conditions and requirements: a. Such stock shall be preferred as to dividends, such dividends shall be cumulative, and such stock shall be preferred as to assets in the event of liquidation or dissolution; b. The gross operating revenue of such corporation for the fiscal year preceding the making of such investment, or the average of the gross operating revenue for the five fiscal years next preceding the making of such investment, whichever of these two is the larger, shall have been not less than $10 million; c. The total fixed charges of such corporation, as reported for the fiscal year next preceding the making of such investment, plus the amount, at the time of making such investment, of the annual dividend requirements on such preference stock and any preference stock having the same or senior rank, such fixed charges and dividend requirements being considered the same for every year, shall have been earned, after deducting operating expenses, depreciation, and taxes, including income taxes, and depletion in the case of companies commonly considered as depleting their natural resources in the course of business, an average of at least four times annually for the seven fiscal years preceding the making of such investment and at least three times for the fiscal year immediately preceding the making of such investment; d. The net working capital of such industrial corporation, as shown by its last published fiscal year-end statement prior to the making of such investment, or, in the case of a new issue, as shown by the financial statement of such corporation giving effect to the issuance of any new security, shall be at least equal to the total par value of its bonded debt plus the total par value of the issue of such preference stock plus the total par value of all other issues of its preference stock having the same or senior rank; and e. The aggregate of the lowest market prices of the total amounts of each of the individual securities of such industrial corporation junior to such preference stock and outstanding at the time of the making of such investment shall be at least two and one-half times the par value of the total issue of such preference stock plus the total par value of all other issues of its preference stock having the same or senior rank plus the par value of the total bonded debt of such industrial corporation. Such lowest market price of any one of such individual securities shall be determined by the lowest single quotation of the individual security for a period immediately preceding the making of such investment, which period shall be the full preceding calendar year plus the then-expired portion of the calendar year in which such investment is made, and if such individual security shall not have been outstanding during the full extent of such period, such period shall be deemed to be the length of time such individual security shall have been outstanding. 21. Obligations of finance corporations. Bonds, notes, and other evidences of indebtedness of any finance corporation incorporated under the laws of the United States or of any state thereof, provided such corporation meets the following conditions and requirements: a. The gross operating income of such corporation for the fiscal year preceding the making of such investment, or the average of the gross operating income for the five fiscal years next preceding the making of such investment, whichever of these two is the larger, shall have been not less than $5 million; b. The total fixed charges of such corporation, as reported for the fiscal year next preceding the making of the investment, shall have been earned, after deducting operating expenses, depreciation, and taxes, other than income taxes, an average of at least two and one-half times annually during the seven fiscal years preceding the making of the investment and at least two times during the fiscal year immediately preceding the making of the investment; c. The aggregate indebtedness of such finance corporation as shown by its last fiscal year-end statement, or, in the case of a new issue, as shown by the financial statement giving effect to the issuance of any new securities, shall be no greater than three times the aggregate net worth, as represented by preferred and common stocks and surplus of such corporation; and d. The aggregate of the average market prices of the total amounts of each of the individual securities of such finance corporation, junior to its bonded debt and outstanding at the time of the making of such investment, shall be at least equal to one-third of the sum of the par value of the bonded debt plus all other indebtedness of such finance corporation as shown by the last published fiscal year-end statement, such average market price of any one of such individual securities being determined in the same manner as prescribed in subdivision 11 c. 22. Preferred stock of finance corporations. Any preference stock of any finance corporation incorporated under the laws of the United States or of any state thereof, provided such stock and such corporation meet the following conditions and requirements: a. Such stock shall be preferred as to dividends, such dividends shall be cumulative, and such stock shall be preferred as to assets in the event of liquidation or dissolution; b. The gross operating income of such corporation for the fiscal year preceding the making of such investment, or the average of the gross operating income for the five fiscal years next preceding the making of such investment, whichever of these two is the larger, shall have been not less than $5 million; c. The total fixed charges of such finance corporation, as reported for the fiscal year next preceding the making of such investment, plus the amount, at the time of making such investment, of the annual dividend requirements on such preference stock and any preference stock having the same or senior rank, such fixed charges and dividend requirements being considered the same for every year, shall have been earned, after deducting operating expenses, depreciation, and taxes, including income taxes, an average of at least three and one-half times annually for the seven fiscal years preceding the making of such investment and at least three times for the fiscal year immediately preceding the making of such investment; d. The aggregate indebtedness and par value of the purchased stock, both the issue in question and any issues equal or senior thereto, of such finance corporation as shown by its last published fiscal year-end statement, or, in the case of a new issue, as shown by the financial statement giving effect to the issuance of any new securities, shall be no greater than three times the aggregate par value of the junior securities and surplus of such corporation; and e. The aggregate of the lowest market prices of the total amounts of each of the individual securities of such finance corporation junior to such preference stock and outstanding at the time of the making of such investment shall be at least equal to one-third of the sum of the par value of such preference stock plus the total par value of all other issues of preference stock having the same or senior rank plus the par value of the total bonded debt plus all other indebtedness of such finance corporation as shown by the last published fiscal year-end statement, such lowest market price of any one of such individual securities being determined in the same manner as prescribed in subdivision 20 e. 23. Federal housing loans. First mortgage real estate loans insured by the Federal Housing Administrator under Title II of the National Housing Act. 24. Certificates of deposit and savings accounts. Certificates of deposit of, and savings accounts in, any bank, banking institution, or trust company, whose deposits are insured by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation at the prevailing rate of interest on such certificates or savings accounts; however, no such fiduciary shall invest in such certificates of, or deposits in, any one bank, banking institution, or trust company an amount from any one fund in his or its care which shall be in excess of such amount as shall be fully insured as a deposit in such bank, banking institution, or trust company by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation. A corporate fiduciary shall not, however, be prohibited by the terms of this subdivision from depositing in its own banking department, in the form of demand deposits, savings accounts, time deposits, or certificates of deposit, funds in any amount awaiting investments or distribution, provided that it shall have complied with the provisions of §§ 6.2-1005 and 6.2-1007, with reference to the securing of such deposits. 25. Obligations of International Bank, Asian Development Bank, and African Development Bank. Bonds and other obligations issued, guaranteed, or assumed by the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development, the Asian Development Bank, or the African Development Bank. 26. Deposits in savings institutions. Certificates of deposit of, and savings accounts in, any state or federal savings institution or savings bank lawfully authorized to do business in the Commonwealth whose accounts are insured by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation or other federal insurance agency; however, no such fiduciary shall invest in such shares of any one such association an amount from any one fund in his or its care which shall be in excess of such amount as shall be fully insured as an account in such association by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation or other federal insurance agency. 27. Certificates evidencing ownership of undivided interests in pools of mortgages. Certificates evidencing ownership of undivided interests in pools of bonds or negotiable notes directly secured by first lien deeds of trust or mortgages on real property located in the Commonwealth improved by single-family residential housing units or multi-family dwelling units, provided that (i) such certificates are rated AA or better by a nationally recognized independent rating agency; (ii) the loans evidenced by such bonds or negotiable notes do not exceed 80 percent of the fair market value, as determined by an independent appraisal thereof, of the real property and the improvements thereon securing such loans; and (iii) such bonds or negotiable notes are assigned to a corporate trustee for the benefit of the holders of such certificates. 28. Shares in credit unions. Shares and share certificates in any credit union lawfully authorized to do business in the Commonwealth whose accounts are insured by the National Credit Union Share Insurance Fund or the Virginia Credit Union Share Insurance Corporation, provided no such fiduciary shall invest in such shares an amount from any one fund in his or its care which shall be in excess of such amount as shall be fully insured as an account in such credit union by the National Credit Union Share Insurance Fund or the Virginia Credit Union Share Insurance Corporation. B. Whenever under the terms of this section the par value of a preference stock is required to be used in a computation, there shall be used instead of such par value the liquidating value of such preference stock in the case of involuntary liquidation, as prescribed by the terms of its issue, in the event that such liquidating value shall be greater than the par value of such preference stock; or in the event that the preference stock in question has no par value, then such liquidating value shall be used instead; or when such preference stock shall be one of no par value and one for which no such liquidating value shall have been so prescribed, then for the purposes of such computation the preference stock in question shall be deemed to have a value of $100 per share. C. When any security provided for in this section is purchased by a fiduciary and at the time of such purchase the statement for the preceding fiscal year of the corporation issuing the security so being purchased has not been published and is therefore not available, the statement of such corporation for the fiscal year immediately prior to such preceding fiscal year shall be considered the statement for such preceding fiscal year and shall have the same force and effect as the statement for the fiscal year preceding such purchase, provided the date of such purchase is not more than four months after the end of the last fiscal year of the corporation. D. In testing a new issue of securities under the provisions of this section, it shall be permissible, in determining the number of times that fixed charges or preferred dividend requirements have been earned, to use pro forma fixed charges or dividend requirements, provided the corporation or its corporate predecessor has been in existence for a period of not less than seven years. E. Investments made under the provisions of this section, if in conformity with the requirements of this section at the time such investments were made, may be retained even though they cease to be eligible for purchase under the provisions of this section, but shall be subject to the provisions of the Uniform Prudent Investor Act (§ 64.2-780 et seq.). 2012, c. 614. Chapter 46. Local Government Investment Pool Act.

Va. Code § 2.2-614.5

§ 2.2-614.5. Electric vehicle charging stations.Each agency, as defined in § 2.2-128, may locate and operate a retail fee-based electric vehicle charging station on any property or facility that such agency controls if the electric vehicle charging services are offered at prevailing market rates. For the purposes of this section, "prevailing market rates" means rates that include applicable taxes and are similar to those generally available to consumers in competitive areas for the same services. 2019, c. 248; 2020, c. 490. Article 2. Implementation of Federal Mandates Act.

Va. Code § 22.1-131

§ 22.1-131. Boards may permit use of various school property; general conditions; electric vehicle charging stations.A. A school board may permit the use, upon such terms and conditions as it deems proper, of such school property as will not impair the efficiency of the schools. The school board may authorize the division superintendent to permit use of the school property, including buildings, grounds, vehicles, and other property, under such conditions as it deems will not impair the efficiency of the schools and are, therefore, proper. The division superintendent shall report to the school board at the end of each month his actions under this section. Permitted uses of buildings may include, but are not limited to, use as voting places in any primary, regular or special election and operation of a local or regional library pursuant to an agreement between the school board and a library board created as provided in § 42.1-35. B. Any school board may locate and operate retail fee-based electric vehicle charging stations on school property, provided that the use of each such station during the school day is restricted to school board employees, students, and authorized visitors and each such station is accompanied by appropriate signage that provides reasonable notice of such restriction. Code 1950, §§ 22-164, 22-164.1; 1973, c. 245; 1980, c. 559; 2000, c. 754; 2017, c. 239.

Va. Code § 22.1-141.1

§ 22.1-141.1. Standards for buildings and facilities.It is the intent of the General Assembly that new public school buildings and facilities and improvements and renovations to existing public school buildings and facilities be designed, constructed, maintained, and operated to generate more electricity than consumed and that such energy-positive building design be based on industry standards (i) contained in the design guide of the American Society of Heating, Refrigeration and Air-Conditioning Engineers (ASHRAE), entitled "Achieving Zero Energy-Advanced Energy Design Guide for K-12 School Buildings," dated February 1, 2018, and any subsequent updates or (ii) similar industry standards. 2019, cc. 818, 819.

Va. Code § 22.1-141.2

§ 22.1-141.2. Authority to modernize public school lease agreements.A. Prior to undertaking the design, construction, maintenance, and operation of a new public school building or facility or the improvement or renovation of an existing school building or facility, a local school board may evaluate whether entering into a lease with a private entity will assist the school board in meeting the standards set forth in § 22.1-141.1. B. In order to meet the design, construction, maintenance, and operation standards set forth in § 22.1-141.1, a school board may enter into a lease with a private entity that may include the following: (i) design of the building and facilities; (ii) construction of the building and facilities; (iii) financing of the project as defined in § 15.2-1815; (iv) operation of the heating, cooling, and renewable energy systems, including interconnect agreements with the regulated electric utility, maintenance of all such systems, responding to comfort complaints, and any other operational or maintenance-related issues during the lease term; and (v) such other terms as mutually agreed upon by the local school board and the private entity. Such lease may (a) be for the real property primarily used by the local school board and owned by the private entity, (b) be a capital or operating lease, (c) be exempt from real property taxation pursuant to subdivision (a)(1) of Article X, Section 6 of the Constitution of Virginia, and (d) contain a covenant that the rent shall not be reduced from the rent stated in the lease. Such lease shall not exceed 35 years in duration. The Virginia Public Procurement Act (§ 2.2-4300 et seq.) or the Public-Private Education Facilities and Infrastructure Act (§ 56-575.1 et seq.) shall apply to any lease agreement solicited by a local school board pursuant to this section. 2019, cc. 818, 819. Article 4. Indoor Air Quality; Inspection and Evaluation.

Va. Code § 22.1-271.9

§ 22.1-271.9. Cardiac emergency response or emergency action plans required.A. As used in this section: "Athletic emergency action plan" or "athletic EAP" means an emergency action plan that establishes and details emergency management and response preparations, strategies, and guidelines specifically for emergencies that occur in an athletic setting, including sports-related health emergencies and physical injuries that occur in the course of participating in athletic practices, games, competition, or other events. "Automated External Defibrillator" or "AED" means a lightweight, portable device that delivers an electric shock through the chest to the heart for the purpose of potentially stopping an irregular heartbeat or arrhythmia and allowing a normal heartbeat rhythm to resume following sudden cardiac arrest. "Cardiac emergency response plan" or "CERP" means a written document that establishes the specific steps to reduce death from sudden cardiac arrest that occurs on school grounds. "CPR" means cardiopulmonary resuscitation. "High-need school" means any public elementary or secondary school (i) at which at least 50 percent of children are eligible to receive free and reduced-price meals; (ii) that participates in the federal Community Eligibility Provision or any federal, state, or local universal free meals program; or (iii) that is classified as a Title I school pursuant to Title I, Part A of the federal Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965, P.L. 89-10, as amended. "Sudden cardiac arrest" means a condition whereby the heart unexpectedly malfunctions and stops beating and that is likely to lead to death if not treated within minutes. B. Each public elementary or secondary school shall develop and implement a cardiac emergency response plan or an athletic emergency action plan that addresses the appropriate use of school personnel to respond to incidents involving an individual who is experiencing sudden cardiac arrest or a similar life-threatening emergency (i) while on school grounds and (ii) in the event that such school has an athletic department or organized athletic program, while attending or participating in an athletic practice or event sponsored by such school or conducted as a part of such school's athletic department or organized athletic program. Any public elementary or secondary school that has an athletic department or organized athletic program shall at all times have either a CERP or athletic EAP in place. Each such CERP or athletic EAP shall integrate nationally recognized evidence-based core elements and nationally recognized evidence-based guidelines and shall integrate provisions and guidelines, consistent with relevant law, relating to: 1. Establishing a cardiac emergency response team; 2. Activating such team in response to a sudden cardiac event; 3. Integrating the CERP or athletic EAP into the local community's emergency medical services response protocols in accordance with subsection C; 4. Practicing at least annually responses to sudden cardiac arrest on school grounds through the use of drills; 5. Placing and routinely maintaining AEDs in the school building in accordance with nationally recognized evidence-based guidelines; 6. Placing clearly marked and easily accessible AEDs at each venue where school-sponsored athletic practices or competitions are held; 7. Determining, in accordance with guidelines set by the American Heart Association or other organization focused on emergency cardiovascular care, the placement of any AED in a school building or venue pursuant to subdivisions 5 and 6 and ensuring that any such AED is identified with appropriate signage and is on-site or made available in an unlocked location on school property in a manner such that the AED can be accessed and placed on an individual experiencing sudden cardiac arrest or a similar life-threatening emergency within three minutes; 8. Ensuring training in first aid, CPR, and the use of AEDs by appropriate staff, including school nurses, athletic trainers, and coaches, that follows evidence-based guidelines set forth by the American Heart Association or nationally recognized guidelines focused on emergency cardiovascular care; 9. Disseminating the CERP or athletic EAP to appropriate individuals throughout the school community; and 10. Reviewing, evaluating, and, as necessary, amending the CERP or athletic EAP on an ongoing and annual basis. C. Public elementary or secondary school officials shall work directly with local emergency service providers to integrate the CERP or athletic EAP into the local community's emergency medical services response protocols. 2025, cc. 372, 382.

Va. Code § 22.1-275

§ 22.1-275. Protective eye devices.Every student and teacher in any school or institution of higher education shall be required to wear industrial quality eye protective devices while participating in any of the following courses or laboratories: 1. Career and technical education shops or laboratories involving experience with: a. Hot molten metals, b. Milling, sawing, turning, shaping, cutting, grinding, or stamping of any solid materials, c. Heat treatment, tempering, or kiln firing of any metal or other materials, d. Gas or electric arc welding, e. Repair of any vehicle, or f. Caustic or explosive materials; 2. Chemical or combined chemical-physical laboratories involving caustic or explosive chemicals or hot liquids or solids. The governing board or authority of any public or private school or the governing board of each institution of higher education shall furnish the eye protective devices prescribed in this section free of charge or at cost to the students and teachers of the school participating in such courses or laboratories; however, such devices may be furnished by parents or guardians of such students. Eye protective devices shall be furnished to all visitors to such courses. "Industrial quality eye protective devices," as used in this section, means devices providing side protection and meeting the standards of the American Standards Association Safety Code for Head, Eye, and Respiratory Protection, Z2.1-1959, promulgated by the American Standards Association, Inc. Code 1950, § 22-10.2; 1966, c. 69; 1980, c. 559; 2001, c. 483.

Va. Code § 23.1-1301

§ 23.1-1301. Governing boards; powers.A. The board of visitors of each baccalaureate public institution of higher education or its designee may: 1. Make regulations and policies concerning the institution; 2. Manage the funds of the institution and approve an annual budget; 3. Appoint the chief executive officer of the institution; 4. Appoint professors and fix their salaries; and 5. Fix the rates charged to students for tuition, mandatory fees, and other necessary charges. B. The governing board of each public institution of higher education or its designee may: 1. In addition to the powers set forth in Restructured Higher Education Financial and Administrative Operations Act (§ 23.1-1000 et seq.), lease or sell and convey its interest in any real property that it has acquired by purchase, will, or deed of gift, subject to the prior approval of the Governor and any terms and conditions of the will or deed of gift, if applicable. The proceeds shall be held, used, and administered in the same manner as all other gifts and bequests; 2. Grant easements for roads, streets, sewers, waterlines, electric and other utility lines, or other purposes on any property owned by the institution; 3. Adopt regulations or institution policies for parking and traffic on property owned, leased, maintained, or controlled by the institution; 4. Adopt regulations or institution policies for the employment and dismissal of professors, teachers, instructors, and other employees; 5. Adopt regulations or institution policies for the acceptance and assistance of students in addition to the regulations or institution policies required pursuant to § 23.1-1303; 6. Adopt regulations or institution policies for the conduct of students in attendance and for the rescission or restriction of financial aid, suspension, and dismissal of students who fail or refuse to abide by such regulations or policies; 7. Establish programs, in cooperation with the Council and the Office of the Attorney General, to promote (i) student compliance with state laws on the use of alcoholic beverages and (ii) the awareness and prevention of sexual crimes committed upon students; 8. Establish guidelines for the initiation or induction of students into any social fraternity or sorority in accordance with the prohibition against hazing as defined in § 18.2-56; 9. Assign any interest it possesses in intellectual property or in materials in which the institution claims an interest, provided such assignment is in accordance with the terms of the institution's intellectual property policies adopted pursuant to § 23.1-1303. The Governor's prior written approval is required for transfers of such property (i) developed wholly or predominantly through the use of state general funds, exclusive of capital assets and (ii)(a) developed by an employee of the institution acting within the scope of his assigned duties or (b) for which such transfer is made to an entity other than (1) the Innovation and Entrepreneurship Investment Authority, (2) an entity whose purpose is to manage intellectual properties on behalf of nonprofit organizations, colleges, and universities, or (3) an entity whose purpose is to benefit the respective institutions. The Governor may attach conditions to these transfers as he deems necessary. In the event the Governor does not approve such transfer, the materials shall remain the property of the respective institutions and may be used and developed in any manner permitted by law; 10. Conduct closed meetings pursuant to §§ 2.2-3711 and 2.2-3712 and conduct business through electronic communication means pursuant to § 2.2-3708.3; and 11. Adopt a resolution to require the governing body of a locality that is contiguous to the institution to enforce state statutes and local ordinances with respect to offenses occurring on the property of the institution. Upon receipt of such resolution, the governing body of such locality shall enforce statutes and local ordinances with respect to offenses occurring on the property of the institution. Code 1919, §§ 811, 837, 842, 864, 865, 935, 936, 951, §§ 23-76, 23-99, 23-103, 23-122, 23-124, 23-128, 23-167; 1922, p. 319; 1924, pp. 143, 144, 164, 208; 1930, p. 768; 1936, p. 522, § 23-77.1; 1938, pp. 442, 444; Michie Code 1942, § 938a; 1944, p. 402; 1945, p. 52; 1954, cc. 92, 185, 296 §§ 23-4.1, 23-77.2; 1956, cc. 12, 689; 1960, c. 180, §§ 23-44, 23-45; 1962, c. 69, §§ 23-49.17, 23-49.18; 1964, cc. 50, 70, 159, §§ 23-155.7, 23-155.8, 23-164.6, 23-164.7, 23-165.6, 23-165.7, 23-188, 23-189; 1966, cc. 18, 313, § 23-49.21; 1968, cc. 93, 532, 545, 993, §§ 23-50.8, 23-50.10, 23-50.11, 23-50.13, 23-174.6; 1970, cc. 98, 166; 1972, cc. 550, 861, §§ 23-91.29, 23-91.30, 23-91.33, 23-91.40, 23-91.41, 23-91.44; 1974, c. 317; 1976, c. 21, §§ 23-49.28, 23-49.29, 23-49.32; 1977, cc. 296, 319; 1978, c. 376; 1979, cc. 136, 145, 146, 147; 1980, c. 100; 1986, c. 358, § 23-4.4; 1990, c. 106; 1992, c. 103; 1996, cc. 905, 1046; 2002, cc. 158, 257, 368; 2003, c. 708; 2004, cc. 176, 195; 2006, cc. 77, 899; 2009, cc. 325, 810; 2013, c. 577, § 23-2.01; 2015, cc. 579, 580; 2016, c. 588; 2018, c. 55; 2022, c. 597.

Va. Code § 23.1-2607

§ 23.1-2607. Purchase of electric power and energy.A. For purposes of this section: "Other party" means any other entity, including any (i) municipality, public institution of higher education, or political subdivision, public authority, agency, or instrumentality of the Commonwealth, another state, or the United States or (ii) partnership, limited liability company, nonprofit corporation, electric cooperative, or investor-owned utility, whether created, incorporated, or otherwise organized and existing under the laws of the Commonwealth, another state, or the United States. "Project" means any (i) system or facilities for the generation, transmission, transformation, or supply of electrical power and energy by any means whatsoever, including fuel, fuel transportation, and fuel supply resources; (ii) electric generating unit situated at a particular site in the continental United States; (iii) interest in such system, facilities, or unit, whether an undivided interest as a tenant in common or otherwise; or (iv) right to the output, capacity, or services of such system, facilities, or unit. B. The University may contract with any other party to buy power and energy to meet its present or future requirements. Any such contract may provide that (i) the source of such power and energy is limited to a specified project; (ii) replacement power and energy shall be provided; or (iii) the University shall be obligated to make payments required by the contract whether the project is completed, operable, or operating and notwithstanding the suspension, interruption, interference, reduction, or curtailment of the output of a project or the amount of power and energy contracted for; (iv) payments required by the contract (a) are not subject to any reduction, whether by offset or otherwise, (b) are not conditioned upon the performance or nonperformance of any other party, (c) shall be made solely from the revenues derived by the University from the ownership and operation of the electric system of the University, (d) may be secured by a pledge of and lien upon the electric system of the University, and (e) shall constitute an operating expense of the electric system of the University; (v) in the event of default by the University or any other party to the contract in the performance of its obligations for any project, the University or any other party to the contract for such project shall succeed to the rights and interests and assume the obligations of the defaulting party, either pro rata or as may be otherwise agreed upon in the contract; or (vi) no other party shall be obligated to provide power and energy in the event that (a) the project is inoperable, (b) the output of the project is subject to suspension, interference, reduction, or curtailment, or (c) a force majeure occurs. C. Notwithstanding any other charter or provision of law to the contrary, no such contract, with respect to the sale or purchase of capacity, output, power, or energy from a project, shall exceed 50 years from the date that the project is estimated to be placed in normal continuous operation. D. The execution and effectiveness of any such contract are not subject to any authorizations and approvals by the Commonwealth or any agency, commission, instrumentality, or political subdivision of the Commonwealth except as specifically required by law. E. No obligation under any such contract shall constitute a legal or equitable pledge, charge, lien, or encumbrance upon any property of the University or upon any of its income, receipts, or revenues, except the revenues of its electric system, and the faith and credit of the University shall not be pledged for the payment of any obligation under any such contract. F. The University shall fix, charge, and collect rents, rates, fees, and charges for electric power and energy and other services, facilities, and commodities sold, furnished, or supplied through its electric system sufficient to provide revenues adequate to meet its obligations under any such contract and to pay any and all other amounts payable from or constituting a charge and lien upon such revenues, including amounts sufficient to pay the principal of and interest on bonds of the University issued for purposes relating to its electric system. Any pledge made by the University pursuant to this subsection is governed by the laws of the Commonwealth. 2007, cc. 612, 670, § 23-155.05; 2016, c. 588; 2017, c. 314. Article 2. Virginia Cooperative Extension Service and Agricultural Experiment Station Division; Hampton Roads and Eastern Shore Agricultural Research and Extension Centers.

Va. Code § 24.2-625.2

§ 24.2-625.2. Wireless communications at polling places.There shall be no wireless communications on election day, while the polls are open, between or among voting machines within the polling place or between any voting machine within the polling place and any equipment outside the polling place. For purposes of this section, the term wireless communication shall mean the ability to transfer information via electromagnetic waves without the use of electrical conductors. The provisions of this section shall not apply to voting machines purchased by any locality before July 1, 2007. The provisions of this section shall not be construed to prohibit the operation of electronic pollbook devices at polling places on election day. 2007, cc. 939, 943; 2008, cc. 87, 393.

Va. Code § 25.1-102

§ 25.1-102. Condemnation of property of corporations possessing power of eminent domain.A. Except as provided in §§ 15.2-1906 and 15.2-2146, no (i) corporation or (ii) electric authority created under the provisions of Chapter 54 (§ 15.2-5400 et seq.) of Title 15.2 shall file a petition to take by condemnation proceedings any property belonging to any other corporation possessing the power of eminent domain, unless, after notice to all parties in interest and an opportunity for a hearing, the State Corporation Commission shall certify that a public necessity or that an essential public convenience shall so require, and shall give its permission thereto; and in no event shall one corporation take by condemnation proceedings any property owned by and essential to the purposes of another corporation possessing the power of eminent domain. Notwithstanding anything herein to the contrary, a locality exercising the powers granted by § 15.2-2109 or § 15.2-2115 shall be subject to the provisions of this section to the same extent as are corporations, unless otherwise provided in § 15.2-1906 or § 15.2-2146. B. If the State Corporation Commission gives its permission to a condemnation, the Commission shall establish for use in any condemnation proceeding whether any payment for stranded investment is appropriate and, if so, the amount of such payment and any conditions thereof. C. Any condemnor that is authorized to use the procedure set out in Chapter 3 (§ 25.1-300 et seq.) of this title by a provision that incorporates such procedure by reference shall, in using such procedure, be subject to the provisions of this section to the same extent as are corporations, unless the provision specifically provides that this section shall not apply to such condemnor's use of such procedure. Code 1919, § 3832; 1996, c. 619, § 25-233; 1999, cc. 484, 531; 2003, c. 940.

Va. Code § 25.1-400

§ 25.1-400. Definitions.As used in this chapter, unless the context requires a different meaning: "Business" means any lawful activity, except a farm operation, conducted primarily: 1. For the purchase, sale, lease and rental of personal and of real property, and for the manufacture, processing, or marketing of products, commodities, or any other personal property; 2. For the sale of services to the public; 3. By a nonprofit organization; or 4. Solely for the purposes of § 25.1-406, for assisting in the purchase, sale, resale, manufacture, processing, or marketing of products, commodities, personal property, or services by the erection and maintenance of an outdoor advertising display or displays, whether or not such display or displays are located on the premises on which any of the above activities are conducted. "Comparable replacement dwelling" means any dwelling that is (i) decent, safe and sanitary; (ii) adequate in size to accommodate the occupants; (iii) within the financial means of the displaced person; (iv) functionally equivalent; (v) in an area not subject to unreasonable adverse environmental conditions; and (vi) in a location generally not less desirable than the location of the displaced person's dwelling with respect to public utilities, facilities, services and the displaced person's place of employment. "Decent, safe, and sanitary dwelling" means a dwelling that: 1. Is structurally sound, weather tight and in good repair; 2. Has a safe electrical wiring system adequate for lighting and appliances; 3. Contains a heating system capable of maintaining a healthful temperature; 4. Is adequate in size with respect to the number of rooms and area of living space needed to accommodate the displaced household; 5. Has a separate, well-lighted and ventilated bathroom that provides privacy to the user and contains sink, toilet, and bathing facilities (shower or bath, or both), all operational and connected to a functional water and sewer disposal system; 6. Provides unobstructed egress to safe open space at ground level. If the unit is above the first floor and served by a common corridor, there must be two means of egress; and 7. Is free of barriers to egress, ingress, and use by a displaced person with a disability. "Displaced person" means: 1. Any person who moves from real property, or moves his personal property from real property (i) as a direct result of a written notice of intent to acquire or the acquisition of such real property, in whole or in part, for any program or project undertaken by a state agency or (ii) on which such person is a residential tenant or conducts a small business, a farm operation or a business described in clause 4 of the definition of "business" in this section as a direct result of rehabilitation, demolition, or other displacing activity as the state agency may prescribe, under a program or project undertaken by the state agency in any case in which the state agency determines that such displacement is permanent; 2. Solely for the purposes of §§ 25.1-406, 25.1-407, and 25.1-411, any person who moves from real property, or moves his personal property from real property: (i) as a direct result of a written notice of intent to acquire or the acquisition of other real property, in whole or in part, on which such person conducts a business or farm operation, for a program or project undertaken by a state agency or (ii) as a direct result of rehabilitation, demolition, or other displacing activity as the state agency may prescribe, of other real property on which such person conducts a business or farm operation, under a program or project undertaken by the state agency in any case in which the state agency determines that such displacement is permanent; and 3. Any person who moves or discontinues his business or moves other personal property, or moves from his dwelling, as the direct result of (i) federally assisted activities for the enforcement of a building code or other similar code or (ii) a program of rehabilitation or demolition of buildings conducted pursuant to a federally assisted governmental program. The term "displaced person" does not include (i) a person who has been determined, according to criteria established by the state agency, to be either in unlawful occupancy of the displacement dwelling or to have occupied such dwelling for the purpose of obtaining assistance under this chapter or (ii) in any case where the state agency acquires property for a program or project, any person, other than a person who was an occupant of the property at the time it was acquired, who occupies such property on a rental basis for a short term or a period subject to termination when the property is needed for the program or project. "Dwelling" means the place of permanent or customary and usual residence of a person, according to local custom or law, including a single-family house, a single family unit in a two-family, multi-family, or multi-purpose property; a unit of a condominium or cooperative housing project; a nonhousekeeping unit; a mobile home; or any other residential unit. "Farm operation" means any activity conducted solely or primarily for the production of one or more agricultural products or commodities, including timber, for sale or home use, and customarily producing such products or commodities in sufficient quantity to be capable of contributing materially to the operator's support. "Mortgage" means such classes of liens as are commonly given to secure advances on, or the unpaid purchase price of, real property, together with the credit instruments, if any, secured thereby. "Nonprofit organization" means an organization that is exempt from paying federal income taxes under § 501 of the Internal Revenue Code (26 U.S.C. § 501). "Person" means any (i) individual or (ii) partnership, corporation, limited liability company, association, or other business entity. "Uneconomic remnant" means a parcel of real property in which the owner is left with an interest after the partial acquisition of the owner's property and which the state agency has determined has little or no value or utility to the owner. Code 1950, §§ 33-75.02, 33.1-132.2; 1970, c. 40, § 25-238; 1972, c. 738; 1989, c. 714; 2000, c. 851; 2002, c. 878; 2003, c. 940; 2011, cc. 117, 190; 2023, cc. 148, 149.

Va. Code § 25.1-413

§ 25.1-413. Payments to certain persons displaced as the result of certain code enforcement activities.Notwithstanding any other provision of this article, the governing body of a locality shall be authorized to make payments to any displaced person who is displaced by nonfederally assisted housing, plumbing, building, electrical, elevator, fire, food and health and sanitation code enforcement activities, in its discretion either (i) in amounts not exceeding the amounts authorized by the provisions of this chapter or (ii) in such lesser amounts as it may determine. Localities may adopt policies and procedures for payments to be made to persons displaced by such nonfederally assisted programs. 1972, c. 738, § 25-245; 1973, c. 426; 2003, c. 940.

Va. Code § 27-23.11

§ 27-23.11. Firefighter electric vehicles fire training.All firefighters, including volunteer firefighters as defined in § 27-42, shall complete a training program developed by the Executive Director of the Department of Fire Programs pursuant to § 9.1-201 on the risks of fires in electric vehicles and how to safely and effectively manage such fires. 2023, c. 87. Article 2. In Counties Generally [Repealed]. §§ 27-24 through 27-29.1. Repealed.Repealed by Acts 1970, c. 187. Chapter 3. Local Fire Marshals.

Va. Code § 27-95

§ 27-95. Definitions.As used in this chapter, unless the context or subject matter requires otherwise, the following words or terms shall have the meaning herein ascribed to them: "Board" means the Board of Housing and Community Development. "Code provisions" means the provisions of the Fire Prevention Code as adopted and promulgated by the Board, and the amendments thereof as adopted and promulgated from time to time by such Board. "Counterfeit lighter" means any lighter designed in a way that infringes on the intellectual property rights of any citizen of the United States or any entity that is protected by any federal or state intellectual property law. "Enforcement agency" means the agency or agencies of any local governing body or the State Fire Marshal charged with the administration or enforcement of the Fire Prevention Code. "Fire Prevention Code" or "Code" means the Statewide Fire Prevention Code. "Fire prevention regulation" means any law, rule, resolution, regulation, ordinance or code, general or special, or compilation thereof to safeguard life and property from the hazards of fire or explosion arising from the improper maintenance of life safety and fire prevention and protection materials, devices, systems and structures, and the unsafe storage, handling and use of substances, materials and devices, including explosives and blasting agents, wherever located, heretofore or hereafter enacted or adopted by the Commonwealth or any county or municipality, including departments, boards, bureaus, commissions or other agencies. "Fire Services Board" means the Virginia Fire Services Board as provided for in § 9.1-202. "Fireworks" means any firecracker, torpedo, skyrocket, or other substance or object, of whatever form or construction, that contains any explosive or inflammable compound or substance, and is intended, or commonly known as fireworks, and which explodes, rises into the air or travels laterally, or fires projectiles into the air. "Fireworks operator" or "pyrotechnician" means any person engaged in the design, setup, and firing of any fireworks other than permissible fireworks either inside a building or structure or outdoors. "Inspection warrant" means an order in writing, made in the name of the Commonwealth, signed by any judge or magistrate whose territorial jurisdiction encompasses the building, structure or premises to be inspected or entered, and directed to a state or local official, commanding him to enter and to conduct any inspection, examination, testing or collection of samples for testing required or authorized by the Virginia Statewide Fire Prevention Code. "Lighter" means any electrical or mechanical device that operates using any type of fuel, including butane or another liquid fuel, and is typically used to light a cigarette, cigar, or pipe. "Local government" means the governing body of any city, county or town in this Commonwealth. "Permissible fireworks" means any fountains that do not emit sparks or other burning effects to a distance greater than five meters (16.4 feet); wheels that do not emit a flame radius greater than one meter (39 inches); crackling devices and flashers or strobes that do not emit sparks or other burning effects to a distance greater than two meters (78.74 inches); and sparkling devices or other fireworks devices that (i) do not explode or produce a report, (ii) do not travel horizontally or vertically under their own power, (iii) do not emit or function as a projectile, (iv) do not produce a continuous flame longer than 20 inches, (v) are not capable of being reloaded, and (vi) if designed to be ignited by a fuse, have a fuse that is protected to resist side ignition and a burning time of not less than four seconds and not more than eight seconds. "State Fire Marshal" means the State Fire Marshal as provided for by § 9.1-206. "Unsafe lighter" means (i) a disposable or refillable lighter used for cigarettes, cigars, or pipes that does not comply with ASTM International standard F400-20, as amended from time to time, or (ii) a lighter used for utilities, grills, or fireplaces or a lighting rod or gas match that does not comply with ASTM International standard F2201-20, as amended from time to time. 1986, c. 429; 1988, cc. 340, 549; 1989, c. 258; 2002, c. 856; 2010, cc. 587, 643; 2019, c. 720; 2025, c. 97.

Va. Code § 28.2-1208

§ 28.2-1208. Granting easements in, permitting the use of, or leasing the beds of certain waters.A. The Commission may, with the approval of the Attorney General and the Governor, grant easements over or under or lease the beds of the waters of the Commonwealth outside of the Baylor Survey. Every easement or lease executed pursuant to this section shall be for a period not to exceed five years, except in the case of offshore renewable energy leases described in clause (ii), in which case the period shall not exceed 30 years, and shall specify the rent and such other terms deemed expedient and proper. Such easements and leases may include the right to renew the same for an additional period not to exceed five years. Any lease that authorizes grantees or lessees to (i) prospect for and take from the bottoms covered thereby specified minerals and mineral substances or (ii) generate electrical energy from wave or tidal action, currents, offshore winds, or thermal or salinity gradients, and transmit energy from such sources to shore shall require a royalty. Except for offshore renewable energy leases, purchase payment for any easement granted to a public service corporation, certificated telephone company, interstate natural gas company, or provider of cable television or other multichannel video programming service shall be $100 and shall be for a period of 40 years. However, no easement or lease shall in any way affect or interfere with the rights vouchsafed to the people of the Commonwealth concerning fishing, fowling, and the catching and taking of oysters and other shellfish in and from the leased bottoms or the waters above. B. All easements granted and leases made pursuant to this section shall be executed for, and in the name and on behalf of, the Commonwealth by the Attorney General and shall be countersigned by the Governor. C. All mineral royalties collected from such easements or leases on and after July 1, 2000, shall be paid into the state treasury to the credit of the Marine Habitat and Waterways Improvement Fund. All royalties collected as a result of the generation or transmission of electrical or compressed air energy from offshore renewable sources, including wave or tidal action, currents, offshore winds, and thermal or salinity gradients, shall be paid into the state treasury and appropriated to the Fisheries Innovation for Sustainable Harvest Fund established pursuant to § 28.2-208.3. D. Prior to December 1 of each year, the Commissioner and the Attorney General shall make reports to the General Assembly on all easements and leases executed pursuant to this section during the preceding 12 months. E. The Commission shall, in cooperation with the Division of Geology and Mineral Resources of the Department of Energy and with the assistance of affected state agencies, departments, and institutions, including the Virginia Coastal Energy Research Consortium, maintain a State Subaqueous Minerals and Coastal Energy Management Plan that shall supplement the State Minerals Management Plan set forth in § 2.2-1157 and the Virginia Energy Plan (§ 45.2-1710 et seq.). The State Subaqueous Minerals and Coastal Energy Management Plan shall include provisions for (i) the holding of public hearings, (ii) public advertising for competitive bids or proposals for mineral and renewable energy leasing and extraction activities, (iii) preparation of environmental impact reports to be reviewed by the appropriate agency of the Commonwealth, and (iv) review and approval of leases by the Attorney General and the Governor as required by subsection A. The environmental impact reports shall address, but not be limited to: 1. The environmental impact of the proposed activity; 2. Any adverse environmental effects that cannot be avoided if the proposed activity is undertaken; 3. Measures proposed to minimize the impact of the proposed activity; 4. Any alternative to the proposed activity; and 5. Any irreversible environmental changes which would be involved in the proposed activity. For the purposes of subdivision 4, the report shall contain all alternatives considered and the reasons why the alternatives were rejected. If a report does not set forth alternatives, it shall state why alternatives were not considered. F. Neither the Commission nor the Department of Energy shall grant any lease, easement, or permit allowing on the beds of any of the coastal waters of the Commonwealth any infrastructure for conveying to shore oil or gas produced from an offshore oil or gas lease in the portion of the Atlantic Ocean identified as the Outer Continental Shelf (OCS) Planning Area by the U.S. Bureau of Ocean Energy Management. For purposes of this section, the term "infrastructure" includes pipelines, gathering systems, processing facilities, and storage facilities. The provisions of this subsection shall not apply to any infrastructure in existence as of July 1, 2020. Code 1950, § 62-3; 1958, c. 290; 1962, c. 637; 1968, c. 659, § 62.1-4; 1986, c. 488; 1992, c. 836; 1993, c. 644; 2000, c. 1056; 2004, cc. 899, 1018; 2008, c. 369; 2009, c. 766; 2020, cc. 451, 452; 2021, Sp. Sess. I, c. 532; 2024, cc. 198, 246.

Va. Code § 29.1-733.2

§ 29.1-733.2. Definitions.The definitions in this section do not apply to any Virginia or federal law governing licensing, numbering, or registration if the same term is used in that law. As used in this article, unless the context requires a different meaning: "Abandoned watercraft" means a watercraft that is left unattended on private property for more than 10 days without the consent of the property's owner, regardless of whether it was brought onto the private property with the consent of the owner or person in control of the private property. "Agreement" means the same as that term is defined in subdivision (b)(3) of § 8.1A-201. "Barge" means a watercraft that is not self-propelled or fitted for propulsion by sail, paddle, oar, or similar device. "Builder's certificate" means a certificate of the facts of the build of a vessel described in 46 C.F.R. § 67.99, as amended. "Buyer" means a person that buys or contracts to buy a watercraft. "Buyer in ordinary course of business" means the same as that term is defined in subdivision (b)(9) of § 8.1A-201. "Cancel," with respect to a certificate of title, means to make the certificate ineffective. "Certificate of origin" means a record created by a manufacturer or importer as the manufacturer's or importer's proof of identity of a watercraft. The term includes a manufacturer's certificate or statement of origin and an importer's certificate or statement of origin. The term does not include a builder's certificate. "Certificate of title" means a record, created by the Department under this article or by a governmental agency of another jurisdiction under the law of that jurisdiction that is designated as a certificate of title by the Department or agency and is evidence of ownership of a watercraft. "Conspicuous" means the same as that term is defined in subdivision (b)(10) of § 8.1A-201. "Consumer goods" means the same as that term is defined in subdivision (a)(23) of § 8.9A-102. "Dealer" means any watercraft dealer as defined in § 29.1-801. "Debtor" means the same as that term is defined in subdivision (a)(28) of § 8.9A-102. "Documented vessel" means a watercraft covered by a certificate of documentation issued pursuant to 46 U.S.C. § 12105, as amended. The term does not include a foreign-documented vessel. "Electronic" means relating to technology having electrical, digital, magnetic, wireless, optical, electromagnetic, or similar capabilities. "Electronic certificate of title" means a certificate of title consisting of information that is stored solely in an electronic medium and is retrievable in perceivable form. "Foreign-documented vessel" means a watercraft whose ownership is recorded in a registry maintained by a country other than the United States that identifies each person that has an ownership interest in a watercraft and includes a unique alphanumeric designation for the watercraft. "Good faith" means honesty in fact and the observance of reasonable commercial standards of fair dealing. "Hull damaged" means compromised with respect to the integrity of a watercraft's hull by a collision, allision, lightning strike, fire, explosion, running aground, or similar occurrence, or the sinking of a watercraft in a manner that creates a significant risk to the integrity of the watercraft's hull. "Hull identification number" means the alphanumeric designation assigned to a watercraft pursuant to 33 C.F.R. Part 181, as amended. "Knowledge" means the same as that term is defined in § 8.1A-202. "Lease" means the same as that term is defined in subdivision (1)(j) of § 8.2A-103. "Lessor" means the same as that term is defined in subdivision (1)(p) of § 8.2A-103. "Lien creditor," with respect to a watercraft, means: 1. A creditor that has acquired a lien on the watercraft by attachment, levy, or the like; 2. An assignee for benefit of creditors from the time of assignment; 3. A trustee in bankruptcy from the date of the filing of the petition; or 4. A receiver in equity from the time of appointment. "Notice" means the same as that term is defined in § 8.1A-202. "Owner" means a person that has legal title to a watercraft. "Owner of record" means the owner indicated in the files of the Department or, if the files indicate more than one owner, the one first indicated. "Person" means an individual, corporation, business trust, estate, trust, statutory trust, partnership, limited liability company, association, joint venture, public corporation, government or governmental subdivision, agency or instrumentality, or any other legal or commercial entity. "Purchase" means to take by sale, lease, mortgage, pledge, consensual lien, security interest, gift, or any other voluntary transaction that creates an interest in a watercraft. "Purchaser" means a person that takes by purchase. "Record" means information that is inscribed on a tangible medium or that is stored in an electronic or other medium and is retrievable in perceivable form. "Registration number" means the alphanumeric designation for a vessel issued pursuant to 46 U.S.C. § 12301, as amended. "Representative" means the same as that term is defined in subdivision (b)(33) of § 8.1A-201. "Sale" means the same as that term is defined in § 8.2-106. "Secured party," with respect to a watercraft, means a person: 1. In whose favor a security interest is created or provided for under a security agreement, whether or not any obligation to be secured is outstanding; 2. That is a consignor under Title 8.9A; or 3. That holds a security interest arising under § 8.2-401 or 8.2-505, subsection (3) of § 8.2-711, or subsection (5) of § 8.2A-508. "Secured party of record" means the secured party whose name is indicated as the name of the secured party in the files of the Department or, if the files indicate more than one secured party, the one first indicated. "Security agreement" means the same as that term is defined in subdivision (a)(74) of § 8.9A-102. "Security interest" means an interest in a watercraft that secures payment or performance of an obligation if the interest is created by contract or arises under § 8.2-401 or 8.2-505, subsection (3) of § 8.2-711, or subsection (5) of § 8.2A-508. The term includes any interest of a consignor in a watercraft in a transaction that is subject to Title 8.9A. The term does not include the special property interest of a buyer of a watercraft on identification of that watercraft to a contract for sale under § 8.2-401, but a buyer also may acquire a security interest by complying with Title 8.9A. Except as otherwise provided in § 8.2-505, the right of a seller or lessor of a watercraft under Title 8.2 or Title 8.2A to retain or acquire possession of the watercraft is not a security interest, but a seller or lessor also may acquire a security interest by complying with Title 8.9A. The retention or reservation of title by a seller of a watercraft notwithstanding shipment or delivery to the buyer under § 8.2-401 is limited in effect to a reservation of a security interest. Whether a transaction in the form of a lease creates a security interest is determined by § 8.1A-304. "Seller" means the same as that term is defined in subdivision (1)(o) of § 8.2A-103. "Send" means the same as that term is defined in subdivision (b)(36) of § 8.1A-201. "Sign" means, with present intent to authenticate or adopt a record, to: 1. Make or adopt a tangible symbol; or 2. Attach to or logically associate with the record an electronic symbol, sound, or process. "State" means a state of the United States, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, the United States Virgin Islands, or any territory or insular possession subject to the jurisdiction of the United States. "State of principal use" means the state on whose waters a watercraft is or will be used, operated, navigated, or employed more than on the waters of any other state during a calendar year. "Title brand" means a designation of previous damage, use, or condition that shall be indicated on a certificate of title. "Transfer of ownership" means a voluntary or involuntary conveyance of an interest in a watercraft. "Value" means the same as that term is defined in § 8.1A-204. "Watercraft" means any vessel that is used or capable of being used as a means of transportation on water and is propelled by machinery, whether or not the machinery is the principal source of propulsion, except: 1. A seaplane; 2. An amphibious vehicle for which a certificate of title is issued pursuant to Chapter 6 (§ 46.2-600 et seq.) of Title 46.2 or a similar statute of another state; 3. A vessel that measures 18 feet or less in length along the centerline and is propelled by sail; 4. A vessel that operates only on a permanently fixed, manufactured course and whose movement is restricted to or guided by means of a mechanical device to which the vessel is attached or by which the vessel is controlled; 5. A stationary floating structure that: a. Does not have and is not designed to have a mode of propulsion of its own; b. Is dependent for utilities upon a continuous utility hookup to a source originating on shore; and c. Has a permanent, continuous hookup to a shoreside sewage system; 6. A vessel owned by the United States, a state, or a foreign government or a political subdivision of any of them; 7. A vessel used solely as a lifeboat on another vessel; or 8. A vessel that has a valid marine document issued by the United States Coast Guard. "Written certificate of title" means a certificate of title consisting of information inscribed on a tangible medium. 2013, c. 787; 2014, c. 371.

Va. Code § 3.2-6589.1

§ 3.2-6589.1. Certain training devices for elephants prohibited; attachment; civil penalty.A. It is unlawful for any person to (i) use electricity, martingales, or block and tackle, engage in physical punishment resulting in damage, scarring, or breaking of skin, or insert any instrument into any bodily orifice of an elephant to discipline an elephant; (ii) use a bullhook, ankus, baseball bat, axe handle, or other device designed to inflict fear or pain for the purpose of training or controlling the behavior of an elephant; or (iii) brandish, exhibit, or display any device described in clause (ii) in the presence of an elephant. B. A person who violates this section is subject to a civil penalty not to exceed $2,500 for the first offense and not to exceed $5,000 for subsequent violations. Each incident during which the violation is found to have existed shall constitute a separate offense. C. The Attorney General, an attorney for the Commonwealth, or the attorney for the locality may cause an action in equity to be brought in the name of the Commonwealth or of the locality, as applicable, to request an attachment for any devices described in subsection A against a person violating the provisions of this section. 2024, c. 333.

Va. Code § 30-197

§ 30-197. Duties; staff.A. It shall be the duty of such Commissioners to examine subjects on which uniformity is desirable, to ascertain the best means to effect uniformity in the laws of the states, and to represent the Commonwealth in conventions of like Commissioners appointed by other states to consider and draft uniform laws to be submitted for adoption by the several states, and to devise and recommend such other course of action as shall best accomplish the purpose of this chapter. B. The Commissioners shall, on or before July 1 of each year, make a detailed report to the General Assembly on their work and activities. Staff support shall be provided by the Division of Legislative Services. 2002, c. 491. Chapter 30. Advisory Council on Career and Technical Education [expired]. §§ 30-198 through 30-200.1. Expired.Expired. Chapter 31. Commission on Electric Utility Regulation.

Va. Code § 30-201

§ 30-201. (Expires July 1, 2029) Commission on Electric Utility Restructuring continued as Commission on Electric Utility Regulation; purpose.The Commission on Electric Utility Restructuring established pursuant to Chapter 885 of the Acts of Assembly of 2003, is continued, effective July 1, 2008, as the Commission on Electric Utility Regulation (the Commission) within the legislative branch of state government. The purpose of the Commission is to monitor the State Corporation Commission’s implementation of the Virginia Electric Utility Regulation Act (§ 56-576 et seq.). 2003, c. 885; 2008, c. 883; 2023, cc. 753, 793.

Va. Code § 30-202

§ 30-202. (Expires July 1, 2029) Membership; terms.The Commission shall have a total membership of 14 members that shall consist of 10 legislative members, three nonlegislative citizen members, and one ex officio member. Members shall be appointed as follows: four members of the Senate to be appointed by the Senate Committee on Rules that consist of three members from the majority party and one member from the minority party or an equal number from each in the event the chamber is evenly divided; six members of the House of Delegates to be appointed by the Speaker of the House of Delegates in accordance with the principles of proportional representation contained in the Rules of the House of Delegates; one nonlegislative citizen member with expertise in economic development and ratepayer advocacy to be appointed by the Senate Committee on Rules; one nonlegislative citizen member with expertise in energy affordability and ratepayer advocacy to be appointed by the Speaker of the House of Delegates; and one nonlegislative citizen member with expertise in public utility regulation and ratepayer advocacy to be appointed by the Governor. The Attorney General or his designee shall serve ex officio. Any such designee shall be an attorney employed within the Department of Law's Division of Consumer Counsel. Nonlegislative citizen members of the Commission shall be citizens of the Commonwealth. Each member of the Commission shall annually complete an orientation on electric utility regulation provided by the State Corporation Commission. Legislative members of the Commission and the ex officio member shall serve terms coincident with their terms of office. Nonlegislative citizen members shall be appointed for a term of two years. All members may be reappointed. Appointments to fill vacancies, other than by expiration of a term, shall be made for the unexpired terms. Vacancies shall be filled in the same manner as the original appointments. The Commission shall annually elect a chairman and vice-chairman from among its membership, who shall be members of the General Assembly. The chairman of the Commission shall be authorized to designate one or more members of the Commission to observe and participate in the discussions of any work group convened by the State Corporation Commission in furtherance of its duties under the Virginia Electric Utility Regulation Act (§ 56-576 et seq.) and this chapter. Members participating in such discussions shall be entitled to compensation and reimbursement provided in § 30-204, if approved by the Joint Rules Committee or its Budget Oversight Subcommittee. 2003, c. 885; 2004, c. 1000; 2008, c. 883; 2023, cc. 753, 793.

Va. Code § 30-205

§ 30-205. (Expires July 1, 2029) Powers and duties of the Commission.The Commission shall have the following powers and duties: 1. Monitor the work of the State Corporation Commission in implementing Chapter 23 (§ 56-576 et seq.) of Title 56. The Commission shall receive an annual report from the State Corporation Commission by November 1 regarding such implementation and shall receive such other reports as the Commission may be required to make, including reviews, analyses, and impact on consumers of electric utility regulation in other states; 2. Examine generation, transmission and distribution systems reliability concerns; 3. Establish one or more subcommittees, composed of its membership, persons with expertise in the matters under consideration by the Commission, or both, to meet at the direction of the chairman of the Commission, for any purpose within the scope of the duties prescribed to the Commission by this section, provided that such persons who are not members of the Commission shall serve without compensation but shall be entitled to be reimbursed from funds appropriated or otherwise available to the Commission for reasonable and necessary expenses incurred in the performance of their duties; 4. Monitor applications by the Commonwealth for grants and awards for energy projects from the federal government; 5. Consider legislation referred to it during any session of the General Assembly or other requests by members of the General Assembly; 6. Conduct studies and gather information and data in order to accomplish its purposes set forth in § 30-201 and in connection with the faithful execution of the laws of the Commonwealth; 7. Issue ratepayer impact statements pursuant to § 30-205.1; and 8. Report annually to the General Assembly and the Governor with such recommendations as may be appropriate for legislative and administrative consideration in order to maintain reliable service in the Commonwealth while preserving the Commonwealth's position as a low-cost electricity market. 2003, c. 885; 2006, c. 812; 2008, c. 883; 2023, cc. 753, 793.

Va. Code § 30-205.1

§ 30-205.1. (Expires July 1, 2029) Ratepayer impact statements for electric utility regulation.A. As used in this section: "Ratepayer" means a residential, commercial, or industrial customer who is billed for the consumption of electricity by an electric utility in the Commonwealth. "Ratepayer impact statement" means a statement prepared using data or other relevant information to estimate the potential impact on ratepayers' electric bills of proposed legislation related to electric utilities. B. Upon the request by the Chairman for the House Committee on Labor and Commerce or the Senate Committee on Commerce and Labor, the Commission shall prepare a ratepayer impact statement for any proposed legislation related to electric utility regulation specified by such Chairman. Each such Chairman may request up to five ratepayer impact statements in any given regular or special session of the General Assembly. Additionally, upon the request of any other member of the General Assembly, the Commission, at the Commission's discretion, may prepare a ratepayer impact statement for any proposed legislation related to electric utility regulation specified by such member. C. The Commission shall provide any such ratepayer impact statement to the requesting Chairman or member, the patron of the legislation, and the members of any committee considering the legislation. D. Upon request of the Commission, the State Corporation Commission, the Office of the Attorney General, and all agencies of the Commonwealth shall expeditiously provide the Commission with assistance in the preparation of any ratepayer impact statement including providing the Commission with any necessary data or other relevant information. E. The Commission shall ensure that any ratepayer impact statement provides a neutral and accurate analysis of the potential impact on ratepayers' electric bills of the proposed legislation. Any ratepayer impact statement shall include the methodology used by the Commission to prepare such ratepayer impact statement. 2023, cc. 753, 793.

Va. Code § 30-34.2

§ 30-34.2:2. Disposal of unclaimed firearms, other weapons, or other unclaimed personal property in possession of the Division of Capitol Police.Subject to the provisions of § 19.2-386.29, the Division of Capitol Police may destroy unclaimed firearms and other weapons, and may lawfully dispose of other unclaimed personal property, that have been in the possession of the Division for a period of more than 120 days. For the purposes of this section, "unclaimed firearms and other weapons" means any firearm or other weapon belonging to another that has been acquired by a law-enforcement officer pursuant to his duties, that is not needed in any criminal prosecution, that has not been claimed by its rightful owner, and that the State Treasurer has indicated will be declined if remitted under the Virginia Disposition of Unclaimed Property Act (§ 55.1-2500 et seq.), and "unclaimed personal property" means any personal property belonging to another that has been acquired by a law-enforcement officer pursuant to his duties, that is not needed in any criminal prosecution, that has not been claimed by its rightful owner, and that the State Treasurer has indicated will be declined if remitted under the Virginia Disposition of Unclaimed Property Act (§ 55.1-2500 et seq.). At the discretion of the chief of police or his designee, the Division of Capitol Police may destroy unclaimed firearms or other weapons by any means that renders the firearms or other weapons permanently inoperable and may lawfully dispose of other unclaimed personal property. Prior to the destruction of such unclaimed firearms or other weapons or disposal of such other unclaimed personal property, the chief of police or his designee shall (i) make reasonable attempts to notify by mail the rightful owner of the property and (ii) obtain from the attorney for the Commonwealth of the jurisdiction from which the unclaimed item came into the possession of the Division of Capitol Police in writing a statement advising that the item is not needed in any criminal prosecution. The Division may dispose of an unclaimed bicycle, electric personal assistive mobility device, electric power-assisted bicycle, or moped in accordance with the provisions of § 15.2-1720. In lieu of destroying any such unclaimed firearm, the chief of police or his designee may donate the firearm to the Department of Forensic Science, upon agreement of the Department. 2012, c. 209; 2015, c. 220; 2018, c. 581.

Va. Code § 32.1-111.1

§ 32.1-111.1. Definitions.As used in this article: "Advisory Board" means the State Emergency Medical Services Advisory Board. "Automated external defibrillator" means a medical device which combines a heart monitor and defibrillator and (i) has been approved by the United States Food and Drug Administration, (ii) is capable of recognizing the presence or absence of ventricular fibrillation or rapid ventricular tachycardia, (iii) is capable of determining, without intervention by an operator, whether defibrillation should be performed, and (iv) automatically charges and requests delivery of an electrical impulse to an individual's heart, upon determining that defibrillation should be performed. "Emergency medical services" or "EMS" means health care, public health, and public safety services used in the medical response to the real or perceived need for immediate medical assessment, care, or transportation and preventive care or transportation in order to prevent loss of life or aggravation of physiological or psychological illness or injury. "Emergency medical services agency" or "EMS agency" means any person engaged in the business, service, or regular activity, whether for profit or not, of rendering immediate medical care and providing transportation to persons who are sick, injured, wounded, or otherwise incapacitated or helpless and that holds a valid license as an emergency medical services agency issued by the Commissioner in accordance with § 32.1-111.6. "Emergency medical services personnel" or "EMS personnel" means individuals who are employed by or members of an emergency medical services agency and who provide emergency medical services pursuant to an emergency medical services agency license issued to that agency by the Commissioner and in accordance with the authorization of that agency's operational medical director. "Emergency medical services physician" or "EMS physician" means a physician who holds a current endorsement from the Office of Emergency Medical Services (EMS) and may serve as an EMS agency operational medical director or training program physician course director. "Emergency medical services provider" or "EMS provider" means any person who holds a valid certificate as an emergency medical services provider issued by the Commissioner. "Emergency medical services system" or "EMS system" means the system of emergency medical services agencies, vehicles, equipment, and personnel; health care facilities; other health care and emergency services providers; and other components engaged in the planning, coordination, and delivery of emergency medical services in the Commonwealth, including individuals and facilities providing communication and other services necessary to facilitate the delivery of emergency medical services in the Commonwealth. "Emergency medical services vehicle" means any vehicle, vessel, or aircraft that holds a valid emergency medical services vehicle permit issued by the Office of Emergency Medical Services that is equipped, maintained, or operated to provide emergency medical care or transportation of patients who are sick, injured, wounded, or otherwise incapacitated or helpless. "Office of Emergency Medical Services" means the Office of Emergency Medical Services of the Department. "Operational medical director" or "OMD" means an EMS physician, currently licensed to practice medicine or osteopathic medicine in the Commonwealth, who is formally recognized and responsible for providing medical direction, oversight, and quality improvement to an EMS agency. 1996, c. 899; 1999, c. 1000; 2000, c. 939; 2008, c. 118; 2015, cc. 502, 503.

Va. Code § 32.1-126

§ 32.1-126. Commissioner to inspect and to issue licenses to or assure compliance with certification requirements for hospitals, nursing homes, and certified nursing facilities; notice of denial of license; consultative advice and assistance; notice to electric utilities.A. Pursuant to this article, the Commissioner shall issue licenses to, and assure compliance with certification requirements for hospitals and nursing homes, and assure compliance with certification requirements for facilities owned or operated by agencies of the Commonwealth as defined in subdivision (vi) of § 32.1-124, which after inspection are found to be in compliance with the provisions of this article and with all applicable state and federal regulations. The Commissioner shall notify by certified mail or by overnight express mail any applicant denied a license of the reasons for such denial. B. The Commissioner shall cause each and every hospital, nursing home, and certified nursing facility to be inspected periodically, but not less often than biennially, in accordance with the provisions of this article and regulations of the Board. However, except when performed in conjunction with an inspection required by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, no hospital, nursing home, or certified nursing facility shall receive additional inspections until all other hospitals, nursing homes, or certified nursing facilities in the Commonwealth, respectively, have also been inspected, unless the additional inspections are (i) necessary to follow up on a preoperational inspection or one or more violations; (ii) required by a uniformly applied risk-based schedule established by the Department; (iii) necessary to investigate a complaint regarding the hospital, nursing home, or certified nursing facility; or (iv) otherwise deemed necessary by the Commissioner or his designee to protect the health and safety of the public. Unless expressly prohibited by federal statute or regulation, the findings of the Commissioner, with respect to periodic surveys of nursing facilities conducted pursuant to the Survey, Certification, and Enforcement Procedures set forth in 42 C.F.R. Part 488, shall be considered case decisions pursuant to the Administrative Process Act (§ 2.2-4000 et seq.) and shall be subject to the Department's informal dispute resolution procedures, or, at the option of the Department or the nursing facility, the formal fact-finding procedures under § 2.2-4020. The Commonwealth shall be deemed the proponent for purposes of § 2.2-4020. Further, notwithstanding the provisions of clause (iii) of subsection A of § 2.2-4025, such case decisions shall also be subject to the right to court review pursuant to Article 5 (§ 2.2-4025 et seq.) of Chapter 40 of Title 2.2. C. The Commissioner may, in accordance with regulations of the Board, provide for consultative advice and assistance, with such limitations and restrictions as he deems proper, to any person who intends to apply for a hospital or nursing home license or nursing facility certification. D. For the purpose of facilitating the prompt restoration of electrical service and prioritization of customers during widespread power outages, the Commissioner shall notify on a quarterly basis all electric utilities serving customers in Virginia as to the location of all nursing homes licensed in the Commonwealth. The requirements of this subsection shall be met if the Commissioner maintains such information on an electronic database accessible by electric utilities serving customers in Virginia. E. No person shall use, in any advertisement for professional services provided by such person, the results of any survey, inspection, or investigation of a nursing home or certified nursing facility conducted by a state or federal agency, including any statement of deficiencies, finding of deficiencies, or plan of corrective action, unless the advertisement includes all of the following: 1. The date on which the survey, inspection, or investigation was conducted; 2. A statement that the nursing home or certified nursing facility is required to submit a plan of correction in response to every statement of deficiency; 3. If a finding or deficiency cited in a statement of deficiencies has been corrected, a statement that the finding or deficiency has been corrected and the date on which the finding or deficiency was corrected; and 4. A statement that the advertisement is not authorized or endorsed by the Virginia Department of Health, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, the Office of the Inspector General, or any other governmental agency. The information required by this subsection shall be in the same color, font, and size as all other language on or in the advertisement and shall appear as prominently as all other language used in the advertisement. Nothing in this subsection shall be construed to prohibit the results of a survey, inspection, or investigation from being used in any administrative proceeding, civil proceeding, or criminal investigation or prosecution, in accordance with the rules set forth by the applicable tribunal. Code 1950, §§ 32-300, 32-305; 1977, c. 155; 1979, c. 711; 1989, c. 618; 1996, cc. 940, 999; 2000, c. 967; 2002, c. 514; 2004, c. 304; 2017, c. 465; 2018, c. 453; 2019, cc. 291, 292.

Va. Code § 32.1-138.5

§ 32.1-138.5:1. (Effective pursuant to Acts 2025, c. 432, cl. 2) Electronic monitoring in resident rooms.A. As used in this section: "Electronic monitoring" means the use of a surveillance device with a fixed position video camera or audio recording device, or a combination thereof, that is installed in a resident's room and broadcasts or records activities or sounds occurring within the confines of the room. Electronic monitoring shall not include use of a device that enables audio communication into the resident's room from another source. "Family member" means the resident's spouse, parent, stepparent, child, stepchild, brother, sister, half-brother, half-sister, grandparent, or grandchild. "Legal representative" means a person legally responsible for representing or standing in the place of the resident for the conduct of his affairs. This may include a guardian, conservator, attorney-in-fact under durable power of attorney, trustee, or other person expressly named by a court of competent jurisdiction or the resident as his agency in a legal document that specifies the scope of the representative's authority to act. A legal representative may only represent or stand in the place of a resident for the function for which he has legal authority to act. B. All requests for electronic monitoring shall be made in writing and signed by the resident or, if the resident has been legally deemed incompetent, the resident's legal representative. Only electronic monitoring in accordance with this section is permitted. Electronic monitoring shall be permitted only: 1. Upon the informed consent of the resident or resident's legal representative, which shall be obtained prior to the installation or use of any electronic monitoring device. Consent for electronic monitoring shall be kept in the resident's medical record; 2. When the resident resides: a. In a room with no roommates; or b. In a room with any roommates and obtains written consent to visual recording from such roommates or, if any roommate has been legally deemed incompetent, such roommate's legal representative. When a resident resides with any roommates, only video electronic monitoring shall be permitted pursuant to this subsection; 3. Upon execution of an agreement for the sharing and release of medical data and information protected by the federal Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (42 U.S.C. § 1320d et seq.) signed by the resident or resident's legal representative or, if applicable, any such agreement signed by any roommate or roommate's legal representative shall be kept in all consenting individuals' medical records; and 4. When the nursing facility has secured and password-protected wireless Internet access or other means available to operate the electronic monitoring device without modification to the nursing facility or a change in level or capacity of Internet access. C. A nursing facility shall allow electronic monitoring of a resident of a nursing facility if the electronic monitoring is conducted in accordance with this section. A nursing facility shall not refuse to admit an individual and shall not discharge or transfer a resident due to a request to conduct authorized electronic monitoring. D. Family members shall not implement or activate electronic monitoring over the objections of or contrary to the instructions of the resident or the resident's legal representative. No electronic monitoring equipment may be installed over the objections of or contrary to the instructions of the resident or resident's legal representative. E. Nursing facilities shall designate one or more staff persons to be the point of contact for electronic monitoring requests and for providing information and policies upon request during normal business hours. F. Except as provided in subsection O, nursing facilities may assume custodial ownership of any recordings from electronic monitoring devices from the resident or resident's legal representative. Recordings from electronic monitoring devices shall not be considered part of the resident's medical record. G. If a nursing facility chooses to assume ownership of recordings from electronic monitoring devices pursuant to subsection F, the nursing facility shall not permit viewings of recordings without consent of the resident or resident's legal representative except to the extent that disclosure is required by law or for quality assurance purposes. H. A nursing facility shall not be held liable for any breach of data or privacy related to the presence of the electronic monitoring device. I. A nursing facility shall require its staff to immediately report any incidents regarding safety or quality of care discovered or reported to staff as a result of viewing a recording from an electronic monitoring device to the administrator of the nursing facility. J. A nursing facility shall have no obligation to seek access to a recording for which it has not assumed custodial ownership or to have knowledge of a recording's content unless (i) the nursing facility is aware of a recorded incident of suspected abuse or neglect or of an accident or injury based upon a report received by the facility of such incident, accident, or injury or (ii) the resident, the resident's legal representative, or a government agency seeks to use a recording. K. Unless a nursing facility chooses to assume ownership of any recordings from an electronic monitoring device, the resident or resident's legal representative shall be responsible for all aspects of the operation of the electronic monitoring device, including the removal and replacement of recordings; adherence to local, state, and federal privacy laws; and use of firewall protections to prevent images that would violate obscenity laws from being inadvertently shown on the Internet. L. A nursing facility shall prohibit assigned staff from refusing to enter a resident's room solely because of electronic monitoring. M. A nursing facility shall make reasonable physical accommodations for electronic monitoring devices, including: 1. Providing a reasonably secure place to mount the device; and 2. Providing reasonable access to power sources if already in proximity to the device. N. A nursing facility shall require a resident or resident's legal representative to pay for all costs, other than the cost of electricity, associated with the purchase and installation of the electronic monitoring device. In addition, a nursing facility offering facility-managed electronic monitoring may charge a one-time fee not to exceed $150 when the electronic monitoring device is installed along with a security deposit not to exceed $250. A nursing facility may charge a monthly fee not to exceed $10 to cover costs associated with the electronic monitoring device. Such costs may include equipment, secured and password-protected wireless Internet and server capabilities, compliance with life safety and building and electrical codes, maintenance or removal of the equipment, posting and removal of any public notices, or structural repairs to the building resulting from the removal of the equipment. Nursing facilities shall give 45 days' notice of an increase in monthly fees. O. The resident or resident's legal representative of a room with an electronic monitoring device may verbally or in writing condition consent to the installation or use of the electronic monitoring device. Such conditions on consent may include: (i) the ability of the resident, any roommate, or staff at the request of the resident or any roommate, to turn off or disable the audio or video electronic monitoring device during certain periods of time and (ii) a prohibition on the ability of the nursing facility to, pursuant to subsection F, choose to assume custodial ownership of any recordings from the electronic monitoring device after the electronic monitoring device has been installed and is operational. If the resident or resident's legal representative or any roommate or roommate's legal representative places any such conditions on consent, the nursing facility and staff shall ensure that the installation, use, and operation of the electronic monitoring device and any electronic monitoring or other activities conducted in connection therewith are conducted in compliance with such conditions. P. The nursing facility shall conspicuously post and maintain a notice at the entrance to the resident's room stating that an electronic monitoring device is in operation. Q. Nursing facilities shall notify assigned staff for the resident when electronic monitoring is in use in a resident's room pursuant to this section. R. Each nursing facility shall adopt policies and procedures for electronic monitoring consistent with this section. S. Each nursing facility shall adopt a policy prohibiting staff from willfully tampering with electronic monitoring devices in violation of this section. Adjusting or disabling an electronic monitoring device during the provision of patient care shall not constitute willful tampering if such adjusting or disabling is done in order to protect the dignity of a resident or at the direction of the resident or resident's legal representative. T. If the placement or position of the electronic monitoring device creates risk to a nursing facility employee, resident, or any roommate, or if the resident or resident's legal representative or family member violates the nursing facility's policies and procedures for electronic monitoring, the equipment may be disabled and removed and the resident, resident's legal representative, or family member responsible for the camera shall be notified of the removal. 2025, c. 432. Article 2.1. Private Review Agents.

Va. Code § 32.1-174.2

§ 32.1-174.2. Duties of electric utilities.No electric utility shall disconnect electrical service to any waterworks holding a permit issued pursuant to this article until the utility has (i) provided sixty days' written notice to the Board of its intent to disconnect electrical service to the waterworks; (ii) filed with the Board at least sixty days prior to the disconnection a written request that the Board initiate forfeiture proceedings against any bond posted or funds deposited by the permit holder; and (iii) provided sixty days' written notice to the governing body of the county, city or town in which the waterworks is located. 1980, c. 402.

Va. Code § 32.1-174.5

§ 32.1-174.5. Mandatory reporting of contaminant releases and equipment failures and malfunctions.A. As used in this section: "Contaminant release" means an unplanned or uncontrolled release by a waterworks of a chemical contaminant or petroleum or synthetic oil into the water that is treated by or distributed from the waterworks to customers. "Contaminant release" includes any such release at treatment facilities and raw or finished water pump stations. "Critical equipment failure or malfunction" means any equipment failure or malfunction that has significant potential for serious adverse effects on human health as a result of short-term exposure or to cause a widespread disruption of water service. "Equipment failure" means an unplanned condition when the equipment cannot perform or is unable to perform as designed because of a problem with such equipment. "Equipment failure" does not mean a planned (i) removal from service, (ii) repair, or (iii) maintenance. "Equipment malfunction" means an unplanned condition during which the equipment cannot perform or is unable to perform as designed due to a problem originating from outside the waterworks rather than a problem associated or originating with the equipment itself, including an issue with third-party provided gas or electric power feeds or a cyberattack. "Monthly operating report" means the report submitted by a waterworks to the Office at least once each month that describes the waterworks' operational status and compliance with applicable laws, regulations, and policies, as directed by the Department. "Noncritical equipment failure or malfunction" means an equipment failure or malfunction that is not a critical equipment failure or malfunction, regardless of whether such anomaly is noticeable to customers of the waterworks. "Office" means the Department's Office of Drinking Water. B. The owner of a waterworks shall report any critical equipment failure or malfunction or contaminant release to the Office as soon as practicable but no more than two hours after discovery. C. Any owner of a waterworks that is required to submit a monthly operating report to the Office shall include any noncritical equipment failure or malfunction that could adversely affect water quality, public health, or service continuity that occurred during the applicable reporting month and was not resolved by the reporting deadline. For the purposes of this subsection, any noncritical equipment failure or malfunction that is effectively addressed by equipment repair or replacement, alternative equipment use, alternative system operation, or such other response shall be considered resolved. 2025, cc. 631, 672.

Va. Code § 33.2-1718

§ 33.2-1718. Revenues.The Board shall fix and revise as may be necessary tolls for the use of each project for which bonds are issued or proposed to be issued under the provisions of this chapter and shall charge and collect the same and may contract with any person, partnership, association, or corporation desiring the use of such project, approaches, and appurtenances, and any part thereof, for placing thereon water, gas, or oil pipelines or telephone, telegraph, electric light, or power lines, or for any other purpose, and may fix the terms, conditions, and rates and charges for such use. Such tolls shall be so fixed and adjusted, in respect of the aggregate of tolls from the project on account of which a single issue of bonds is issued under this chapter, as to provide a fund sufficient with other revenues of such project, if any, to pay (i) the cost of maintaining, repairing, and operating such project unless such cost shall be otherwise provided for and (ii) such bonds and the interest thereon as the same shall become due. Such tolls shall not be subject to supervision or regulation by any other state commission, board, bureau, or agency. Except for those persons exempted by § 33.2-613, it shall be unlawful for the Department or any Department employee to give or permit free passage over any project set forth in the definition of "project" in § 33.2-1700 that has been secured through the issuance of revenue bonds and which bonds are payable from the revenues of such project. Every vehicle and person shall pay the same toll as others similarly situated. Except as provided in § 33.2-613, the provisions in this section shall apply with full force and effect to vehicles and employees of the state government and governments of counties, cities, and towns or other political subdivisions and to vehicles and persons of all other categories and descriptions, public, private, eleemosynary, or otherwise. Code 1950, § 33-245; 1956, c. 158; 1968, c. 170; 1970, c. 322, § 33.1-285; 1973, c. 215; 1981, c. 417; 1982, c. 242; 1983, c. 617; 1986, Sp. Sess., c. 13; 1988, cc. 844, 903; 2014, c. 805.

Va. Code § 33.2-1815

§ 33.2-1815. Utility crossings.A. The private entity and each public service company, public utility, railroad, cable television provider, locality, or political subdivision whose facilities are to be crossed or affected shall cooperate fully with the other in planning and arranging the manner of the crossing or relocation of the facilities. Any such entity possessing the power of condemnation is hereby expressly granted such powers in connection with the moving or relocation of facilities to be crossed by the qualifying transportation facility or that must be relocated to the extent that such moving or relocation is made necessary or desirable by construction of or improvements to the qualifying transportation facility, which shall be construed to include construction of or improvements to temporary facilities for the purpose of providing service during the period of construction or improvement. B. Should the private entity and any such public service company, public utility, railroad, and cable television provider be unable to agree upon a plan for the crossing or relocation, the Commission may determine the manner in which the crossing or relocation is to be accomplished and any damages due arising out of the crossing or relocation. The Commission may employ expert engineers who shall examine the location and plans for such crossing or relocation, hear any objections and consider modifications, and make a recommendation to the Commission. In such a case, the cost of the experts is to be borne by the private entity. Any amount to be paid for such crossing, construction, moving, or relocation of facilities shall be paid for by the private entity or any other person contractually responsible therefor under the interim or comprehensive agreement or under any other contract, license, or permit. The Commission shall make a determination within 90 days of notification by the private entity that the qualifying transportation facility will cross utilities subject to the Commission's jurisdiction. C. Should the private entity and any locality or political subdivision not be able to agree upon a plan for the crossing or relocation of facilities owned or operated by the locality or political subdivision, then the private entity may request in writing to the Commonwealth Transportation Board (Board), with a copy to the chief executive or chief administrative officer of the locality or political subdivision, that the Board consider the matter pursuant to its authority in § 33.2-308, which shall apply mutatis mutandis to any project pursuant to this chapter, regardless of the highway system or location of the project, if the Board decides to exercise such authority, except, however, that the private entity, and not the Board, shall be responsible for the costs of such crossing, construction, moving, or relocation of such facilities. In the event the Board decides to exercise its authority hereunder, the Board shall issue an order within 90 days of receipt of the request from the private entity. D. For the purposes of this chapter, "facilities owned or operated by the local government or political subdivision" means any pipes, mains, storm sewers, water lines, sanitary sewers, natural gas facilities, or other structures, equipment, and appliances owned or operated by a locality or political subdivision for the purpose of transmitting or distributing communications, power, electricity, light, heat, gas, oil, crude products, water, steam, sewage or waste, storm water not connected with highway drainage, or any other similar commodity or substance, which facilities directly or indirectly serve the public. 1994, c. 855, § 56-570; 1995, c. 647; 2005, cc. 504, 562; 2014, cc. 474, 805.

Va. Code § 33.2-280.2

§ 33.2-280.2. Utility work database.A. As used in this section: "Service connection" means any utility facility installed overhead or underground between a distribution main, pipelines, conduits, lines, wires, or other sources of supply and the premises of the individual customer. "Utility work" means the construction, installation, removal, or substantial maintenance of a privately, publicly, or cooperatively owned line, facility, or system for producing, transmitting, or distributing telecommunications, cable television, electricity, gas, oil, petroleum products, water, steam, storm water not connected with highway drainage, or any other similar commodity, including any fire or police signal system. "Utility work" does not include emergency maintenance or repairs or any work directly related to any individual service connection or service drop. B. The Department shall establish and maintain a publicly accessible database and map of all utility work that has been approved by the Department and will occur within a highway right-of-way in a residential neighborhood, as specified by the utility. Such database shall include the location where such work will occur, the start date of such work, the projected end date of such work, the company administering such work, and any other relevant information; however, under no circumstances shall such database and map provide information on any (i) utility work within a right-of-way not maintained by the Department; (ii) critical utility infrastructure, as designated by the utility, that, upon disclosure, has the potential to jeopardize security or critical services, including Critical Energy Infrastructure Information and Controlled Unclassified Information; or (iii) information the permittee has designated as confidential. Such information shall be available in the database at least seven days prior to the start date of any such utility work and shall be deleted from such database 90 days after the completion of such work. 2024, c. 271. Article 5. Department of Rail and Public Transportation.

Va. Code § 33.2-3805

§ 33.2-3805. Powers of the authority.An authority created pursuant to this chapter is vested with the powers of a body corporate, including the power to sue and be sued in its own name, plead and be impleaded, and adopt and use a common seal and alter the same as may be deemed expedient. In addition to the powers set forth elsewhere in this chapter, the authority may: 1. Adopt bylaws and rules and regulations to carry out the provisions of this chapter; 2. Employ, either as regular employees or as independent contractors, consultants, engineers, architects, accountants, attorneys, financial experts, construction experts and personnel, superintendents, managers, and other professional personnel, personnel, and agents as may be necessary in the judgment of the authority and fix their compensation; 3. Determine the locations of, develop, establish, construct, erect, repair, remodel, add to, extend, improve, equip, operate, regulate, and maintain facilities to the extent necessary or convenient to accomplish the purposes of the authority; 4. Acquire, own, hold, lease, use, sell, encumber, transfer, or dispose of, in its own name, any real or personal property or interests therein. However, nothing in this subdivision shall be construed to provide the authority with the power of condemnation; 5. Invest and reinvest funds of the authority; 6. Enter into contracts of any kind and execute all instruments necessary or convenient with respect to its carrying out the powers in this chapter to accomplish the purposes of the authority; 7. Expend such funds as may be available to it for the purpose of developing facilities, including but not limited to (i) purchasing real estate; (ii) grading sites; (iii) improving, replacing, and extending water, sewer, natural gas, electrical, and other utility lines; (iv) constructing, rehabilitating, and expanding buildings; (v) constructing parking facilities; (vi) constructing access roads, streets, and rail lines; (vii) purchasing or leasing machinery and tools; and (viii) making any other improvements deemed necessary by the authority to meet its objectives; 8. Fix and revise from time to time and charge and collect rates, rents, fees, or other charges for the use of facilities or for services rendered in connection with the facilities; 9. Borrow money from any source for any valid purpose, including working capital for its operations, reserve funds, or interest; mortgage, pledge, or otherwise encumber the property or funds of the authority; and contract with or engage the services of any person in connection with any financing, including financial institutions, issuers of letters of credit, or insurers; 10. Issue bonds under this chapter; 11. Accept funds and property from the Commonwealth, persons, counties, cities, towns, and institutions of higher education, and use the same for any of the purposes for which the authority is created; 12. Apply for and accept grants or loans of money or other property from any federal agency for any of the purposes authorized in this chapter and expend or use the same in accordance with the directions and requirements attached thereto or imposed thereon by any such federal agency; 13. Make loans and grants to, and enter into cooperative arrangements with, any person, partnership, association, corporation, business, or governmental entity in furtherance of the purposes of this chapter, for the purposes of promoting economic development, provided that such loans or grants shall be made only from revenues of the authority that have not been pledged or assigned for the payment of any of the authority's bonds, and enter into such contracts, instruments, and agreements as may be expedient to provide for such loans, and any security therefor. For the purposes of this subdivision, "revenues" includes grants, loans, funds, and property, as set out in subdivisions 11 and 12; 14. Enter into agreements with any other political subdivision of the Commonwealth for joint or cooperative action in accordance with § 15.2-1300; and 15. Do all things necessary or convenient to carry out the purposes of this chapter. 2021, Sp. Sess. I, cc. 353, 354.

Va. Code § 36-105.3

§ 36-105.3. Security of certain records.Building Code officials shall institute procedures to ensure the safe storage and secure handling by local officials having access to or in the possession of engineering and construction drawings and plans containing critical structural components, security equipment and systems, ventilation systems, fire protection equipment, mandatory building emergency equipment or systems, elevators, electrical systems, telecommunications equipment and systems, and other utility equipment and systems submitted for the purpose of complying with the Uniform Statewide Building Code (§ 36-97 et seq.) or the Statewide Fire Prevention Code (§ 27-94 et seq.). Further, information contained in engineering and construction drawings and plans for any single-family residential dwelling submitted for the purpose of complying with the Uniform Statewide Building Code (§ 36-97 et seq.) or the Statewide Fire Prevention Code (§ 27-94 et seq.) shall not be subject to disclosure under the Virginia Freedom of Information Act (§ 2.2-3700 et seq.), except to the applicant or the owner of the property upon the applicant's or owner's request. 2003, c. 891; 2017, c. 510; 2018, cc. 42, 92.

Va. Code § 36-108

§ 36-108. Board continued; members.There is hereby continued, in the Department, the State Building Code Technical Review Board, consisting of 14 members, appointed by the Governor subject to confirmation by the General Assembly. The members shall include one member who is a registered architect, selected from a slate presented by the Virginia Society of the American Institute of Architects; one member who is a professional engineer in private practice, selected from a slate presented by the Virginia Society of Professional Engineers; one member who is a residential builder, selected from a slate presented by the Home Builders Association of Virginia; one member who is a general contractor, selected from a slate presented by the Virginia Branch, Associated General Contractors of America; two members who have had experience in the field of enforcement of building regulations, selected from a slate presented by the Virginia Building and Code Officials Association; one member who is employed by a public agency as a fire prevention officer, selected from a slate presented by the Virginia Fire Chiefs Association; one member whose primary occupation is commercial or retail construction or operation and maintenance, selected from a slate presented by the Virginia chapters of Building Owners and Managers Association, International; one member whose primary occupation is residential, multifamily housing construction or operation and maintenance, selected from a slate presented by the Virginia chapters of the National Apartment Association; one member who is an electrical contractor who has held a Class A license for at least 10 years; one member who is a plumbing contractor who has held a Class A license for at least 10 years and one member who is a heating and cooling contractor who has held a Class A license for at least 10 years, both of whom are selected from a combined slate presented by the Virginia Association of Plumbing-Heating-Cooling Contractors and the Virginia Chapters of the Air Conditioning Contractors of America; and two members from the Commonwealth at large who may be members of local governing bodies. The members shall serve at the pleasure of the Governor. 1972, c. 829; 1974, c. 668; 1976, c. 484; 1977, cc. 92, 613; 1993, c. 626; 1997, c. 860; 2003, c. 950.

Va. Code § 36-166

§ 36-166. Housing revitalization zone grants.A. As used in this section: "Qualified zone improvements" means the amount properly chargeable to a capital account for improvements to rehabilitate or undertake construction on real property during the applicable year within a housing revitalization zone, provided that the total amount of such improvements equals or exceeds (i) for a qualified business firm, an investment of $25,000 in rehabilitation expenses on each housing unit, $50,000 in new construction expenses for each single family housing unit, or $40,000 for each multifamily housing unit or (ii) for a qualified owner occupant, an investment of $12,500 in rehabilitation expenses or $50,000 in new construction expenses for each housing unit. Qualified zone improvements include expenditures associated with any exterior, structural, mechanical, plumbing, utility, or electrical improvements necessary to rehabilitate or construct a building for residential use and excavations, grading, paving, driveways, roads, sidewalks, landscaping, or other land improvements. Qualified zone improvements shall also include, but not be limited to, costs associated with demolition, carpentry, sheetrock, plaster, painting, ceilings, fixtures, doors, windows, fire suppression systems, roofing and flashing, exterior repair, cleaning, and cleanup. Qualified zone improvements shall not include: 1. The cost of acquiring any real property or building. 2. (i) The cost of furnishings; (ii) any expenditure associated with appraisal, architectural, engineering and interior design fees; (iii) loan fees, points, or capitalized interest; (iv) legal, accounting, realtor, sales and marketing, or other professional fees; (v) closing costs, permits, user fees, zoning fees, impact fees, and inspection fees; (vi) bids, insurance, signage, utilities, bonding, copying, rent loss, or temporary facilities incurred during construction; or (vii) outbuildings. B. Beginning on and after July 1, 2000, a qualified business firm or qualified owner occupant may be allowed a grant from the Housing Revitalization Zone Fund for making qualified zone improvements. The grant amount shall not exceed thirty percent of the qualified zone improvements; however, in no event shall the total grants paid to a qualified business firm or qualified owner occupant exceed $50,000 per housing unit for qualified zone improvements made during the period in which such area of a county, city, or town is designated as a housing revitalization zone. Additionally, the total grants paid to a qualified business firm for a housing complex with five or more attached housing units may not exceed $150,000 over such period. C. Local governments shall certify that the zone improvements made within housing revitalization zones within their jurisdictions comply with all locally adopted plans and ordinances. 2000, cc. 789, 795.

Va. Code § 36-55.26

§ 36-55.26. Definitions.As used in this chapter, unless the context requires a different meaning: "Bonds," "notes," "bond anticipation notes," and "other obligations" mean any bonds, notes, debentures, interim certificates, or other evidences of financial indebtedness issued by HDA pursuant to this chapter. "City" means any city or town in the Commonwealth. "County" means any county in the Commonwealth. "Earned surplus" shall have the same meaning as in generally accepted accounting standards. "Economically mixed project" means residential housing or housing development, which may consist of one or more buildings located on contiguous or noncontiguous parcels that the HDA determines to finance as a single economically mixed project, to be occupied by persons and families of low and moderate income and by other persons and families as the HDA shall determine. "Federal government" means the United States of America or any agency or instrumentality, corporate or otherwise, of the United States of America. "Federal mortgage" means a mortgage loan for land development for residential housing or residential housing made by the United States or an instrumentality thereof or for which there is a commitment by the United States of America or an instrumentality thereof to make such a mortgage loan. "Federally insured mortgage" means a mortgage loan for land development for residential housing or residential housing insured or guaranteed by the United States or an instrumentality thereof, or a commitment by the United States or an instrumentality thereof to insure such a mortgage. "HDA" means the Virginia Housing Development Authority created and established pursuant to § 36-55.27. "Housing development costs" means the sum total of all costs incurred in the development of a housing development, which are approved by the HDA as reasonable and necessary, which costs shall include, but are not necessarily limited to: fair value of land owned by the sponsor, or cost of land acquisition and any buildings thereon, including payments for options, deposits, or contracts to purchase properties on the proposed housing site or payments for the purchase of such properties; cost of site preparation, demolition and development; architecture, engineering, legal, accounting, HDA, and other fees paid or payable in connection with the planning, execution and financing of the housing development; cost of necessary studies, surveys, plans and permits; insurance, interest; financing, tax and assessment costs and other operating and carrying costs during construction; cost of construction, rehabilitation, reconstruction, fixtures, furnishings, equipment, machinery and apparatus related to the real property; cost of land improvements, including without limitation, landscaping and off-site improvements, whether or not such costs have been paid in cash or in a form other than cash; necessary expenses in connection with initial occupancy of the housing development; a reasonable profit and risk fee in addition to job overhead to the general contractor and, if applicable, a limited profit housing sponsor; an allowance established by HDA for working capital and contingency reserves, and reserves for any anticipated operating deficits during the first two years of occupancy; in the case of an economically mixed project within a revitalization area designated in or pursuant to § 36-55.30:2, the costs of any nonhousing buildings that are financed in conjunction with such project and that are incidental to such project or are determined by such governing body to be necessary or appropriate for the revitalization of such area or for the industrial, commercial or other economic development of such area; the cost of such other items, including tenant relocation, if such tenant relocation costs are not otherwise being provided for, as HDA shall determine to be reasonable and necessary for the development of the housing development, less any and all net rents and other net revenues received from the operation of the real and personal property on the development site during construction. "Housing development" or "housing project" means any work or undertaking, whether new construction or rehabilitation, which is designed and financed pursuant to the provisions of this chapter for the primary purpose of providing sanitary, decent, and safe dwelling accommodations for persons and families of low or moderate income in need of housing and, in the case of an economically mixed project, other persons and families; such undertaking may include any buildings, land, equipment, facilities, or other real or personal properties which are necessary, convenient, or desirable appurtenances, such as but not limited to streets, sewers, utilities, parks, site preparation, landscaping, and such offices, and other nonhousing facilities incidental or related to such development or project such as administrative, community, health, nursing care, medical, educational and recreational facilities as HDA determines to be necessary, convenient, or desirable. For the purposes of this chapter, medical and related facilities for the residence and care of the aged shall be deemed to be dwelling accommodations. "Housing lender" means any bank or trust company, mortgage banker approved by the Federal National Mortgage Association, savings bank, national banking association, savings and loan association or building and loan association, mortgage broker, mortgage company, mortgage lender, life insurance company, credit union, agency or authority of the Commonwealth or any other state, or locality authorized to finance housing loans on properties located in or outside of the Commonwealth to persons and families of any income. "Housing sponsor" means individuals, joint ventures, partnerships, limited partnerships, public bodies, trusts, firms, associations, or other legal entities or any combination thereof, corporations, cooperatives and condominiums, approved by HDA as qualified either to own, construct, acquire, rehabilitate, operate, manage or maintain a housing development whether nonprofit or organized for limited profit subject to the regulatory powers of HDA and other terms and conditions set forth in this chapter. "Land development" means the process of acquiring land for residential housing construction, and of making, installing, or constructing nonresidential housing improvements, including, without limitation, waterlines and water supply installations, sewer lines and sewage disposal and treatment installations, steam, gas and electric lines and installations, roads, streets, curbs, gutters, sidewalks, storm drainage facilities, other related pollution control facilities, and other installations or works, whether on or off the site, which HDA deems necessary or desirable to prepare such land primarily for residential housing construction within the Commonwealth. "Loan servicer" means any person who, on behalf of a housing lender, collects or receives payments, including payments of principal, interest, escrow amounts, and other amounts due, on obligations due and owing to the housing lender pursuant to a residential mortgage loan or who, when the borrower is in default or in foreseeable likelihood of default, works on behalf of the housing lender with the borrower to modify or refinance, either temporarily or permanently, the obligations in order to avoid foreclosure or otherwise to finalize collection through the foreclosure process. "Mortgage" means a mortgage deed, deed of trust, or other security instrument which shall constitute a lien in the Commonwealth on improvements and real property in fee simple, on a leasehold under a lease having a remaining term, which at the time such mortgage is acquired does not expire for at least that number of years beyond the maturity date of the interest-bearing obligation secured by such mortgage as is equal to the number of years remaining until the maturity date of such obligation or on personal property, contract rights or other assets. "Mortgage lender" means any bank or trust company, mortgage banker approved by the Federal National Mortgage Association, savings bank, national banking association, savings and loan association, or building and loan association, life insurance company, the federal government or other financial institutions or government agencies which are authorized to and customarily provide service or otherwise aid in the financing of mortgages on residential housing located in the Commonwealth for persons and families of low or moderate income. "Mortgage loan" means an interest-bearing obligation secured by a mortgage. "Multifamily residential housing" means residential housing other than single-family residential housing, as hereinafter defined. "Municipality" means any city, town, county, or other political subdivision of the Commonwealth. "Nonhousing building" means a building or portion thereof and any related improvements and facilities used or to be used for manufacturing, industrial, commercial, governmental, educational, entertainment, community development, health care, or nonprofit enterprises or undertakings other than residential housing. "Persons and families of low and moderate income" means persons and families, irrespective of race, creed, national origin, sex, sexual orientation, or gender identity, determined by the HDA to require such assistance as is made available by this chapter on account of insufficient personal or family income taking into consideration, without limitation, such factors as follows: (i) the amount of the total income of such persons and families available for housing needs, (ii) the size of the family, (iii) the cost and condition of housing facilities available, (iv) the ability of such persons and families to compete successfully in the normal private housing market and to pay the amounts at which private enterprise is providing sanitary, decent and safe housing, and (v) if appropriate, standards established for various federal programs determining eligibility based on income of such persons and families. "Real property" means all lands, including improvements and fixtures thereon, and property of any nature appurtenant thereto, or used in connection therewith, and every estate, interest and right, legal or equitable, therein, including terms for years and liens by way of judgment, mortgage or otherwise and the indebtedness secured by such liens. "Residential housing" means a specific work or improvement within the Commonwealth, whether multifamily residential housing or single-family residential housing undertaken primarily to provide dwelling accommodations, including the acquisition, construction, rehabilitation, preservation or improvement of land, buildings and improvements thereto, for residential housing, and such other nonhousing facilities as may be incidental, related, or appurtenant thereto. For the purposes of this chapter, medical and related facilities for the residence and care of the aged shall be deemed to be dwelling accommodations. "Single-family residential housing" means residential housing consisting of four or fewer dwelling units, the person or family owning or intending to acquire such dwelling units, upon completion of the construction, rehabilitation, or improvement thereof, also occupying or intending to occupy one of such dwelling units. 1972, c. 830; 1975, c. 536; 1987, c. 363; 1988, c. 218; 1996, c. 498; 2004, c. 187; 2011, c. 690; 2020, c. 1137.

Va. Code § 36-71.1

§ 36-71.1. Definitions.As used in this chapter, unless a different meaning or construction is clearly required by the context: "Administrator" means the Director of the Department of Housing and Community Development or his designee. "Board" means the Board of Housing and Community Development. "Compliance assurance agency" means an architect or professional engineer registered in Virginia, or an organization, determined by the Department to be specially qualified by reason of facilities, personnel, experience and demonstrated reliability, to investigate, test and evaluate industrialized buildings; to list such buildings complying with standards at least equal to those promulgated by the Board; to provide adequate follow-up services at the point of manufacture to ensure that production units are in full compliance; and to provide a label as evidence of compliance on each manufactured section or module. "Department" means the Department of Housing and Community Development. "Industrialized building" means a combination of one or more sections or modules, subject to state regulations and including the necessary electrical, plumbing, heating, ventilating and other service systems, manufactured off-site and transported to the point of use for installation or erection, with or without other specified components, to comprise a finished building. Manufactured homes defined in § 36-85.3 and certified under the provisions of the National Manufactured Housing Construction and Safety Standards Act shall not be considered industrialized buildings for the purpose of this law. "Registered" means that an industrialized building displays a registration seal issued by the Department of Housing and Community Development. "The law" or "this law" means the Virginia Industrialized Building Safety Law as provided in this chapter. 1986, c. 37.

Va. Code § 36-72

§ 36-72. Declaration of policy.Industrialized building units and mobile homes, because of the manner of their construction, assembly, and use and that of their systems, components, and appliances, including heating, plumbing, and electrical systems, like other finished products having concealed vital parts, may present hazards to the health, life, and safety of persons and to the safety of property unless properly designed and manufactured. In the sale or rental of industrialized building units and mobile homes, there is also the possibility of defects not readily ascertainable when inspected by purchasers or users or by the local building official. It is the policy and purpose of the Commonwealth to provide protection to the public against those possible hazards and to promote sound building construction, and for that purpose to forbid the sale, rental, or use of new industrialized building units and mobile homes that are not so constructed as to provide reasonable safety and protection to their owners and users and involve reasonably sound building practices. It is further the policy of the Commonwealth to minimize the unique problems presented by a lack of uniform standards and inspection procedures affecting the mass production of housing and to hereby declare its intention to (i) encourage the reduction of construction costs and (ii) make housing more feasible for all residents of the Commonwealth. 1970, c. 305; 1971, Ex. Sess., c. 103; 1986, c. 37.

Va. Code § 36-85.16

§ 36-85.16. Definitions.As used in this chapter, unless a different meaning or construction is clearly required by the context: "Board" means the Virginia Manufactured Housing Board. "Buyer" means the person who purchases at retail from a dealer or manufacturer a manufactured home for personal use as a residence or other related use. "Claimant" means any person who has filed a verified claim under this chapter. "Code" means the appropriate standards of the Virginia Uniform Statewide Building Code and the Industrialized Building and Manufactured Home Safety Regulations adopted by the Board of Housing and Community Development and administered by the Department of Housing and Community Development pursuant to the National Manufactured Housing Construction and Safety Standards Act of 1974 for manufactured homes. "Defect" means any deficiency in or damage to materials or workmanship occurring in a manufactured home which has been reasonably maintained and cared for in normal use. The term also means any failure of any structural element, utility system or the inclusion of a component part of the manufactured home which fails to comply with the Code. "Department" means the Department of Housing and Community Development. "Director" means the Director of the Department of Housing and Community Development, or his designee. "Fund" or "recovery fund" means the Virginia Manufactured Housing Transaction Recovery Fund. "Manufactured home" means a structure constructed to federal standards, transportable in one or more sections, which, in the traveling mode, is 8 feet or more in width and is 40 feet or more in length, or when erected on site, is 320 or more square feet, and which is built on a permanent chassis and designed to be used as a dwelling with or without a permanent foundation when connected to the required utilities, and includes the plumbing, heating, air conditioning, and electrical systems contained therein. "Manufactured home broker" or "broker" means any person, partnership, association or corporation, resident or nonresident, who, for compensation or valuable consideration, sells or offers for sale, buys or offers to buy, negotiates the purchase or sale or exchange, or leases or offers to lease used manufactured homes that are owned by a party other than the broker. "Manufactured home dealer" or "dealer" means any person, resident or nonresident, engaged in the business of buying, selling or dealing in manufactured homes or offering or displaying manufactured homes for sale in Virginia. Any person who buys, sells, or deals in three or more manufactured homes in any 12-month period shall be presumed to be a manufactured home dealer. The terms "selling" and "sale" include lease-purchase transactions. The term "manufactured home dealer" does not include banks and finance companies that acquire manufactured homes as an incident to their regular business. "Manufactured home manufacturer" or "manufacturer" means any persons, resident or nonresident, who manufacture or assemble manufactured homes for sale in Virginia. "Manufactured home salesperson" or "salesperson" means any person who for compensation or valuable consideration is employed either directly or indirectly by, or affiliated as an independent contractor with, a manufactured home dealer, broker or manufacturer to sell or offer to sell, or to buy or offer to buy, or to negotiate the purchase, sale or exchange, or to lease or offer to lease new or used manufactured homes. "New manufactured home" means any manufactured home that (i) has not been previously sold except in good faith for the purpose of resale, (ii) has not been previously occupied as a place of habitation, (iii) has not been previously used for commercial purposes such as offices or storage, and (iv) has not been titled by the Virginia Department of Motor Vehicles and is still in the possession of the original dealer. If the home is later sold to another dealer and then sold to a consumer within two years of the date of manufacture, the home is still considered new and must continue to meet all state warranty requirements. However, if a home is sold from the original dealer to another dealer and it is more than two years after the date of manufacture, and it is then sold to a consumer, the home must be sold as "used" for warranty purposes. Notice of the "used" status of the manufactured home and how this status affects state warranty requirements must be provided, in writing, to the consumer prior to the closing of the sale. "Person" means any individual, natural person, firm, partnership, association, corporation, legal representative, or other recognized legal entity. "Regulant" means any person, firm, corporation, association, partnership, joint venture, or any other legal entity required by this chapter to be licensed by the Board. "Responsible party" means a manufacturer, dealer, or supplier of manufactured homes. "Set-up" means the operations performed at the occupancy site which render a manufactured home fit for habitation. Such operations include, but are not limited to, transportation, positioning, blocking, leveling, supporting, anchoring, connecting utility systems, making minor adjustments, or assembling multiple or expandable units. Such operations do not include lawful transportation services performed by public utilities operating under certificates or permits issued by the State Corporation Commission. "Substantial identity of interest" means (i) a controlling financial interest by the individual or corporate principals of the manufactured home broker, dealer, or manufacturer whose license has been revoked or not renewed or (ii) substantially identical principals or officers as the manufactured home broker, dealer, or manufacturer whose license has been revoked or not renewed by the Board. "Supplier" means the original producer of completed components, including refrigerators, stoves, water heaters, dishwashers, cabinets, air conditioners, heating units, and similar components, and materials such as floor coverings, panelling, siding, trusses, and similar materials, which are furnished to a manufacturer or a dealer for installation in the manufactured home prior to sale to a buyer. "Used manufactured home" means any manufactured home other than a new home as defined in this section. 1991, c. 555; 1992, c. 223; 1994, c. 671; 2005, c. 430; 2008, c. 350.

Va. Code § 36-85.23

§ 36-85.23. Warranties.Each manufacturer, dealer, and supplier of manufactured homes shall warrant each new manufactured home sold in this Commonwealth, and the dealer shall warrant the set-up of each manufactured home if performed by or contracted for by the dealer, in accordance with the warranty requirements prescribed by this section for a period of at least twelve months, measured from the date of delivery of the manufactured home to the buyer. The warranty requirements for each manufacturer, dealer, and supplier are as follows: 1. The manufacturer warrants that all structural elements, plumbing systems, heating, cooling (if any), and fuel burning systems, electrical systems, and any other components included by the manufacturer are manufactured and installed free from defect. 2. The dealer warrants: a. That any modifications or alterations made to the manufactured home by the dealer or authorized by the dealer are free from defects. Alterations or modifications made by the dealer, without written permission of the manufacturer, shall relieve the manufacturer of warranty responsibility as to the item altered or modified and any damage resulting therefrom. b. That set-up operations performed by the dealer or by persons under contract to the dealer on the manufactured home are accomplished in compliance with the applicable Code standards for installation of manufactured homes. c. That during the course of set-up and transportation of the manufactured home performed by the dealer or by persons under contract to the dealer, defects do not occur to the manufactured home. 3. The supplier warrants that any warranties generally offered in the ordinary sale of his product to consumers shall be extended to buyers of manufactured homes. The manufacturer's warranty shall remain in effect notwithstanding the existence of a supplier's warranty. 1991, c. 555; 1992, c. 223.

Va. Code § 36-85.25

§ 36-85.25. Warranty service.When a service agreement exists between or among a manufacturer, dealer, and supplier to provide warranty service, the agreement shall specify which such responsible party is to remedy warranty defects. Every such service agreement shall be in writing. Nothing contained in such an agreement shall relieve the responsible party, as provided in this chapter, of responsibility to perform warranty service. However, any responsible party undertaking such an agreement to perform the warranty service obligations of another shall thereby become responsible both to that other responsible party and to the buyer for his failure to adequately perform as agreed. When no service agreement exists for warranty service, the responsible party as designated by the provisions of this chapter is responsible for remedying the warranty defects. A defect shall be remedied within forty-five days of receipt of the written notification of the warranty claim, unless the claim is unreasonable or a bona fide reason exists for not remedying the defect within the forty-five-day period. The responsible party shall respond to the claimant in writing with a copy to the Board stating what further action is contemplated by the responsible party. Notwithstanding the foregoing provisions of this section, defects which constitute an imminent safety hazard to life and health shall be remedied within three days of receipt of the written notification of the warranty claim. An imminent safety hazard to life and health shall include but not be limited to (i) inadequate heating in freezing weather; (ii) failure of sanitary facilities; (iii) electrical shock or leaking gas; or (iv) major structural failure. The Board may suspend this three-day time period in the event of widespread defects or damage resulting from adverse weather conditions or other natural catastrophes. When the person remedying the defect is not the responsible party as designated by the provisions of this chapter, he shall be entitled to reasonable compensation paid to him by the responsible party. Conduct which coerces or requires a nonresponsible party to perform warranty service is a violation of this chapter. Warranty service shall be performed at the site at which the manufactured home is initially delivered to the buyer, except for components which can be removed for service without undue inconvenience to the buyer. Any responsible party shall have the right to complain to the Board when warranty service obligations under this chapter are not being enforced. 1991, c. 555; 1992, c. 223.

Va. Code § 36-85.3

§ 36-85.3. Definitions.As used in this chapter, unless a different meaning or construction is clearly required by the context: "Administrator" means the Director of the Department of Housing and Community Development or his designee. "Any person" shall, in addition to referring to a natural person, include any partnership, corporation, joint stock company or any association whether incorporated or unincorporated. "Board" means the Board of Housing and Community Development. "Dealer" means any person engaged in the sale, leasing, or distribution of new manufactured homes primarily to persons who in good faith purchase or lease a manufactured home for purposes other than resale. "Defect" means a failure to comply with an applicable federal manufactured home construction and safety standard that renders the manufactured home or any part of the home unfit for the ordinary use for which it was intended, but does not result in an imminent risk of death or severe personal injury to occupants of the affected home. "Department" means the Department of Housing and Community Development. "Distributor" means any person engaged in the sale and distribution of manufactured homes for resale. "Federal Act" means the National Manufactured Housing Construction and Safety Standards Act of 1974 as amended (42 U.S.C. § 5401 et seq.). "Federal Regulations" means the Federal Manufactured Home Procedural and Enforcement Regulations. "Federal Standards" means the Federal Manufactured Home Construction and Safety Standards. "HUD" means the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development. "Imminent safety hazard" means a hazard that presents an imminent risk of death or severe personal injury. "Manufactured home" means a structure subject to federal regulation, which is transportable in one or more sections; is eight body feet or more in width and forty body feet or more in length in the traveling mode, or is 320 or more square feet when erected on site; is built on a permanent chassis; is designed to be used as a single-family dwelling, with or without a permanent foundation, when connected to the required utilities; and includes the plumbing, heating, air-conditioning, and electrical systems contained in the structure. "Manufactured home construction" means all activities relating to the assembly and manufacture of a manufactured home including but not limited to those relating to durability, quality, and safety. "Manufactured home safety" means the performance of a manufactured home in such a manner that the public is protected against unreasonable risk of the occurrence of accidents due to the design or construction of the home, or any unreasonable risk of death or injury to the user if such accidents do occur. "Manufacturer" means any person engaged in manufacturing or assembling manufactured homes, including any person engaged in importing manufactured homes. "Purchaser" means the first person purchasing a manufactured home in good faith for purposes other than resale. "Secretary" means the Secretary of the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development. "Skirting" means a weather-resistant material used to enclose the space from the bottom of the manufactured home to grade. "State Administrative Agency" or "SAA" means the Department of Housing and Community Development which is responsible for the administration and enforcement of this law throughout Virginia and of the plan authorized by § 36-85.5. "The law" or "this law" means the Virginia Manufactured Housing Construction and Safety Standards Law as embraced in this chapter. 1986, c. 37; 1990, c. 593.

Va. Code § 36-96.3

§ 36-96.3. Unlawful discriminatory housing practices.A. It shall be an unlawful discriminatory housing practice for any person to: 1. Refuse to sell or rent after the making of a bona fide offer or refuse to negotiate for the sale or rental of, or otherwise make unavailable or deny, a dwelling to any person because of race, color, religion, national origin, sex, elderliness, source of funds, familial status, sexual orientation, gender identity, or military status; 2. Discriminate against any person in the terms, conditions, or privileges of sale or rental of a dwelling, or in the provision of services or facilities in the connection therewith to any person because of race, color, religion, national origin, sex, elderliness, source of funds, familial status, sexual orientation, gender identity, or military status; 3. Make, print, or publish, or cause to be made, printed, or published any notice, statement, or advertisement, with respect to the sale or rental of a dwelling that indicates any preference, limitation, or discrimination or an intention to make any such preference, limitation, or discrimination on the basis of race, color, religion, national origin, sex, elderliness, familial status, source of funds, sexual orientation, gender identity, military status, or disability. The use of words or symbols associated with a particular religion, national origin, sex, or race shall be prima facie evidence of an illegal preference under this chapter that shall not be overcome by a general disclaimer. However, reference alone to places of worship, including churches, synagogues, temples, or mosques, in any such notice, statement, or advertisement shall not be prima facie evidence of an illegal preference; 4. Represent to any person because of race, color, religion, national origin, sex, elderliness, familial status, source of funds, sexual orientation, gender identity, military status, or disability that any dwelling is not available for inspection, sale, or rental when such dwelling is in fact so available; 5. Deny any person access to membership in or participation in any multiple listing service, real estate brokers' organization, or other service, organization, or facility relating to the business of selling or renting dwellings or discriminate against such person in the terms or conditions of such access, membership, or participation because of race, color, religion, national origin, sex, elderliness, familial status, source of funds, sexual orientation, gender identity, military status, or disability; 6. Include in any transfer, sale, rental, or lease of housing any restrictive covenant that discriminates because of race, color, religion, national origin, sex, elderliness, familial status, source of funds, sexual orientation, gender identity, military status, or disability or for any person to honor or exercise, or attempt to honor or exercise, any such discriminatory covenant pertaining to housing; 7. Induce or attempt to induce to sell or rent any dwelling by representations regarding the entry or prospective entry into the neighborhood of a person or persons of a particular race, color, religion, national origin, sex, elderliness, familial status, source of funds, sexual orientation, gender identity, military status, or disability; 8. Refuse to sell or rent, or refuse to negotiate for the sale or rental of, or otherwise discriminate or make unavailable or deny a dwelling because of a disability of (i) the buyer or renter; (ii) a person residing in or intending to reside in that dwelling after it is so sold, rented, or made available; or (iii) any person associated with the buyer or renter; or 9. Discriminate against any person in the terms, conditions, or privileges of sale or rental of a dwelling, or in the provision of services or facilities in connection therewith because of a disability of (i) that person; (ii) a person residing in or intending to reside in that dwelling after it was so sold, rented, or made available; or (iii) any person associated with that buyer or renter. B. For the purposes of this section, discrimination includes (i) a refusal to permit, at the expense of the disabled person, reasonable modifications of existing premises occupied or to be occupied by any person if such modifications may be necessary to afford such person full enjoyment of the premises; except that, in the case of a rental, the landlord may, where it is reasonable to do so, condition permission for a modification on the renter's agreeing to restore the interior of the premises to the condition that existed before the modification, reasonable wear and tear excepted; (ii) a refusal to make reasonable accommodations in rules, practices, policies, or services when such accommodations may be necessary to afford such person equal opportunity to use and enjoy a dwelling; or (iii) in connection with the design and construction of covered multi-family dwellings for first occupancy after March 13, 1991, a failure to design and construct dwellings in such a manner that: 1. The public use and common use areas of the dwellings are readily accessible to and usable by disabled persons; 2. All the doors designed to allow passage into and within all premises are sufficiently wide to allow passage by disabled persons in wheelchairs; and 3. All premises within covered multi-family dwelling units contain an accessible route into and through the dwelling; light switches, electrical outlets, thermostats, and other environmental controls are in accessible locations; there are reinforcements in the bathroom walls to allow later installation of grab bars; and there are usable kitchens and bathrooms such that an individual in a wheelchair can maneuver about the space. As used in this subdivision, the term "covered multi-family dwellings" means buildings consisting of four or more units if such buildings have one or more elevators and ground floor units in other buildings consisting of four or more units. C. It shall be an unlawful discriminatory housing practice for any political jurisdiction or its employees or appointed commissions to discriminate in the application of local land use ordinances or guidelines, or in the permitting of housing developments, (i) on the basis of race, color, religion, national origin, sex, elderliness, familial status, source of funds, sexual orientation, gender identity, military status, or disability; (ii) because the housing development contains or is expected to contain affordable housing units occupied or intended for occupancy by families or individuals with incomes at or below 80 percent of the median income of the area where the housing development is located or is proposed to be located; or (iii) by prohibiting or imposing conditions upon the rental or sale of dwelling units, provided that the provisions of this subsection shall not be construed to prohibit ordinances related to short-term rentals as defined in § 15.2-983. It shall not be a violation of this chapter if land use decisions or decisions relating to the permitting of housing developments are based upon considerations of limiting high concentrations of affordable housing. D. Compliance with the appropriate requirements of the American National Standards for Building and Facilities (commonly cited as "ANSI A117.1") or with any other standards adopted as part of regulations promulgated by HUD providing accessibility and usability for physically disabled people shall be deemed to satisfy the requirements of subdivision B 3. E. Nothing in this chapter shall be construed to invalidate or limit any Virginia law or regulation that requires dwellings to be designed and constructed in a manner that affords disabled persons greater access than is required by this chapter. 1972, c. 591, § 36-88; 1973, c. 358; 1978, c. 138; 1984, c. 685; 1985, c. 344; 1989, c. 88; 1991, c. 557; 1992, c. 322; 1996, c. 327; 2020, cc. 477, 1137, 1140; 2021, Sp. Sess. I, cc. 267, 477, 478.

Va. Code § 36-97

§ 36-97. Definitions.As used in this chapter, unless the context requires a different meaning: "Board" means the Board of Housing and Community Development. "Building" means a combination of any materials, whether portable or fixed, having a roof to form a structure for the use or occupancy by persons or property. The word "building" shall be construed as though followed by the words "or part or parts thereof" unless the context clearly requires a different meaning. "Building" does not include roadway tunnels and bridges owned by the Department of Transportation, which shall be governed by construction and design standards approved by the Commonwealth Transportation Board. "Building Code" means the Uniform Statewide Building Code and building regulations adopted and promulgated pursuant thereto. "Building regulations" means any law, rule, resolution, regulation, ordinance, or code, general or special, or compilation thereof, enacted or adopted by the Commonwealth or any county or municipality, including departments, boards, bureaus, commissions, or other agencies of such state or local governments, relating to construction, reconstruction, alteration, conversion, repair, maintenance, or use of structures and buildings and installation of equipment therein. "Building regulations" does not include zoning ordinances or other land use controls that do not affect the manner of construction or materials to be used in the erection, alteration, or repair of a building or structure. "Code provisions" means the provisions of the Uniform Statewide Building Code as adopted and promulgated by the Board and the amendments thereof as adopted and promulgated by the Board from time to time. "Construction" means the construction, reconstruction, alteration, repair, or conversion of buildings and structures. "Department" means the Department of Housing and Community Development. "Director" means the Director of the Department of Housing and Community Development. "Equipment" means plumbing, heating, electrical, ventilating, air-conditioning and refrigeration equipment, elevators, dumbwaiters, escalators, and other mechanical additions or installations. "Farm building or structure" means a building or structure not used for residential purposes, located on property where farming operations take place, and used primarily for any of the following uses or combination thereof: 1. Storage, handling, production, display, sampling, or sale of agricultural, horticultural, floricultural, or silvicultural products produced in the farm; 2. Sheltering, raising, handling, processing, or sale of agricultural animals or agricultural animal products; 3. Business or office uses relating to the farm operations; 4. Use of farm machinery or equipment or maintenance or storage of vehicles, machinery, or equipment on the farm; 5. Storage or use of supplies and materials used on the farm; or 6. Implementation of best management practices associated with farm operations. "Local building department" means the agency or agencies of any local governing body charged with the administration, supervision, or enforcement of the Building Code and regulations, approval of plans, inspection of buildings, or issuance of permits, licenses, certificates, or similar documents. "Local governing body" means the governing body of any county, city, or town in the Commonwealth. "Municipality" means any city or town in the Commonwealth. "Owner" means the owner or owners of the freehold of the premises or lesser estate therein, a mortgagee or vendee in possession, assignee of rents, receiver, executor, trustee, or lessee in control of a building or structure. "Review Board" means the State Building Code Technical Review Board. "State agency" means any department, board, bureau, commission, agency, or other unit of state government in the Commonwealth. "Stop work order" means a legally binding written order to immediately cease work on a building or structure that (i) is issued by a local building official to a property owner, the property owner's agent, or the person performing the work; (ii) identifies the specific violations of the Building Code in regard to the work being performed; and (iii) states the conditions under which such work may be resumed. "Structure" means an assembly of materials forming a construction for occupancy or use, including stadiums, gospel and circus tents, reviewing stands, platforms, stagings, observation towers, radio towers, water tanks, underground and aboveground storage tanks, trestles, piers, wharves, swimming pools, amusement devices, storage bins, and other structures of this general nature but excluding water wells. The word "structure" shall be construed as though followed by the words "or part or parts thereof" unless the context clearly requires a different meaning. "Structure" does not include roadway tunnels and bridges owned by the Department of Transportation, which shall be governed by construction and design standards approved by the Commonwealth Transportation Board. 1972, c. 829; 1974, cc. 622, 668; 1975, c. 394; 1977, cc. 423, 613; 1978, c. 703; 1986, c. 401; 1993, c. 662; 1994, c. 256; 1998, c. 755; 2005, c. 341; 2023, cc. 446, 448.

Va. Code § 38.2-111

§ 38.2-111. Miscellaneous property and casualty.A. "Miscellaneous property insurance" means insurance against loss of or damage to property resulting from: 1. Lightning, smoke or smudge, windstorm, tornado, cyclone, earthquake, volcanic eruption, rain, hail, frost and freeze, weather or climatic conditions, excess or deficiency of moisture, flood, the rising of the waters of the ocean or its tributaries; or 2. Insects, blights, or disease of such property other than animals; or 3. Electrical disturbance causing or concomitant with a fire or an explosion; or 4. The ownership, maintenance or use of elevators, except loss or damage by fire. This class of insurance includes the incidental power to make inspections of and to issue certificates of inspection upon any such elevator; or 5. Bombardment, invasion, insurrection, riot, civil war or commotion, military or usurped power, any order of a civil authority made to prevent the spread of a conflagration, epidemic or catastrophe, vandalism or malicious mischief, strike or lockout, collapse from any cause, or explosion; but not including any kind of insurance specified in § 38.2-115, except insurance against loss or damage to property resulting from: a. Explosion of pressure vessels, except steam boilers of more than fifteen pounds pressure, in buildings designed and used solely for residential purposes by not more than four families; b. Explosion of any kind originating outside of the insured building or outside of the building containing the insured property; c. Explosion of pressure vessels not containing steam; or d. Electrical disturbance causing or concomitant with an explosion; or 6. Any other cause or hazard which may result in a loss or damage to property, if the insurance is not contrary to law or public policy. B. "Miscellaneous casualty insurance" means insurance against liability, and against loss, damage, or expense arising out of injury to the economic interests of any person, but not including any class of insurance otherwise specified in this title, provided that such insurance is not contrary to law or public policy, except that any policy of miscellaneous casualty insurance may include appropriate provisions obligating the insurer to pay medical, hospital, surgical, and funeral expenses arising out of the death, dismemberment, sickness, or injury of any person, and death and dismemberment benefits in the event of death or dismemberment, if the death, dismemberment, sickness, or injury is caused by or is incidental to a cause of loss insured under the policy. 1952, c. 317, §§ 38.1-7, 38.1-12; 1986, c. 562; 2004, c. 182; 2007, c. 762.

Va. Code § 38.2-115

§ 38.2-115. Boiler and machinery."Boiler and machinery insurance" means insurance against any liability of the insured and against loss of or damage to any property of the insured resulting from the explosion of or injury to (i) any boiler, heater or other fired pressure vessel; (ii) any unfired pressure vessel; (iii) any pipes or containers connected with any of the boilers or vessels; (iv) any engine, turbine, compressor, pump or wheel; (v) any apparatus generating, transmitting or using electricity; or (vi) any other machinery or apparatus connected with or operated by any of the previously named boilers, vessels or machines. Boiler and machinery insurance includes the incidental power to inspect and to issue certificates of inspection upon any such boilers, pressure vessels, apparatus, and machinery. 1952, c. 317, § 38.1-11; 1986, c. 562.

Va. Code § 38.2-2604

§ 38.2-2604. Qualification for license; net worth; deposit of securities with State Treasurer.A. No license shall be issued to any home protection company unless the applicant: 1. Is a Virginia corporation formed under the provisions of Article 3 (§ 13.1-618 et seq.) of Chapter 9 of Title 13.1, or Article 3 (§ 13.1-818 et seq.) of Chapter 10 of Title 13.1; or 2. Is a foreign corporation subject to regulation and licensing under the laws of its domiciliary jurisdiction which are substantially similar to those provided in this chapter, and has obtained a certificate of authority to transact business in this Commonwealth; 3. Furnishes the Commission with evidence satisfactory to it that the management of the home protection company is competent and trustworthy, and can be reasonably expected to successfully manage the company's affairs in compliance with law; 4. Establishes to the satisfaction of the Commission that it (i) maintains employees or has contractual arrangements sufficient to provide the services or indemnity undertaken by it, and (ii) agrees to accept requests for heating, electrical and plumbing services contracted for twenty-four hours per day, seven days per week; 5. Makes the deposit of bonds or other securities required by this section; 6. Is otherwise in compliance with this chapter; 7. Has filed the required application and paid the required fee; 8. Has paid all fees, taxes, and charges required by law; 9. Has the minimum net worth prescribed by this section; 10. Has filed any financial statement and any reports, certificates, or other documents as the Commission deems necessary to secure a full and accurate knowledge of its affairs and financial condition; and 11. Keeps adequate, correct and complete books and records of accounts and maintains proper accounting controls. B. The Commission shall not issue a license to or renew the license of a home protection company unless it is satisfied that the financial condition, the method of operation, and the manner of doing business enable the home protection company to meet its obligations to all contract holders and that the home protection company has otherwise complied with all the requirements of law. C. A home protection company shall maintain a net worth in an amount not less than 20% of the premiums charged on its contracts currently in force; however, the minimum required net worth shall be not less than $100,000, and the maximum required net worth shall be that amount required of insurers under the provisions of Article 5 (§ 38.2-1024 et seq.) of Chapter 10 of this title. D. No license shall be granted to any home protection company until it presents to the Commission a certificate of the State Treasurer that bonds or other securities have been deposited with him to be held in accordance with the provisions of and upon the terms and conditions and in the amount as provided in Article 7 (§ 38.2-1045 et seq.) of Chapter 10 of this title. 1981, c. 530, § 38.1-934; 1982, c. 132; 1984, c. 640; 1986, c. 562; 2006, c. 634; 2017, c. 727.

Va. Code § 38.2-3318.1

§ 38.2-3318.1. Group life insurance requirements.Except as provided in § 38.2-3319.1, no policy of group life insurance shall be delivered in this Commonwealth unless it conforms to one of the following descriptions: A. A policy issued to an employer, or to the trustees of a fund established by an employer, which employer or trustees shall be deemed the policyholder, to insure employees of the employer for the benefit of persons other than the employer, subject to the following requirements: 1. The employees eligible for insurance under the policy shall be all of the employees of the employer, or all of any class or classes thereof. The policy may provide that the term "employees" include: a. The employees of one or more subsidiary corporations, and the employees, individual proprietors, and partners of one or more affiliated corporations, proprietorships or partnerships if the business of the employer and of such affiliated corporations, proprietorships, or partnerships is under common control; b. The individual proprietor or partners if the employer is an individual proprietorship or partnership; c. Retired employees, former employees and directors of a corporate employer; or d. If the policy is issued to insure the employees of a public body, elected or appointed officials. 2. The premium for the policy shall be paid either from the employer's funds or from funds contributed by the insured employees, or from both. Except as provided in subdivision 3 of this subsection, a policy on which no part of the premium is to be derived from funds contributed by the insured employees must insure all eligible employees, except those who reject such coverage in writing. 3. An insurer may exclude or limit the coverage on any person as to whom evidence of individual insurability is not satisfactory to the insurer. B. A policy which is: 1. Not subject to Chapter 37.1 (§ 38.2-3727 et seq.) of this title, and 2. Issued to a creditor or its parent holding company or to a trustee or trustees or agent designated by two or more creditors, which creditor, holding company, affiliate, trustee, trustees or agent shall be deemed the policyholder, to insure debtors of the creditor, or creditors, subject to the following requirements: a. The debtors eligible for insurance under the policy shall be all of the debtors of the creditor or creditors, or all of any class or classes thereof. The policy may provide that the term "debtors" includes: (1) Borrowers of money or purchasers or lessees of goods, services, or property for which payment is arranged through a credit transaction; (2) The debtors of one or more subsidiary corporations; and (3) The debtors of one or more affiliated corporations, proprietorships, or partnerships if the business of the policyholder and of such affiliated corporations, proprietorships, or partnerships is under common control. b. The premium for the policy shall be paid either from the creditor's funds, or from charges collected from the insured debtors, or from both. Except as provided in subdivision 3 of this subsection, a policy on which no part of the premium is to be derived from the funds contributed by insured debtors specifically for their insurance must insure all eligible debtors. 3. An insurer may exclude any debtors as to whom evidence of individual insurability is not satisfactory to the insurer. 4. The amount of the insurance on the life of any debtor shall at no time exceed the greater of the scheduled or actual amount of unpaid indebtedness to the creditor. 5. The insurance may be payable to the creditor or any successor to the right, title, and interest of the creditor. Such payment shall reduce or extinguish the unpaid indebtedness of the debtor to the extent of such payment and any excess of the insurance shall be payable to the estate of the insured. 6. Notwithstanding the provisions of the above subsections, insurance on agricultural credit transaction commitments may be written up to the amount of the loan commitment on a nondecreasing or level term plan. Insurance on educational credit transaction commitments may be written up to the amount of the loan commitment less the amount of any repayments made on the loan. C. A policy issued to a labor union, or similar employee organization, which shall be deemed to be the policyholder, to insure members of such union or organization for the benefit of persons other than the union or organization or any of its officials, representatives, or agents, subject to the following requirements: 1. The members eligible for insurance under the policy shall be all of the members of the union or organization, or all of any class or classes thereof. 2. The premium for the policy shall be paid either from funds of the union or organization, or from funds contributed by the insured members specifically for their insurance, or from both. Except as provided in subdivision 3 of this subsection, a policy on which no part of the premium is to be derived from funds contributed by the insured members specifically for their insurance must insure all eligible members, except those who reject such coverage in writing. 3. An insurer may exclude or limit the coverage on any person as to whom evidence of individual insurability is not satisfactory to the insurer. D. A policy issued to or for (i) a multiple employer welfare arrangement, a rural electric cooperative, or a rural electric telephone cooperative as these terms are defined in 29 U.S.C. § 1002, or (ii) a trust or to the trustees of a fund established or adopted by two or more employers, or by one or more labor unions or similar employee organizations, or by one or more employers and one or more labor unions or similar employee organizations, which trust or trustees shall be deemed the policyholder, to insure employees of the employers or members of the unions or organizations for the benefit of persons other than the employees or the unions or organizations, subject to the following requirements: 1. The persons eligible for insurance shall be all of the employees of the employers or all of the members of the unions or organizations, or all of any class or classes thereof. The policy may provide that the term employees includes: a. The employees of one or more subsidiary corporations, and the employees, individual proprietors, and partners of one or more affiliated corporations, proprietorships or partnerships if the business of the employer and of such affiliated corporations, proprietorships or partnerships is under common control; b. The individual proprietor or partners if the employer is an individual proprietorship or partnership; c. Retired employees, former employees and directors of a corporate employer; or d. The trustees or their employees, or both, if their duties are principally connected with such trusteeship. 2. The premium for the policy shall be paid from funds contributed by the employer or employers of the insured persons, or by the union or unions or similar employee organizations, or by both, or from funds contributed by the insured persons or from both the insured persons and the employers or unions or similar employee organizations. Except as provided in subdivision 3 of this subsection, a policy on which no part of the premium is to be derived from funds contributed by the insured persons specifically for their insurance must insure all eligible persons, except those who reject such coverage in writing. 3. An insurer may exclude or limit the coverage on any person as to whom evidence of individual insurability is not satisfactory to the insurer. E. 1. A policy issued to an association or to a trust or to the trustees of a fund established, created, or maintained for the benefit of members of one or more associations. The association or associations shall: a. Have at the outset a minimum of 100 persons; b. Have been organized and maintained in good faith for purposes other than that of obtaining insurance; c. Have been in active existence for at least five years; and d. Have a constitution and bylaws which provide that: (i) the association or associations hold regular meetings not less than annually to further purposes of the members, (ii) except for credit unions, the association or associations collect dues or solicit contributions from members, and (iii) the members have voting privileges and representation on the governing board and committees. 2. The policy shall be subject to the following requirements: a. The policy may insure members of such association or associations, employees thereof or employees of members, or one or more of the preceding or all of any class or classes thereof for the benefit of persons other than the employee's employer. b. The premium for the policy shall be paid from funds contributed by the association or associations, or by employer members, or by both, or from funds contributed by the covered persons or from both the covered persons and the association, associations, or employer members. c. Except as provided in clause d of this subdivision, a policy on which no part of the premium is to be derived from funds contributed by the covered persons specifically for the insurance must insure all eligible persons, except those who reject such coverage in writing. d. An insurer may exclude or limit the coverage on any person as to whom evidence of individual insurability is not satisfactory to the insurer. F. A policy issued to a credit union or to a trustee or trustees or agent designated by two or more credit unions, which credit union, trustee, trustees, or agent shall be deemed policyholder, to insure members of such credit union or credit unions for the benefit of persons other than the credit union or credit unions, trustee or trustees, or agent or any of their officials, subject to the following requirements: 1. The members eligible for insurance shall be all of the members of the credit union or credit unions, or all of any class or classes thereof. 2. The premium for the policy shall be paid by the policyholder from the credit union's funds and, except as provided in subdivision 3 of this subsection, must insure all eligible members. 3. An insurer may exclude or limit the coverage on any member as to whom evidence of individual insurability is not satisfactory to the insurer. G. A policy issued to an incorporated association as described in § 38.2-4000, whose principal purpose is to assist its members in (i) financial planning for their funerals and burials and (ii) obtaining insurance for the payment, in whole or in part, for funeral, burial and other expenses. The association shall be deemed the policyholder, to insure the members of the association for the benefit of persons other than the association. The policy shall be subject to the following requirements: 1. A policy may not be issued to an association in which membership is conditioned upon the member's designation at any time of a specific funeral director or cemetery as the beneficiary under the insurance, so as to deprive the representatives or family of the deceased member from, or in any way control them in, obtaining funeral supplies and services in an open competitive market. 2. The policy shall insure members of such association. 3. The premium for the policy shall be paid from funds contributed by the association, or from funds contributed by the covered persons, or both. 4. Except as provided in subdivision 5 of this subsection, a policy on which no part of the premium is to be derived from funds contributed by the covered persons specifically for the insurance must insure all eligible persons except those who reject the coverage in writing. 5. An insurer may exclude or limit the coverage on any person as to whom evidence of individual insurability is not satisfactory to the insurer. 1998, c. 154.

Va. Code § 38.2-3418.15

§ 38.2-3418.15:1. Coverage for prosthetic devices and components.A. As used in this section: "Component" means the materials and equipment needed to ensure the comfort and functioning of a prosthetic device. "Limb" means an arm, a hand, a leg, a foot, or any portion of an arm, a hand, a leg, or a foot. "Medically necessary prosthetic device" includes any myoelectric, biomechanical, or microprocessor-controlled prosthetic device that peer-reviewed medical literature has determined to be medically appropriate on the basis of the clinical assessment of the enrollee's rehabilitation potential. "Prosthetic device" means an artificial device to replace, in whole or in part, a limb. B. Notwithstanding the provisions of § 38.2-3418.15 or 38.2-3419, each insurer proposing to issue group accident and sickness insurance policies providing hospital, medical and surgical, or major medical coverage on an expense-incurred basis, each corporation providing group accident and sickness subscription contracts, and each health maintenance organization providing a health care plan for health care services shall provide coverage for medically necessary prosthetic devices and their repair, fitting, replacement, and components. C. The coverage required under subsection B shall be subject to the following: 1. Coverage for medically necessary prosthetic devices does not include: a. The cost of repair and replacement due to enrollee neglect, misuse, or abuse; or b. Prosthetic devices designed primarily for an athletic purpose. 2. An insurer shall not impose any annual or lifetime dollar maximum on coverage for prosthetic devices other than an annual or lifetime dollar maximum that applies in the aggregate to all items and services covered under the policy. The coverage may be made subject to, and no more restrictive than, the provisions of a health insurance policy that apply to other benefits under the policy. 3. An insurer, corporation, or health maintenance organization shall not apply amounts paid for prosthetic devices to any annual or lifetime dollar maximum applicable to other durable medical equipment covered under the policy other than an annual or lifetime dollar maximum that applies in the aggregate to all items and services covered under the policy. 4. An insurer, corporation, or health maintenance organization shall not impose upon any person receiving benefits pursuant to this section any coinsurance in excess of 30 percent of the carrier's allowable charge for such prosthetic device or service when such device or service is provided by an in-network provider. 5. An insurer, corporation, or health maintenance organization may require preauthorization to determine medical necessity and the eligibility of benefits for prosthetic devices and components in the same manner that prior authorization is required for any other covered benefit. D. The provisions of this section shall apply to any policy, contract, or plan delivered, issued for delivery, or renewed in the Commonwealth on and after January 1, 2023, or at any time thereafter when any term of the policy, contract, or plan is changed or any premium adjustment is made. E. The provisions of this section shall not apply to (i) short-term travel, accident-only, or limited or specified disease policies; (ii) policies, contracts, or plans issued in the individual market or small group markets; (iii) contracts designed for issuance to persons eligible for coverage under Title XVIII of the Social Security Act, known as Medicare, Title XIX of the Social Security Act, known as Medicaid, Title XXI of the Social Security Act, or any other similar coverage under state or federal governmental plans; or (iv) short-term nonrenewable policies of not more than six months' duration. 2022, cc. 598, 599.

Va. Code § 38.2-3521.1

§ 38.2-3521.1. Group accident and sickness insurance definitions.Except as provided in § 38.2-3522.1, no policy of group accident and sickness insurance shall be delivered in this Commonwealth unless it conforms to one of the following descriptions: A. A policy issued to an employer, or to the trustees of a fund established by an employer, which employer or trustees shall be deemed the policyholder, to insure employees of the employer for the benefit of persons other than the employer, subject to the following requirements: 1. The employees eligible for insurance under the policy shall be all of the employees of the employer, or all of any class or classes thereof. The policy may provide that the term "employees" shall include the employees of one or more subsidiary corporations, and the employees, individual proprietors, and partners of one or more affiliated corporations, proprietorships or partnerships if the business of the employer and of such affiliated corporations, proprietorships or partnerships is under common control. The policy may provide that the term "employees" shall include retired employees, former employees and directors of a corporate employer. A policy issued to insure the employees of a public body may provide that the term "employees" shall include elected or appointed officials. 2. The premium for the policy shall be paid either from the employer's funds or from funds contributed by the insured employees, or from both. Except as provided in subdivision 3, a policy on which no part of the premium is to be derived from funds contributed by the insured employees must insure all eligible employees, except those who reject such coverage in writing. 3. An insurer may exclude or limit the coverage on any person as to whom evidence of individual insurability is not satisfactory to the insurer, except as otherwise prohibited in this title. B. A policy that is: 1. Not subject to Chapter 37.1 (§ 38.2-3727 et seq.): and 2. Issued to a creditor or its parent holding company or to a trustee or trustees or agent designated by two or more creditors, which creditor, holding company, affiliate, trustee, trustees or agent shall be deemed the policyholder, to insure debtors of the creditor or creditors with respect to their indebtedness, subject to the following requirements: a. The debtors eligible for insurance under the policy shall be all of the debtors of the creditor or creditors, or all of any class or classes thereof. The policy may provide that the term "debtors" shall include: (1) Borrowers of money or purchasers or lessees of goods, services, or property for which payment is arranged through a credit transaction; (2) The debtors of one or more subsidiary corporations; and (3) The debtors of one or more affiliated corporations, proprietorships or partnerships if the business of the policyholder and of such affiliated corporations, proprietorships or partnerships is under common control. b. The premium for the policy shall be paid either from the creditor's funds, or from charges collected from the insured debtors, or from both. Except as provided in subdivision 3, a policy on which no part of the premium is to be derived from funds contributed by insured debtors specifically for their insurance must insure all eligible debtors. 3. An insurer may exclude any debtors as to whom evidence of individual insurability is not satisfactory to the insurer. 4. The total amount of insurance payable with respect to an indebtedness shall not exceed the greater of the scheduled or actual amount of unpaid indebtedness to the creditor. The insurer may exclude any payments that are delinquent on the date the debtor becomes disabled as defined in the policy. 5. The insurance may be payable to the creditor or any successor to the right, title, and interest of the creditor. Such payment or payments shall reduce or extinguish the unpaid indebtedness of the debtor to the extent of each such payment and any excess of the insurance shall be payable to the insured or the estate of the insured. 6. Notwithstanding the preceding provisions of this section, insurance on agricultural credit transaction commitments may be written up to the amount of the loan commitment. Insurance on educational credit transaction commitments may be written up to the amount of the loan commitment less the amount of any repayments made on the loan. C. A policy issued to a labor union, or similar employee organization, which labor union or organization shall be deemed to be the policyholder, to insure members of such union or organization for the benefit of persons other than the union or organization or any of its officials, representatives, or agents, subject to the following requirements: 1. The members eligible for insurance under the policy shall be all of the members of the union or organization, or all of any class or classes thereof. 2. The premium for the policy shall be paid from either funds of the union or organization, or from funds contributed by the insured members specifically for their insurance, or from both. Except as provided in subdivision 3, a policy on which no part of the premium is to be derived from funds contributed by the insured members specifically for their insurance must insure all eligible members, except those who reject such coverage in writing. 3. An insurer may exclude or limit the coverage on any person as to whom evidence of individual insurability is not satisfactory to the insurer, except as otherwise prohibited in this title. D. A policy issued (i) to or for a multiple employer welfare arrangement, a rural electric cooperative, or a rural electric telephone cooperative as these terms are defined in 29 U.S.C. § 1002, or (ii) to a trust, or to the trustees of a fund, established or adopted by or for two or more employers, or by one or more labor unions of similar employee organizations, or by one or more employers and one or more labor unions or similar employee organizations, which trust or trustees shall be deemed the policyholder, to insure employees of the employers or members of the unions or organizations for the benefit of persons other than the employers or the unions or organizations, subject to the following requirements: 1. The persons eligible for insurance shall be all of the employees of the employers or all of the members of the unions or organizations, or all of any class or classes thereof. The policy may provide that the term "employee" shall include the employees of one or more subsidiary corporations, and the employees, individual proprietors, and partners of one or more affiliated corporations, proprietorships or partnerships if the business of the employer and of such affiliated corporations, proprietorships or partnerships is under common control. The policy may provide that the term "employees" shall include retired employees, former employees and directors of a corporate employer. The policy may provide that the term "employees" shall include the trustees or their employees, or both, if their duties are principally connected with such trusteeship. 2. The premium for the policy shall be paid from funds contributed by the employer or employers of the insured persons, or by the union or unions or similar employee organizations, or by both, or from funds contributed by the insured persons or from both the insured persons and the employers or unions or similar employee organizations. Except as provided in subdivision 3, a policy on which no part of the premium is to be derived from funds contributed by the insured persons specifically for their insurance must insure all eligible persons, except those who reject such coverage in writing. 3. An insurer may exclude or limit the coverage on any person as to whom evidence of individual insurability is not satisfactory to the insurer, except as otherwise prohibited in this title. E. A policy issued to an association or to a trust or to the trustees of a fund established, created, or maintained for the benefit of members of one or more associations which association or trust shall be deemed the policyholder. 1. The association or associations shall: a. Have at the outset a minimum of 100 persons; b. Have been organized and maintained in good faith for purposes other than that of obtaining insurance; c. Have been in active existence for at least five years; d. Have a constitution and bylaws which provide that (i) the association or associations hold regular meetings not less than annually to further purposes of the members, (ii) except for credit unions, the association or associations collect dues or solicit contributions from members, and (iii) the members have voting privileges and representation on the governing board and committees; e. Does not condition membership in the association on any health status-related factor relating to an individual (including an employee of an employer or a dependent of an employee); f. Makes health insurance coverage offered through the association available to all members regardless of any health status-related factor relating to such members (or individuals eligible for coverage through a member); g. Does not make health insurance coverage offered through the association available other than in connection with a member of the association; and h. Meets such additional requirements as may be imposed under the laws of this Commonwealth. 2. The policy shall be subject to the following requirements: a. The policy may insure members of such association or associations, employees thereof or employees of members, or one or more of the preceding or all of any class or classes thereof for the benefit of persons other than the employee's employer. b. The premium for the policy shall be paid from funds contributed by the association or associations, or by employer members, or by both, or from funds contributed by the covered persons or from both the covered persons and the association, associations, or employer members. 3. Except as provided in subdivision 4, a policy on which no part of the premium is to be derived from funds contributed by the covered persons specifically for their insurance must insure all eligible persons, except those who reject such coverage in writing. 4. An insurer may exclude or limit the coverage on any person as to whom evidence of individual insurability is not satisfactory to the insurer, except as otherwise prohibited in this title. 5. For a policy issued in the large group market and notwithstanding the provisions of § 38.2-3449, an insurer may (i) establish base rates formed on an actuarially sound, modified community rating methodology that considers the pooling of all participant claims and (ii) utilize each employer member's specific risk profile to determine contribution rates for each individual employer member's share of the premium by actuarially adjusting above or below established base rates. F. A policy issued to a credit union or to a trustee or trustees or agent designated by two or more credit unions, which credit union, trustee, trustees, or agent shall be deemed the policyholder, to insure members of such credit union or credit unions for the benefit of persons other than the credit union or credit unions, trustee or trustees, or agent or any of their officials, subject to the following requirements: 1. The members eligible for insurance shall be all of the members of the credit union or credit unions, or all of any class or classes thereof. 2. The premium for the policy shall be paid by the policyholder from the credit union's funds and, except as provided in subdivision 3, must insure all eligible members. 3. An insurer may exclude or limit the coverage on any person as to whom evidence of individual insurability is not satisfactory to the insurer. G. Notwithstanding the provisions of subsection J, a policy issued to an association of real estate salespersons, as defined in § 54.1-2100, which association shall be deemed the policyholder, to insure members of such association, subject to the following requirements: 1. All of the members of such association shall be eligible for coverage. Members shall include (i) an employer member with at least one employee that is domiciled in the Commonwealth or (ii) a self-employed individual who (a) has an ownership right in a "trade or business," regardless of whether the trade or business is incorporated or unincorporated, (b) earns wages or self-employment income from the trade or business, and (c) works at least 20 hours a week or 80 hours a month providing personal services to the trade or business or earns income from the trade or business that at least equals the self-employed individual's cost of the health coverage. 2. The association shall (i) have at the outset a minimum of 25,000 members, (ii) have been organized and maintained in good faith for purposes other than that of obtaining insurance, (iii) have been in active existence for at least five years, and (iv) have a constitution and bylaws that provide that (a) the association hold regular meetings not less than annually to further purposes of the members, (b) the association collects dues or solicits contributions from members, and (c) the members have voting privileges and representation on the governing board and committees. 3. In no case shall membership in the association be conditioned on any health status-related factor relating to an individual, including an employee of an employer or a dependent of an employee. 4. The health insurance coverage offered through the association shall be available to all members regardless of any health status-related factor relating to such members or individuals eligible for coverage through a member. 5. The association shall not make health insurance coverage offered through the association available other than in connection with a member of the association. 6. The premium for the policy shall be paid from funds contributed by the association or by employer members, or by both, or from funds contributed by the covered persons or from both the covered persons and the association or employer members. 7. The policy issued to such an association shall (i) be considered a large group market plan subject to all coverage mandates applicable to a large group market plan offered in the Commonwealth and the large group market insurance regulations under the federal Public Health Service Act, P.L. 78-410, as amended; (ii) be subject to the group health plan coverage requirements under the federal Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, P.L. 111-148, as amended; (iii) be prohibited from denying coverage under the policy on the basis of a preexisting condition as set forth in § 38.2-3444; (iv) be guaranteed issue and guaranteed renewable; (v) notwithstanding the provisions of subsection A of § 38.2-3451 providing that a large group market plan is not required to provide coverage for essential health benefits in a manner that exceeds the requirements of the federal Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, P.L. 111-148, as amended, as of January 1, 2019, be subject to the requirements to provide essential health benefits and cost-sharing requirements as set forth in § 38.2-3451; and (vi) offer a minimum level of coverage designed to provide benefits that are actuarially equivalent to 60 percent of the full actuarial value of the benefits provided under the plan. 8. The insurer issuing such a policy shall (i) treat all of the members and employees of employer members who are enrolled in coverage under the policy as a single risk pool; (ii) set premiums on the basis of all of the collective group experience of the members and employees of employer members who are enrolled in coverage under the policy; (iii) be permitted to vary premiums by age, but such rate shall not vary by more than four to one for adults; (iv) be prohibited from varying premiums on the basis of gender; (v) be prohibited from varying premiums on the basis of the health status of an individual employee of an employer member or a self-employed individual member; and (vi) not establish discriminatory rules based on the health status of an employer member, an individual employee of an employer member, or a self-employed individual for eligibility or contribution. 9. A policy that meets the requirements of subdivisions 7 and 8 shall be considered to be compliant with the large group market insurance regulations under the federal Public Health Service Act, P.L. 78-410, as amended, and, as such, the Commonwealth, through the regulation of such policy by the Commission, shall be considered to be substantially enforcing the federal Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, P.L. 111-148, as amended, with regard to such policy. The Commission shall regulate the policy in a manner that is consistent with this subdivision. In any case in which a federal agency renders a decision that is contrary to the provisions of this subdivision, notwithstanding any other provision of law, the Attorney General may resolve any difference between federal law and the laws of the Commonwealth. H. A policy issued to a health maintenance organization as provided in subsection B of § 38.2-4314. I. A policy of blanket insurance issued in accordance with § 38.2-3521.2. J. The provisions of this section shall not apply in any instance in which the provisions of this section are inconsistent or in conflict with a provision of Article 6 (§ 38.2-3438 et seq.) of Chapter 34. 1998, c. 154; 2013, c. 751; 2014, c. 350; 2022, cc. 349, 350; 2023, cc. 514, 515; 2024, cc. 459, 621.

Va. Code § 40.1-51.5

§ 40.1-51.5. Short title; definitions.As used in this chapter, which may be cited as the Boiler and Pressure Vessel Safety Act, the following terms shall have the meanings set forth in this section unless the context requires a different meaning: (a) "Boiler" means a closed vessel in which water is heated, steam is generated, steam is superheated, or any combination thereof, under pressure or vacuum for use externally to itself by the direct application of heat from the combustion of fuels, or from electricity or nuclear energy. The term "boiler" shall include fired units for heating or vaporizing liquids other than water where these units are separate from processing systems and are complete within themselves. 1. "Power boiler" means a boiler in which steam or other vapor is generated at a pressure of more than fifteen pounds per square inch gauge pressure. 2. "High pressure, high temperature water boiler" means a water boiler operating at pressures exceeding 160 pounds per square inch gauge pressure or temperatures exceeding 250 degrees Fahrenheit. 3. "Heating boiler" means a steam or vapor boiler operating at pressures not exceeding 15 pounds per square inch gauge pressure, or a hot water boiler operating at pressures not exceeding 160 pounds per square inch gauge pressure or temperature not exceeding 250 degrees Fahrenheit. (b) "Unfired pressure vessel"means a vessel in which the pressure is obtained from an external source or by the application of heat from an indirect source or from a direct source, other than those vessels defined in subdivision (a) of this section. (c) "Certificate inspection" means an inspection, the report of which is used by the Chief Inspector to decide whether or not a certificate as provided by § 40.1-51.10 may be issued. This certificate inspection shall be an internal inspection when construction permits; otherwise, it shall be as complete an inspection as possible. (d) "Board" means the Safety and Health Codes Board. (e) "Owner-user inspection agency" means any person, firm, partnership or corporation registered with the Chief Inspector and approved by the Board as being legally responsible for inspecting pressure vessels which they operate in Virginia. (f) "Examining Board" means persons appointed by the Chief Inspector to monitor examinations of inspectors. (g) "Water heater" means a vessel used to supply (i) potable hot water or (ii) both space heat and potable water in combination which is directly heated by the combustion of fuels, by electricity or any other source and withdrawn for use external to the system at pressures not to exceed 160 pounds per square inch, or temperatures of 210 degrees Fahrenheit. (h) "Contract fee inspector" means any certified boiler inspector contracted to inspect boilers or pressure vessels on an independent basis by the owner or operator of the boiler or pressure vessel. 1972, c. 237; 1974, c. 195; 1986, c. 211; 1993, c. 543; 1996, c. 294.

Va. Code § 40.1-51.8

§ 40.1-51.8. Exemptions.The provisions of this article shall not apply to any of the following: 1. Boilers or unfired pressure vessels owned or operated by the federal government or any agency thereof; 2. Boilers or fired or unfired pressure vessels used in or on the property of private residences or apartment houses of less than four apartments; 3. Boilers of railroad companies maintained on railborne vehicles or those used to propel waterborne vessels; 4. Hobby or model boilers as defined in § 40.1-51.19:1; 5. Hot water supply boilers, water heaters, and unfired pressure vessels used as hot water supply storage tanks heated by steam or any other indirect means when the following limitations are not exceeded: a. A heat input of 200,000 British thermal units per hour; b. A water temperature of 210° Fahrenheit; c. A water-containing capacity of 120 gallons; 6. Unfired pressure vessels containing air only which are located on vehicles or vessels designed and used primarily for transporting passengers or freight; 7. Unfired pressure vessels containing air only, installed on the right-of-way of railroads and used directly in the operation of trains; 8. Unfired pressure vessels used for containing water under pressure when either of the following are not exceeded: a. A design pressure of 300 psi; or b. A design temperature of 210° Fahrenheit; 9. Unfired pressure vessels containing water in combination with air pressure, the compression of which serves only as a cushion, that do not exceed: a. A design pressure of 300 psi; b. A design temperature of 210° Fahrenheit; or c. A water-containing capacity of 120 gallons; 10. Unfired pressure vessels containing air only, providing the volume does not exceed eight cubic feet nor the operating pressure is not greater than 175 pounds; 11. Unfired pressure vessels having an operating pressure not exceeding fifteen pounds with no limitation on size; 12. Pressure vessels that do not exceed: a. Five cubic feet in volume and 250 pounds per square inch gauge pressure; b. One and one-half cubic feet in volume and 600 pounds per square inch gauge pressure; and c. An inside diameter of six inches with no limitations on gauge pressure; 13. Pressure vessels used for transportation or storage of compressed gases when constructed in compliance with the specifications of the United States Department of Transportation and when charged with gas marked, maintained, and periodically requalified for use, as required by appropriate regulations of the United States Department of Transportation; 14. Stationary American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME) LP-Gas containers used exclusively in propane service with a capacity that does not exceed 2,000 gallons if the owner of the container or the owner's servicing agent: a. Conducts an inspection of the container not less frequently than every five years, in which all visible parts of the container, including insulation or coating, structural attachments, and vessel connections, are inspected for corrosion, distortion, cracking, evidence of leakage, fire damage, or other condition indicating impairment; b. Maintains a record of the most recent inspection of the container conducted in accordance with subdivision a; and c. Makes the records required to be maintained in accordance with subdivision b available for inspection by the Commissioner; 15. Unfired pressure vessels used in and as a part of electric substations owned or operated by an electric utility, provided such electric substation is enclosed, locked, and inaccessible to the public; or 16. Coil type hot water boilers without any steam space where water flashes into steam when released through a manually operated nozzle, unless steam is generated within the coil or unless one of the following limitations is exceeded: a. Three-fourths inch diameter tubing or pipe size with no drums or headers attached; b. Nominal water containing capacity not exceeding six gallons; and c. Water temperature not exceeding 350° Fahrenheit. 1972, c. 237; 1977, c. 301; 1978, c. 355; 1986, c. 211; 1988, c. 289; 1990, c. 226; 1993, c. 543; 1999, c. 335; 2000, c. 898; 2012, c. 332; 2013, c. 171.

Va. Code § 40.1-71

§ 40.1-71. Notice of proposed termination or modification of collective bargaining contract; notice prior to work stoppage; injunctions and penalties.Whenever there is in effect a collective bargaining contract covering employees of any utility engaged in the business of furnishing water, light, heat, gas, electric power, transportation or communication, the utility or the collective bargaining agent recognized by the utility and its employees shall not terminate or modify such contract until the party desiring such termination or modification serves written notice upon the Department of the proposed termination or modification at least thirty days prior to the expiration date thereof or, in the event such contract contains no expiration date, at least thirty days prior to the date it is proposed to make such termination or modification; provided, however, that a party having given notice of modification as provided herein shall not be required to give a notice of termination of the same contract. Where there is no collective bargaining contract in effect, the utility or its employees shall give at least thirty days' notice to the Department prior to any work stoppage which would affect the operations of the utility engaged in the business of furnishing any of the utilities as described in this section. If the utility or its employees, or the collective bargaining agent recognized by the utility and its employees, as the case may be, fails to give thirty days' notice as required by this section, the utility or its employees or such collective bargaining agent, as the case may be, may file a bill of complaint with the clerk of the circuit court having equity jurisdiction over the place of employment asking the court to temporarily enjoin such termination, modification or work stoppage until the proper notice has been served and the thirty-day period has been observed. The court shall have the authority to impose against any person who violates the notice provisions of this section a fine of up to $100 for each day such termination, modification or work stoppage continues until proper notice has been served and observed or against the collective bargaining agent the court shall have the authority to impose a fine of up to $1,000 for each day such termination or modification continues until proper notice has been served and observed. Code 1950, § 40-95.2; 1952, c. 697; 1966, c. 92; 1970, c. 321; 1979, c. 515.

Va. Code § 43-3

§ 43-3. Lien for work done and materials furnished; waiver of right to file or enforce lien.A. All persons performing labor or furnishing materials of the value of $150 or more, including the reasonable rental or use value of equipment, for the construction, removal, repair or improvement of any building or structure permanently annexed to the freehold, and all persons performing any labor or furnishing materials of like value for the construction of any railroad, shall have a lien, if perfected as hereinafter provided, upon such building or structure, and so much land therewith as shall be necessary for the convenient use and enjoyment thereof, and upon such railroad and franchises for the work done and materials furnished, subject to the provisions of § 43-20. But when the claim is for repairs or improvements to existing structures only, no lien shall attach to the property repaired or improved unless such repairs or improvements were ordered or authorized by the owner, or his agent. If the building or structure being constructed, removed or repaired is part of a condominium as defined in § 55.1-1900 or under the Horizontal Property Act (§ 55.1-2000 et seq.), any person providing labor or furnishing material to one or more units or limited common elements within the condominium pursuant to a single contract may perfect a single lien encumbering the one or more units which are the subject of the contract or to which those limited common elements pertain, and for which payment has not been made. All persons providing labor or furnishing materials for the common elements pertaining to all the units may perfect a single lien encumbering all such condominium units. Whenever a lien has been or may be perfected encumbering two or more units, the proportionate amount of the indebtedness attributable to each unit shall be the ratio that the percentage liability for common expenses appertaining to that unit computed pursuant to subsection D of § 55.1-1964 bears to the total percentage liabilities for all units which are encumbered by the lien. The lien claimant shall release from a perfected lien an encumbered unit upon request of the unit owner as provided in subsection B of § 55.1-1908 upon receipt of payment equal to that portion of the indebtedness evidenced by the lien attributable to such unit determined as herein provided. In the event the lien is not perfected, the lien claimant shall upon request of any interested party execute lien releases for one or more units upon receipt of payment equal to that portion of the indebtedness attributable to such unit or units determined as herein provided but no such release shall preclude the lien claimant from perfecting a single lien against the unreleased unit or units for the remaining portion of the indebtedness. B. Any person providing labor or materials for site development improvements or for streets, stormwater facilities, sanitary sewers or water lines for the purpose of providing access or service to the individual lots in a development or condominium units as defined in § 55.1-1900 or under the Horizontal Property Act (§ 55.1-2000 et seq.) shall have a lien on each individual lot in the development for the fractional part of the total value of the work contracted for by the claimant in the subdivision as is obtained by using "one" as the numerator and the number of lots being developed as the denominator and in the case of a condominium on each individual unit in an amount computed by reference to the liability of that unit for common expenses appertaining to that condominium pursuant to subsection D of § 55.1-1964, provided, however, that no such lien shall be valid as to any lot or condominium unit unless the person providing such work shall, prior to the sale of such lot or condominium unit, file with the clerk of the circuit court of the jurisdiction in which such land lies a document setting forth a full disclosure of the nature of the lien which may be claimed, the total value of the work contracted for by the claimant in the subdivision and the portion thereof allocated to each lot as required herein, and a description of the development or condominium, and shall, thereafter, comply with all other applicable provisions of this chapter. "Site development improvements" means improvements which are provided for the development, such as project site grading, traffic signalization, and installation of electric, gas, cable, or other utilities, for the benefit of the development rather than for an individual lot. In determining the individual lots in the development for the purpose of allocating value of the work contracted for by the claimant, parcels of land within the development which are common area, or which are being developed for the benefit of the development as a whole and not for resale, shall not be included in the denominator of the disclosure statement. Nothing contained herein shall be construed to prevent the filing of a mechanics' lien under the provisions of subsection A, or require the lien claimant to elect under which subsection the lien may be enforced. C. Any right to file or enforce any mechanics' lien granted hereunder may be waived in whole or in part at any time by any person entitled to such lien, except that a general contractor, subcontractor, lower-tier subcontractor, or material supplier may not waive or diminish his lien rights in a contract in advance of furnishing any labor, services, or materials. A provision that waives or diminishes a general contractor's, subcontractor's, lower-tier subcontractor's, or material supplier's lien rights in a contract executed prior to providing any labor, services, or materials is null and void. In the event that payments are made to the contractor without designating to which lot the payments are to be applied, the payments shall be deemed to apply to any lot previously sold by the developer such that the remaining lots continue to bear liability for an amount up to but not exceeding the amount set forth in any disclosure statement filed under the provisions of subsection B. D. A person who performs labor without a valid license or certificate issued by the Board for Contractors pursuant to Chapter 11 (§ 54.1-1100 et seq.) of Title 54.1, or without the proper class of license for the value of the work to be performed, when such a license or certificate is required by law for the labor performed shall not be entitled to a lien pursuant to this section. Code 1919, § 6426; 1922, p. 867; 1932, p. 332; 1968, c. 568; 1979, cc. 360, 542; 1980, c. 449; 1992, cc. 72, 779, 787; 2002, c. 273; 2004, c. 240; 2010, c. 343; 2012, c. 523; 2013, c. 293; 2015, c. 748; 2018, cc. 79, 325.

Va. Code § 44-146.29

§ 44-146.29:4. Disconnection suspension for certain utilities.In the case of any state of emergency declared by the Governor in response to a communicable disease of public health threat, each utility that is engaged in the business of furnishing electricity, gas, water, or wastewater service and subject to the regulation of the State Corporation Commission or owned or operated by a municipality shall be suspended from disconnecting service to residential customers for nonpayment of bills or fees for 30 days upon the declaration of such emergency. 2024, cc. 790, 824. Chapter 3.3. Transportation of Hazardous Radioactive Materials.

Va. Code § 44-146.31

§ 44-146.31. Definitions.As used in this chapter, unless the context requires a different meaning: "Department" means the Department of Emergency Management. "Nuclear power station" means a facility producing electricity through the utilization of nuclear energy for sale to the public which is required to be licensed by the Nuclear Regulatory Commission and includes all units of the facility at a single site. "Person" means any individual, corporation, partnership, firm, association, trust, estate, public or private institution, group, agency, political subdivision or agency thereof, and any legal successor, representative, agent or agency of the foregoing. 1982, c. 222; 2000, c. 309.

Va. Code § 45.2-1101

§ 45.2-1101. Definitions.As used in the Mineral Mine Safety Act and in regulations adopted under the Act, unless the context requires a different meaning: "Abandoned area" means the inaccessible area of an underground mine that is sealed or ventilated and in which further mining is not intended. "Accident" means (i) a death of an individual at a mine; (ii) a serious personal injury; (iii) an entrapment of an individual for more than 30 minutes; (iv) an unplanned inundation of a mine by liquid or gas; (v) an unplanned ignition or explosion of gas or dust; (vi) an unplanned mine fire not extinguished within 30 minutes of discovery; (vii) an unplanned ignition or explosion of a blasting agent or an explosive; (viii) an unplanned roof fall at or above the anchorage zone in active workings where roof bolts are in use, or an unplanned roof or rib fall in active workings that impairs ventilation or impedes passage; (ix) a rock outburst that causes withdrawal of miners or that disrupts regular mining activity for more than one hour; (x) an unstable condition at a water or silt retaining dam or mine refuse pile that requires emergency action in order to prevent failure or causes individuals to evacuate an area, or failure of such retaining dam or refuse pile; (xi) damage to hoisting equipment in a shaft or slope that endangers an individual or interferes with use of the equipment for more than 30 minutes; and (xii) an event at a mine that causes death or serious personal injury to any individual not at a mine at the time the event occurs. "Active area" means any place in a mine that is ventilated, if underground, and examined regularly. "Active workings" means any place in a mine where miners are normally required to work or travel. "Agent" means any person charged by the operator with responsibility for the operation of all or a part of a mine or the supervision of miners in a mine. "Approved" means, with reference to a device, apparatus, equipment, condition, method, course, or practice, approved in writing by the Director. "Approved competent person" means a person with more than two years of experience designated by the Department as having the authority to function as a mine foreman even though the person has less than five years of experience. If an approved competent person meets all the criteria for certification as a mine foreman other than the experience criteria, he may perform the duties of a mine foreman except the pre-shift examination. "Armored cable" means a cable provided with a wrapping of metal, plastic, or other approved material. "Authorized person" means a person who is assigned by the operator or agent to perform a specific type of duty or to be at a specific location in the mine and is task-trained in accordance with requirements of the federal mine safety law. "Blower fan" means a fan with tubing used to direct part of a particular circuit of air to a working place. "Booster fan" means an underground fan installed in conjunction with a main fan to increase the volume of air in one or more circuits. "Cable" means (i) a stranded conductor, known as single-conductor cable, or (ii) a combination of conductors insulated from one another, known as multiple-conductor cable. "Certified person" means a person who holds a valid certificate from the Department authorizing him to perform the particular task to which he is assigned. "Circuit" means a conducting part or a system of conducting parts through which an electric current is intended to flow. "Circuit breaker" means a device for interrupting a circuit between separable contacts under normal or abnormal conditions. "Competent person" means a person having abilities and experience that fully qualify him to perform the particular duty to which he is assigned. "Cross entry" means any entry or set of entries, turned from main entries, from which room entries are turned. "Division" means the Division of Mineral Mining. "Experienced surface miner" means a person with more than six months of experience working at a surface mine or the surface area of an underground mine. "Experienced underground miner" means a person with more than six months of underground mining experience. "Federal mine safety law" means the Federal Mine Safety and Health Act of 1977 (P.L. 91-173, as amended by P.L. 95-164) and regulations adopted thereunder. "Fuse" means an overcurrent protective device with a circuit-opening fusible member directly heated and destroyed by the passage of overcurrent through it. "Ground" means a conducting connection between an electric circuit or electrical equipment and earth or some conducting body that serves in place of earth. "Grounded" means connected to earth or to some connecting body that serves in place of earth. "Hazardous condition" means a condition that is likely to cause death or serious personal injury to a person exposed to such condition. "Imminent danger" means the existence of any condition or practice in a mine that could reasonably be expected to cause death or serious personal injury before such condition or practice can be abated. "Inactive mine" means a mine (i) at which (a) coal or minerals have not been excavated or processed or (b) work, other than examination by a certified person or emergency work to preserve the mine, has not been performed for a period of 30 days at an underground mine or for a period of 60 days at a surface mine; (ii) for which a valid license is in effect; and (iii) at which reclamation activities have not been completed. "Independent contractor" means any person who contracts to perform services or construction at a mine. "Intake air" means air that has not passed through the last active working place of the split or by the unsealed entrance to an abandoned area and by analysis contains at least 19.5 percent oxygen and not more than 0.5 percent carbon dioxide and does not contain a hazardous quantity of flammable gas or a harmful quantity of poisonous gas. "Interested persons" means members of the mine safety committee and other duly authorized representatives of the employees at a mine, MSHA employees, mine inspectors, and, to the extent required by the Act, any other person. "Licensed operator" means the operator who has obtained the license for a particular mine under § 45.2-1124. "Main entry" means the principal entry or set of entries driven through the coal bed or mineral deposit and from which cross entries, room entries, or rooms are turned. "Mine" means any underground mineral mine or surface mineral mine. Mines that are adjacent to each other and under the same management and that are administered as distinct units are considered separate mines. A site is not considered a mine unless the mineral extracted or excavated from it is offered for sale or exchange or used for any other commercial purpose. "Mine fire" means an unplanned fire not extinguished within 30 minutes of discovery. "Mine foreman" means a person who holds a valid certificate of qualification as a foreman issued by the Department. "Mine inspector" means a public employee assigned by the Director to make mine inspections as required by the Mineral Mine Safety Act or other applicable law. "Miner" means any individual working in a mineral mine. "Mineral" means clay, stone, sand, gravel, metalliferous or nonmetalliferous ore, or any other solid material or substance of commercial value excavated in solid form from a natural deposit on or in the earth, exclusive of coal and any mineral that occurs naturally in liquid or gaseous form. "Mineral mine" means a surface mineral mine or an underground mineral mine. "Mineral Mine Safety Act" or "the Act" means this chapter and Chapters 14 (§ 45.2-1400 et seq.) and 15 (§ 45.2-1500 et seq.) and includes any regulations adopted thereunder, where applicable. "Mine Safety and Health Administration" or "MSHA" means the federal Mine Safety and Health Administration. "Operator" means any person who operates, controls, or supervises a mine or any independent contractor performing services or construction at a mine. "Panel entry" means a room entry. "Permissible" means any device, process, equipment, or method classified at any time as permissible by MSHA, when such classification is adopted by the Director. "Permissible" includes, unless otherwise herein expressly stated, any requirement, restriction, exception, limitation, or condition attached to such classification by MSHA. "Return air" means air that has passed through (i) the last active working place on each split or (ii) an abandoned or worked-out area. No area within a panel shall be deemed abandoned until it is inaccessible or sealed. "Room entry" means any entry or set of entries from which a room is turned. "Serious personal injury" means any injury that (i) has a reasonable potential to cause death or (ii) is other than a sprain or strain and requires an admission to a hospital for 24 hours or more for medical treatment. "Substation" means an electrical installation containing generating or power-conversion equipment and associated electric equipment and parts, such as switchboards, switches, wiring, fuses, circuit breakers, compensators, and transformers. "Surface mineral mine" means (i) the pit and any other active or inactive area of surface extraction of minerals; (ii) any onsite mill, shop, loadout facility, or related structure appurtenant to the excavation and processing of minerals; (iii) any impoundment, water or silt retaining dam, tailing pond, mine refuse pile, or other area appurtenant to the extraction of minerals from the site; (iv) any onsite surface area for the transportation or storage of minerals excavated at the site; (v) equipment, machinery, tools, and other property used in, or to be used in, the work of extracting minerals from the site; (vi) any private way or road appurtenant to such area; and (vii) any area used for surface-disturbing exploration, other than by drilling or seismic testing, or for preparation of a site for surface mineral extraction activity. A site shall commence being a surface mineral mine upon the beginning of any surface-disturbing exploration activity other than exploratory drilling or seismic testing and shall cease to be a surface mineral mine upon completion of initial reclamation activities. The surface extraction of a mineral shall not constitute surface mineral mining unless the mineral (a) is extracted for its unique or intrinsic characteristics or (b) requires processing prior to its intended use. Excavation or grading when conducted solely in aid of onsite farming or construction shall not constitute a surface mineral mine. Such exemption shall not be construed to limit a landowner in a one-time construction or expansion of a farm pond for agricultural irrigation or provision of water for livestock to beneficially reuse the soil or sand, provided that such pond construction or expansion project (1) is a one-time activity on that parcel of land, (2) is completed within one year, (3) results in a pond that is less than three acres in total, and (4) has all necessary permits and local approvals in place before such activity begins. "Travel way" means a passage, walk, or way regularly used and designated for persons to use in going from one place to another. "Underground mineral mine" means (i) the working face and any other active or inactive area of underground excavation of minerals; (ii) any underground travel way, shaft, slope, drift, incline, or tunnel connected to such area; (iii) any onsite mill, loadout area, shop, or related facility appurtenant to the excavation and processing of minerals; (iv) any onsite surface area for the transportation or storage of minerals excavated at the site; (v) any impoundment, retention dam, tailing pond, or waste area appurtenant to the excavation of minerals from the site; (vi) equipment, machinery, tools, and other property, on the surface or underground, used in, or to be used in, the excavation of minerals from the site; (vii) any private way or road appurtenant to such area; and (viii) any area used to prepare a site for underground mineral excavation activities. A site commences being an underground mineral mine upon the beginning of any site preparation activity other than exploratory drilling or other exploration activity and ceases to be an underground mineral mine upon completion of initial reclamation activities. "Work area," as used in Chapter 9 (§ 45.2-900 et seq.), means an area of a mine in production or being prepared for production or an area of a mine that may pose a danger to miners at such area in production or being prepared for production. "Working face" means any place in a mine in which work of extracting minerals from their natural deposit in the earth is performed during the mining cycle. "Working place" means the area of an underground mine inby the last open crosscut. "Working section" means the portion of a mine encompassing all areas from the loading point of a section to and including the working faces. 1997, c. 390, § 45.1-161.292:2; 1998, c. 695; 2012, cc. 803, 835; 2021, Sp. Sess. I, c. 387; 2025, cc. 390, 405.

Va. Code § 45.2-1110

§ 45.2-1110. Qualifications of mine inspectors.Each mine inspector conducting inspections of mineral mines shall have a thorough knowledge of the various systems of working and ventilating underground mineral mines and working surface mineral mines, the control of mine roof and ground control, methods of rescue and recovery in mining operations, the application of electricity and mechanical loading in mining operations, equipment and explosives used in mining, and mine haulage. 1997, c. 390, § 45.1-161.292:12; 2021, Sp. Sess. I, c. 387.

Va. Code § 45.2-1112

§ 45.2-1112. Technical specialists.The Director may appoint technical specialists in the areas of roof control, electricity, ventilation, and other mine specialties. Each technical specialist shall have all the qualifications of a mine inspector plus any specialized knowledge required in his field. A technical specialist shall advise the Director and mine operators in the areas of his specialty and shall have the power of an inspector to issue a closure order only in a case of imminent danger. 1997, c. 390, § 45.1-161.292:14; 2021, Sp. Sess. I, c. 387. Article 3. Certification of Mineral Mine Workers.

Va. Code § 45.2-1114

§ 45.2-1114. Certification of certain persons employed in mineral mines; powers of the Department.A. The Department may require certification of each person who works in a mineral mine or whose duties and responsibilities in relation to mineral mining require competency, skill, or knowledge in order to perform the tasks required of him in a manner consistent with the preservation of the health and safety of persons and property. Each of the following certificates shall be issued by the Department, and a person who holds such a certificate is authorized to perform the tasks that the Act requires to be performed by such certified person: 1. Surface foreman; 2. Surface foreman open pit; 3. Underground foreman; 4. Surface blaster; 5. Electrical repairman; 6. Underground mining blaster; 7. General mineral miner; and 8. Mine inspector. B. Certification shall also be required for any additional tasks that the Department requires by regulation. C. The Department may adopt regulations necessary or incidental to the performance of duties or the execution of powers conferred under this title. Such regulations shall be adopted in accordance with the provisions of Article 2 (§ 2.2-4006 et seq.) of the Administrative Process Act. 1997, c. 390, § 45.1-161.292:19; 2012, cc. 803, 835; 2021, Sp. Sess. I, c. 387.

Va. Code § 45.2-1129

§ 45.2-1129. Annual reports; condition to issuance of license following transfer of ownership.A. The licensed operator of each mine or his agent shall annually, by February 15, mail or deliver to the Department a report for the 12 months ending prior to the preceding January 1. Such report shall state (i) the names of the licensed operator, any agent, and their officers of the mine; (ii) the amount of minerals mined; (iii) any changes in the information required to be part of the license application by subsection A of § 45.2-1126; and (iv) any other information, not of a private nature, that from time to time is required by the Department on forms furnished or approved by the Department. B. Each independent contractor who is working or has worked at a mine during the preceding 12 months shall annually, by February 15, mail or deliver to the Department a report for the 12 months ending prior to the preceding January 1. Such report shall state (i) the independent contractor's name and Department identification number; (ii) the number of the independent contractor's employees who worked at each mine, listed by mine name and license number; (iii) the number of the independent contractor's employee hours worked at each mine, listed by mine name and license number; and (iv) the lump sum amount of wages paid by the independent contractor at each mine, if such amount is above $1,000, listed by mine name and license number. C. For purposes of subsection B, "independent contractor" means any (i) extraction or processing contractor, including a driller, blaster, portable crusher, or stripping or land clearing contractor; (ii) maintenance or repair contractor for mobile or stationary extraction or processing equipment, including a welder, mechanic, painter, or electrician; and (iii) construction contractor involved in mine site construction maintenance or repair, including a plant construction contractor, concrete fabricator, or equipment erector. D. If the owner of a mine transfers the ownership of such mine to another person, the person transferring such ownership shall submit a report to the Department of such change and a statement of the amount of minerals produced since the January 1 prior to the date of such transfer of ownership. No license shall be issued covering such transfer of ownership until the report is furnished. E. All wage information contained in any report filed with the Department pursuant to this section shall be exempt from disclosure under the Virginia Freedom of Information Act (§ 2.2-3700 et seq.) and shall not be published or made open to public inspection in any manner revealing the employing unit's identity. However, such information may be disclosed to the Director or his authorized representative concerned with carrying out any provisions of this title. Wage data aggregated so as to not reveal the employing unit's identity shall not be exempt from such disclosure. 1997, c. 390, § 45.1-161.292:35; 1998, c. 695; 2000, c. 974; 2021, Sp. Sess. I, c. 387.

Va. Code § 45.2-1155

§ 45.2-1155. Duties of inspectors.A. During a complete inspection of any mine, other than an inactive mine, the mine inspector shall inspect, where applicable, the surface plant; all active workings; all active travel ways; entrances to abandoned areas; accessible worked-out areas; at least one entry of each intake and return airway in its entirety; escapeways and other places where miners work or travel or where hazardous conditions might exist; electric installations and equipment; haulage facilities; first aid equipment; ventilation facilities; communication installations; roof and rib conditions; roof-support practices; blasting practices; haulage practices and equipment; and any other condition, practice, or equipment pertaining to the health and safety of the miners. The mine inspector shall make tests for the quantity of air flows, and for oxygen deficiency and gas, in each place that he is required to inspect in an underground mine. B. In a mine that operates more than one shift in a 24-hour period, the mine inspector shall devote sufficient time on the second and third shifts to determine conditions and practices relating to the health and safety of the miners. For an inactive mine, the mine inspector shall inspect all areas of the mine where persons might work or travel during the period the mine is an inactive mine. C. The inspector shall make a personal examination of (i) the interior of each mine inspected and (ii) the outside of such mine where any danger to the miners might exist. 1997, c. 390, § 45.1-161.292:61; 2021, Sp. Sess. I, c. 387.

Va. Code § 45.2-1401

§ 45.2-1401. Regulations governing conditions and practices at underground mineral mines.A. The Director shall adopt, in accordance with the provisions of Article 2 (§ 2.2-4006 et seq.) of the Administrative Process Act, regulations necessary to ensure the safety and health of miners and other persons and property at underground mineral mines in the Commonwealth. Nothing in this section shall restrict the Director from adopting regulations more stringent than regulations adopted pursuant to the federal mine safety law. Such regulations applicable to underground mineral mines shall establish requirements for the: 1. Protection of miners from general risks found at underground mineral mines and in mining; 2. Provision and use of personal protection equipment and devices for the head, feet, hands, and body; 3. Maintenance, operation, storage, and transportation of mechanical or electrical equipment, devices, and machinery used in the underground mining of minerals; 4. Control of unstable roof, face, rib, floor, and other ground conditions; 5. Handling and storage of combustible materials, including requirements for emergency plans, firefighting and emergency rescue, fire prevention and safety features on mine equipment, fire safety in mine structures and other areas, and other flame and spark hazards; 6. Control of exposure to airborne contaminants and excessive noise levels; 7. Provision of adequate air quality and quantity through ventilation and other appropriate measures; 8. Safe storage, transportation, and use of explosives and blasting devices; 9. Safe design, operation, maintenance, and inspection of drilling equipment; 10. Construction, installation, maintenance, use, and inspection of boilers, air compressors, and compressed gas systems; 11. Safe design, use, maintenance, and inspection of passageways, walkways, ladders, and other travel ways; 12. Safe design, operation, maintenance, and inspection of electrical equipment and systems; 13. Safe storage, transportation, and handling of materials, including corrosive and hazardous substances; 14. Safe design, use, maintenance, and inspection of guards on moving parts of equipment and machinery; 15. Safe design and operation of chutes; 16. Inspection, maintenance, safe design, and operation of hoisting equipment and cables; 17. Inspection, maintenance, and construction of mine shafts; 18. Actions to be taken by certified and competent persons; and 19. Safe design, operation, maintenance, and inspection of, and the conduct of mining activities at, surface areas of underground mineral mines. B. The Director shall not adopt any regulation relating to underground mineral mines that is inconsistent with any requirement established by the Act or that, if an operator were to take action to comply with the provisions of such regulation, would place the operator in violation of the federal mine safety law. 1994, c. 28, § 45.1-161.294; 1996, c. 774; 1998, c. 695; 2021, Sp. Sess. I, c. 387.

Va. Code § 45.2-1402

§ 45.2-1402. Adoption of regulations.The Director shall adopt regulations: 1. Regarding transportation of miners, including regulations regarding (i) the carrying of tools by miners on mantrips; (ii) the riding of any miner, except the motorman and trip rider, inside a car; and (iii) the boarding and disembarking of miners to and from mantrips; 2. Requiring any bare wire and any cable other than a ground wire, grounded power conductor, or trailing cable to be supported by insulators and away from combustible materials, roof, and ribs; 3. Regarding the bonding, welding, or securing of rails and track switches where track is used to conduct electrical power; 4. Requiring the installation of disconnecting switches underground in all main power circuits at appropriate locations; 5. Requiring respiratory equipment and hearing protection, including by requiring that (i) each miner exposed for short periods to a hazard from inhalation of gas, dust, or fumes wear approved respiratory equipment and (ii) each operator supply hearing protection to miners upon request; and 6. Requiring that fire precautions be taken when mining equipment is transported underground in proximity to energized trolley wires or trolley feeder wires. Code 1950, §§ 45-14.1, 45-69.2, 45-82, 45-82.1, 45-82.3, 45-86; 1954, c. 191; 1966, c. 594, §§ 45.1-74, 45.1-78, 45.1-80, 45.1-89, 45.1-99; 1985, c. 296; 1994, c. 28, § 45.1-161.298; 1974, c. 323; 1978, c. 118, 729, § 45.1-99.1; 1984, c. 590; 1985, c. 296, 500; 1993, c. 442; 1994, c. 28, §§ 45.1-161.298 through 45.1-161.303; 2021, Sp. Sess. I, c. 387.

Va. Code § 45.2-1501

§ 45.2-1501. Regulations governing conditions and practices at surface mineral mines.A. The Director shall adopt, in accordance with Article 2 (§ 2.2-4006 et seq.) of the Administrative Process Act, regulations necessary to ensure safe working conditions and practices at surface mineral mines in the Commonwealth. Nothing in this section shall restrict the Director from adopting regulations more stringent than regulations adopted pursuant to the federal mine safety law. Such regulations applicable to surface mineral mines shall establish requirements for the: 1. Protection of miners from general risks found at surface mineral mines; 2. Provision and use of personal protection equipment; 3. Control of unstable ground conditions; 4. Handling and storage of combustible materials, including requirements for emergency plans, firefighting and emergency rescue, fire prevention and safety features on mine equipment, and fire prevention and safety in mine structures and buildings; 5. Control of exposure to airborne toxic contaminants; 6. Safe storage, transportation, and use of explosives and blasting devices; 7. Safe design, operation, maintenance, and inspection of drilling equipment; 8. Construction, use, maintenance, and inspection of boilers, air compressors, and compressed gas systems; 9. Safe design, operation, maintenance, and inspection of mobile equipment; 10. Safe design, use, maintenance, and inspection of ladders, walkways, and travel ways; 11. Safe design, operation, maintenance, and inspection of electrical equipment and systems; 12. Safe design, use, maintenance, and inspection of guards on moving parts of equipment and machinery; 13. Safe storage, transportation, and handling of materials, including corrosive and hazardous substances; 14. Safe design, operation, maintenance, and inspection of hoisting equipment and cables; 15. Actions to be taken by certified and competent persons; and 16. Design, construction, maintenance, and inspection of refuse piles and water and silt retaining dams, including emergency response plans. B. The Director shall not adopt any regulation relating to surface mineral mines that is inconsistent with any requirement established by the Act or that, if an operator were to take action to comply with the provisions of such regulation, would place the operator in violation of the federal mine safety law. 1994, c. 28, § 45.1-161.305; 1996, c. 774; 1998, c. 695; 2021, Sp. Sess. I, c. 387.

Va. Code § 45.2-1600

§ 45.2-1600. Definitions.As used in this chapter, unless the context requires a different meaning: "Abandonment of a well" or "cessation of well operations" means the time at which (i) a gas or oil operator has ceased operation of a well and has not properly plugged the well and reclaimed the site as required by this chapter, (ii) a gas or oil operator has allowed the well to become incapable of production or conversion to another well type, or (iii) the Director revokes a permit or forfeits a bond covering a gas or oil operation. "Associated facility" means any facility utilized for gas or oil operations in the Commonwealth, other than a well or a well site. "Barrel" means 42 U.S. gallons of liquids, including slurries, at a temperature of 60 degrees Fahrenheit. "Board" means the Virginia Gas and Oil Board. "Coalbed methane gas" means occluded natural gas produced from coalbeds and rock strata associated with it. "Coalbed methane gas well" means a well capable of producing coalbed methane gas. "Coalbed methane gas well operator" means any person who operates or has been designated to operate a coalbed methane gas well. "Coal claimant" means a person identified as possessing an interest in production royalties when a drilling unit is force-pooled or who asserts or possesses a claim to funds that are held in escrow, for a force-pooled coalbed methane gas well, or in suspense, for a voluntarily pooled coalbed methane gas well, by virtue of owning an interest in the coal estate contained within the drilling unit subject to the pooling order or agreement. "Coal operator" means any person who operates or has the right to operate a coal mine. "Coal owner" means any person who owns, leases, mines and produces, or has the right to mine and produce a coal seam. "Coal seam" means any stratum of coal 20 inches or more in thickness. "Coal seam" includes a stratum of less than 20 inches in thickness if it (i) is being commercially worked or (ii) in the judgment of the Department could foreseeably be commercially worked and will require protection if a well is drilled through it. "Correlative right" means the right of each gas or oil owner having an interest in a single pool to have a fair and reasonable opportunity to obtain and produce his just and equitable share of production of the gas or oil in such pool or its equivalent without being required to drill unnecessary wells or incur other unnecessary expenses to recover or receive the gas or oil or its equivalent. "Cubic foot of gas" means the volume of gas contained in one cubic foot of space at a standard pressure base of 14.73 pounds per square foot and a standard temperature base of 60 degrees Fahrenheit. "DEQ" means the Department of Environmental Quality. "Disposal well" means any well drilled or converted for the disposal of drilling fluids, produced waters, or other wastes associated with gas or oil operations. "Drilling unit" means the acreage on which one gas or oil well may be drilled. "Enhanced recovery" means (i) any activity involving injection of any air, gas, water, or other fluid into the productive strata; (ii) the application of pressure, heat, or other means for the reduction of viscosity of the hydrocarbons; or (iii) the supplying of additional motive force other than normal pumping to increase the production of gas or oil from any well or pool. "Evidence of a proceeding or agreement" means written evidence that the coal claimant has (i) filed and has pending a judicial or arbitration proceeding against the gas claimant to determine the ownership of the coalbed methane gas and the right to the funds held in escrow or suspense or (ii) reached an agreement with the gas claimant to apportion the funds between them. "Exploratory well" means any well drilled to (i) find and produce gas or oil in an unproven area, (ii) find a new reservoir in a field previously found to be productive of gas or oil in another reservoir, or (iii) extend the limits of a known gas or oil reservoir. "Field rules" means rules established by order of the Board that define a pool, drilling units, production allowables, or other requirements for gas or oil operations within an identifiable area. "First point of sale" means, for oil, the point at which the oil is (i) sold, exchanged, or transferred for value from one person to another person or (ii) when used by the original owner of the oil, transported off the permitted site and delivered to another facility for use by the original owner. "First point of sale" means, for gas, the point at which the gas is (a) sold, exchanged, or transferred for value to any interstate or intrastate pipeline, local distribution company, or person for use by such person or (b) when used by the owner of the gas for a purpose other than the production or transportation of the gas, delivered to a facility for use. "Gas" or "natural gas" means all natural gas, whether hydrocarbon, nonhydrocarbon, or any combination or mixture thereof, including hydrocarbons, hydrogen sulfide, helium, carbon dioxide, nitrogen, hydrogen, casing head gas, and all other fluids not defined as oil pursuant to this section. "Gas claimant" means a person who is identified as possessing an interest in production royalties when a drilling unit is forced-pooled or who asserts or possesses a claim to funds that are held in escrow, for a force-pooled coalbed methane gas well, or in suspense, for a voluntarily pooled coalbed methane gas well, by virtue of owning an interest in the gas estate contained within the drilling unit subject to the pooling order or agreement. "Gas or oil operations" means any (i) activity relating to drilling, redrilling, deepening, stimulating, production, enhanced recovery, converting from one type of a well to another, combining or physically changing to allow the migration of fluid from one formation to another, or plugging or replugging any well; (ii) ground-disturbing activity relating to the development, construction, operation, or abandonment of a gathering pipeline; (iii) development, operation, maintenance, or restoration of any site involved with gas or oil operations; or (iv) work undertaken at a facility used for gas or oil operations. "Gas or oil operations" embraces all of the land or property that is used for or that contributes directly or indirectly to a gas or oil operation, including all roads. "Gas or oil operator" means any person who operates or has been designated to operate any gas or oil well or gathering pipeline. "Gas or oil owner" means any person who owns, leases, has an interest in, or has the right to explore for, drill, or operate a gas or oil well as principal or lessee. If the gas is owned separately from the oil, this definition shall apply separately to the gas owner or oil owner. "Gas title conflicts" means conflicting ownership claims between gas claimants. "Gas title conflicts" does not include conflicting ownership claims between a gas claimant and a coal claimant. "Gathering pipeline" means a pipeline that is used or intended for use in the transportation of gas or oil from the well to (i) a transmission pipeline regulated by the U.S. Department of Transportation or the State Corporation Commission or (ii) an offsite storage, marketing, or other facility where the gas or oil is sold. "Geophysical operator" means a person who has the right to explore for gas or oil using ground-disturbing geophysical exploration. "Gob" means the de-stressed zone associated with any full-seam extraction of coal that extends above and below the mined-out coal seam. "Ground-disturbing" means any changing of land that could result in soil erosion from water or wind and the movement of sediments into state waters, including clearing, grading, excavating, drilling, and transporting and filling of land. "Ground-disturbing geophysical exploration" or "geophysical operation" means any activity in search of gas or oil that breaks or disturbs the surface of the earth, including road construction or core drilling. The term does not include the conduct of (i) a gravity, magnetic, radiometric, or similar geophysical survey or (ii) a vibroseis or similar seismic survey. "Injection well" means any well used to inject or otherwise place any substance associated with gas or oil operations into the earth or underground strata for disposal, storage, or enhanced recovery. "Inspector" means the Virginia Gas and Oil Inspector appointed by the Director pursuant to § 45.2-1604 or such other public officer, employee, or other authority who in an emergency acts instead of, or by law is assigned the duties of, the Virginia Gas and Oil Inspector. "Log" means the written record progressively describing all strata, water, oil, or gas encountered in drilling, depth and thickness of each bed or seam of coal drilled through, quantity of oil, volume of gas, pressures, rate of fill-up, freshwater-bearing and saltwater-bearing horizons and depths, cavings strata, casing records, and other information usually recorded in the normal procedure of drilling. "Log" includes electrical survey records or electrical survey logs. "Mine" means an underground or surface excavation or development with or without shafts, slopes, drifts, or tunnels for the extraction of coal, minerals, or nonmetallic materials, commonly designated as mineral resources, and the hoisting or haulage equipment or appliances, if any, for the extraction of the mineral resources. "Mine" includes all of the land or property of the mining plant, including both the surface and subsurface, that is used in or contributes directly or indirectly to the mining, concentration, or handling of the mineral resources, including all roads. "Mineral" means the same as that term is defined in § 45.2-1200. "Mineral operator" means any person who operates or has the right to operate a mineral mine. "Mineral owner" means any person who owns minerals, leases minerals, mines and produces minerals, or has the right to mine and produce minerals and to appropriate such minerals that he produces from it, either for himself or for himself and others. "Nonparticipating operator" means a gas or oil owner of a tract that is included in a drilling unit who elects to share in the operation of the well on a carried basis by agreeing to have his proportionate share of the costs allocable to his interest charged against his share of production from the well. "Offsite disturbance" means any soil erosion, water pollution, or escape of gas, oil, or waste from gas, oil, or geophysical operations off a permitted site that results from activity conducted on a permitted site. "Oil" means natural crude oil or petroleum and other hydrocarbons, regardless of gravity, that are produced at the well in liquid form by ordinary production methods and are not the result of condensation of gas after it leaves the underground reservoir. "Orphaned well" means any well abandoned prior to July 1, 1950, or for which no records exist concerning its drilling, plugging, or abandonment. "Participating operator" means a gas or oil owner who elects to (i) bear a share of the risks and costs of drilling, completing, equipping, operating, plugging, and abandoning a well on a drilling unit and (ii) receive a share of production from the well equal to the proportion that the acreage in the drilling unit he owns or holds under lease bears to the total acreage of the drilling unit. "Permittee" means any gas, oil, or geophysical operator holding a permit for gas, oil, or geophysical operations issued under authority of this chapter. "Person under a disability" means the same as that term is defined in § 8.01-2. "Pipeline" means any pipe above or below the ground used or to be used to transport gas or oil. "Plat" or "map" means a map, drawing, or print showing the location of a well, mine, or quarry, or other information required under this chapter. "Pool" means an underground accumulation of gas or oil in a single and separate natural reservoir. A pool is characterized by a single natural pressure system so that production of gas or oil from one part of the pool tends to or does affect the reservoir pressure throughout its extent. A pool is bounded by geologic barriers in all directions, such as geologic structural conditions, impermeable strata, or water in the formation, so that it is effectively separated from any other pool that may be present in the same geologic structure. A "coalbed methane pool" means an area that is underlain or appears to be underlain by at least one coalbed capable of producing coalbed methane gas. "Project area" means the well and any gathering pipeline, associated facility, road, and any other disturbed area, all of which are permitted as part of a gas, oil, or geophysical operation. "Restoration" means all activity required to return a permitted site to other use after gas, oil, or geophysical operations have ended, as approved in the operations plan for the permitted site. "Royalty owner" means any owner of gas or oil in place, or owner of gas or oil rights, who is eligible to receive payment based on the production of gas or oil. "State waters" means all water, on the surface and under the ground, that is wholly or partially within or bordering the Commonwealth or within its jurisdiction and that affects the public welfare. "Stimulation" means any action taken by a gas or oil operator to increase the inherent productivity of a gas or oil well, including fracturing, shooting, or acidizing, but excluding (i) cleaning out, bailing, or workover operations and (ii) the use of surface-tension reducing agents, emulsion breakers, paraffin solvents, or other agents that affect the gas or oil being produced, as distinguished from the producing formation. "Storage well" means any well used for the underground storage of gas. "Surface owner" means any person who is the owner of record of the surface of the land. "Waste" or "escape of resources" means (i) physical waste, as that term is generally understood in the gas and oil industry; (ii) the inefficient, excessive, or improper use or unnecessary dissipation of reservoir energy; (iii) the inefficient storing of gas or oil; (iv) the locating, drilling, equipping, operating, or producing of any gas or oil well in a manner that causes or tends to cause a reduction in the quantity of gas or oil ultimately recoverable from a pool under prudent and proper operations, or that causes or tends to cause unnecessary or excessive surface loss or destruction of gas or oil; (v) the production of gas or oil in excess of transportation or marketing facilities; (vi) the amount reasonably required to be produced in the proper drilling, completing, or testing of the well from which it is produced, except gas produced from an oil well or condensate well pending the time when with reasonable diligence the gas can be sold or otherwise usefully utilized on terms and conditions that are just and reasonable; or (vii) underground or aboveground waste in the production or storage of gas, oil, or condensate, however caused. "Waste" does not include gas vented from a methane drainage borehole or coalbed methane gas well where necessary for safety reasons or for the efficient testing and operation of a coalbed methane gas well, nor does it include the plugging of a coalbed methane gas well for the recovery of the coal estate. "Waste from gas, oil, or geophysical operations" means any substance other than gas or oil that is produced or generated during or results from (i) the development, drilling, and completion of any well and associated facility or the development and construction of gathering pipelines or (ii) well, pipeline, and associated facility operations, including brines and produced fluids other than gas or oil. "Waste from gas, oil, or geophysical operations" includes all rubbish and debris, including all material generated during or resulting from well plugging, site restoration, or the removal and abandonment of gathering pipelines and associated facilities. "Water well" means any well drilled, bored, or dug into the earth for the sole purpose of extracting from it potable, fresh, or usable water for household, domestic, industrial, agricultural, or public use. "Well" means any shaft or hole sunk, drilled, bored, or dug into the earth or into underground strata for the extraction, injection, or placement of any gaseous or liquid substance or any shaft or hole sunk or used in conjunction with such extraction, injection, or placement. "Well" does not include any shaft or hole sunk, drilled, bored, or dug into the earth for the sole purpose of pumping or extracting from it potable, fresh, or usable water for household, domestic, industrial, agricultural, or public use and does not include any water borehole, methane drainage borehole where the methane is vented or flared rather than produced and saved, subsurface borehole drilled from the mine face of an underground coal mine, any other borehole necessary or convenient for the extraction of coal or drilled pursuant to a uranium exploratory program carried out pursuant to the laws of the Commonwealth, or any coal or non-fuel mineral core hole or borehole drilled for the purpose of exploration. 1982, c. 347, § 45.1-288; 1984, c. 590; 1987, c. 452; 1988, c. 160; 1990, c. 92, § 45.1-361.1; 1992, c. 812; 1993, c. 254; 2015, c. 396; 2021, Sp. Sess. I, c. 387.

Va. Code § 45.2-1701.1

§ 45.2-1701.1. Public disclosure of certain electric generating facility closures.A. The provisions of this section shall apply to any electric generating facility that: 1. Has a nameplate generating capacity of 80 megawatts or more; 2. Is located in the Commonwealth; 3. Emits carbon dioxide as a byproduct of combusting fuel, whether or not certificated by the State Corporation Commission pursuant to subsection D of § 56-580; and 4. Is subject to, and not exempt from, regulations adopted pursuant to subsection E of § 10.1-1308 or § 10.1-1330. B. Within 30 days of an owner of an electric generating facility making public the decision to close such facility, or within 30 days of the owner of an electric generating facility making a filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission regarding a material impact to the cost, operations, or financial condition of the owner, which material impact is a direct precursor to the closure of the electric generating facility, the owner shall send a written notice of the impending closure to: 1. The governing body of the locality where the facility is located; 2. The governing body of any locality adjoining the locality where the facility is located; 3. Any town council located within a county described in subdivision 1; 4. Any planning district commission of any locality described in subdivision 1 or 2; 5. The State Corporation Commission Division of Public Utility Regulation; 6. The Department and the Division; 7. The Department of Housing and Community Development; 8. PJM Interconnection, LLC; 9. The Virginia Employment Commission; 10. The Department of Environmental Quality; and 11. The Virginia Council on Environmental Justice. C. The notice required by subsection B shall include, at a minimum, (i) the anticipated closure date of the facility; (ii) references to any website maintained by the owner containing closure information; (iii) a list of permits obtained from a local government, the State Air Pollution Control Board, the State Water Control Board, or the Department of Environmental Quality, including the permit number and date of issuance; (iv) anticipated future use of the facility site, if known; (v) workforce transition assistance information; and (vi) decommissioning information. If the owner of the facility is a registrant with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, any filings mentioning the impending closure shall also be included with the notice. D. In the six months following receipt of the notice required by subsection B, the governing body of the locality where the facility is located shall conduct at least three public hearings, which may be part of a regular meeting agenda, where at least one representative of the owner of the facility being closed shall be present, make a presentation regarding the impending closure, and take questions from the governing body and the public. E. In the six months following receipt of the notice required by subsection B, the planning district commission of the locality where the facility is located shall conduct at least one public hearing, which may be part of a regular meeting agenda, where at least one representative of the owner of the facility being closed shall be present, make a presentation regarding the impending closure, and take questions from the planning district commission and the public. F. The Division shall maintain a public website listing the facilities subject to this section and their anticipated closure dates, if such dates are reasonably known by virtue of the laws of the Commonwealth or a public record or filing with an agency of the Commonwealth, including the State Corporation Commission, and a link shall be provided to the facilities' environmental protection or remediation obligations included in permits obtained from the Department, State Air Pollution Control Board, State Water Control Board, Department of Environmental Quality, or local governing body. At least every 12 months, the State Corporation Commission shall transmit to the Division any information that it reasonably believes would necessitate updates to the anticipated closure dates or other information contained on the Division's website. G. As providing advance notice to affected communities of an impending closure of a facility under this section is a matter of vital importance for public policy, this section shall be liberally construed. The obligations imposed on agencies of the Commonwealth under this section are to be construed in favor of public disclosure of the information required by subsection F. H. Notwithstanding the provisions of subsection A, the provisions of this section shall not apply to any electric generating facility that has a nameplate generating capacity of 90 megawatts or less and that filed a deactivation notice with PJM Interconnection, LLC, prior to September 1, 2019. 2021, Sp. Sess. I, cc. 41, 42. Article 2. Energy and Operational Efficiency Performance-based Contracting Act.

Va. Code § 45.2-1702

§ 45.2-1702. Definitions.As used in this article: "Contracting entity" means any public body as defined in § 2.2-4301. "Energy conservation measures" means the use of methods and techniques, the application of knowledge, or the installation of devices, including an alteration or betterment of an existing facility, that reduces energy consumption or operating costs and includes: 1. Insulation of the facility structure and systems within the facility. 2. Installation of storm windows and doors, caulking or weatherstripping, multiglazed windows and doors, heat-absorbing or heat-reflective glazed and coated window and door systems, or additional glazing; reductions in glass area; or the completion of other window and door system modifications that reduce energy consumption. 3. Installation of automatic energy control systems, including related software, or required network communication wiring, computer devices, wiring, and support services, or the design and implementation of major building technology infrastructure with operational improvements. 4. Modification or replacement of heating, ventilating, or air-conditioning systems. 5. Replacement or modification of lighting fixtures to increase the energy efficiency of the lighting system. Such replacement or modification shall, at a minimum, conform to the applicable provisions of the Uniform Statewide Building Code (§ 36-97 et seq.). 6. Installation of energy recovery systems. 7. Installation of cogeneration systems that produce, in addition to electricity, steam or another form of energy, such as heat, for use primarily within a facility or complex of facilities. 8. Installation of energy conservation measures that provide long-term operating cost reductions and significantly reduce the BTUs consumed. 9. Installation of building technology infrastructure measures that provide long-term operating cost reductions and reduce related operational costs. 10. Installation of an energy system, such as solar, biomass, or wind. 11. Installation of devices that reduce water consumption or sewer charges. "Energy cost savings" means a measured reduction in fuel, energy, or operation and maintenance costs created from the implementation of one or more energy conservation measures when compared with an established baseline for previous fuel, energy, or operation and maintenance costs. When calculating "energy cost savings" attributable to the services performed or equipment installed pursuant to a performance-based efficiency contract, maintenance savings shall be included. "Energy performance-based contract" means a contract for the evaluation, recommendation, and implementation of energy conservation measures that includes, at a minimum: 1. The design and installation of equipment to implement one or more such measures and, if applicable, the operation and maintenance of such measures. 2. The amount of any actual annual savings. Such amount shall meet or exceed the total annual contract payments made by the contracting entity for such contract. 3. The financing charges to be incurred by the contracting entity for such contract. "Maintenance savings" means the operating expenses eliminated and future capital replacement expenditures avoided as a result of new equipment installed or services performed by the performance contractor. "Performance guarantee bond" means the performance bond provided by the energy performance contractor for each year of the energy program in an amount equal to, but no greater than, the guaranteed measured and verifiable annual savings set forth in the program. 2001, c. 219, § 11-34.2; 2021, Sp. Sess. I, c. 387.

Va. Code § 45.2-1706.1

§ 45.2-1706.1. Commonwealth Clean Energy Policy.A. The Commonwealth recognizes that effectively addressing climate change and enhancing resilience will advance the health, welfare, and safety of the residents of the Commonwealth. The Commonwealth further recognizes that addressing climate change requires reducing greenhouse gas emissions across the Commonwealth's economy sufficient to reach net-zero emission by 2045 in all sectors, including the electric power, transportation, industrial, agricultural, building, and infrastructure sectors. To achieve these objectives, it shall be the policy of the Commonwealth to: 1. Develop energy resources necessary to produce 30 percent of Virginia's electricity from renewable energy sources by 2030 and 100 percent of Virginia's electricity from carbon-free sources by 2040; 2. Enable widespread integration of distributed energy resources, including energy storage and rooftop solar, into the grid to achieve decarbonization and to enhance resilience; 3. Support the distributed generation of renewable electricity by: a. Encouraging private sector investments in distributed renewable energy; b. Increasing the security of the electricity grid by supporting distributed renewable energy projects and energy storage with the potential to supply electric energy to critical facilities during a widespread power outage; and c. Enhancing the ability of private property owners to generate their own renewable energy for their own personal use from renewable energy sources on their property; 4. Lead by example in state government by supporting the carbon-free energy resources required to fully decarbonize the electric power supply of the Commonwealth, including deploying 30 percent renewables by 2030, realizing 100 percent carbon-free electric power by 2040, and achieving net zero emissions by 2045; 5. Maximize energy efficiency programs as defined in § 56-576, to the extent determined to be in the public interest, that are the lowest-cost energy option to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, in order to produce electricity cost savings and to create jobs and economic opportunity from the energy efficiency sector; 6. Support net-zero emission targets by promoting zero-emission vehicles and infrastructure, including electrified transport, decreasing the carbon intensity of the transportation sector, encouraging alternative transportation options, and increasing the efficiency of motor vehicles operating on Virginia's roads; 7. Support electric distribution grid transformation projects as defined in § 56-576; 8. Promote building and construction practices that reduce emissions associated with built environment, including energy efficiency targets, new building standards, and transit-oriented and other sustainable development practices; and 9. Ensure that energy development projects avoid, minimize, and, if necessary, mitigate damage to the Commonwealth's natural and cultural resources. B. The Commonwealth recognizes the need to promote environmental justice and ensure that it is carried out throughout the Commonwealth, as provided in § 2.2-235, and the need to address and prevent energy inequities in historically economically disadvantaged communities, as defined in § 56-576. To achieve these objectives, it shall be the policy of the Commonwealth to: 1. Recognize the disproportionate and inequitable impacts of climate change on historically economically disadvantaged communities and prioritize solutions and investment in these communities to maximize the benefits of clean energy and minimize the burdens of climate change; 2. Ensure the fair treatment and meaningful involvement, as those terms are defined in § 2.2-234, of all people regardless of race, color, national origin, faith, disability, or income with respect to the administration of energy laws, regulations, and policies; and 3. Increase access to clean energy and the benefits from clean energy to historically economically disadvantaged communities. C. As Virginia transforms its energy economy, the Commonwealth must continue to prioritize economic competiveness and workforce development in an equitable manner. To achieve this objective, it shall be the policy of the Commonwealth to: 1. Equitably incorporate requirements for technical, policy, and economic analyses and assessments that recognize the unique attributes of different energy resources and delivery systems to identify pathways to net-zero carbon that maximize Virginia's energy reliability and resilience, economic development, and jobs; 2. Require that pathways to net-zero greenhouse gas emissions be determined on the basis of technical, policy, and economic analysis to maximize their effectiveness, optimize Virginia's economic development, support industrial employment, and create quality jobs while minimizing adverse impacts on public health, affected communities, and the environment; 3. Ensure an adequate energy supply and a Virginia-based energy production capacity, while also optimizing intrastate and interstate use of energy supply and delivery to maximize energy availability, reliability, and price opportunities to the benefit of all user classes and the Commonwealth's economy; 4. Increase wind energy development and grow the Commonwealth's role as a wind industry hub for offshore wind generation projects in state and federal waters off the United States coast; 5. Ensure the availability of reliable energy at costs that are reasonable and in quantities that will support the Commonwealth's economy; 6. Ensure reliable energy availability in the event of a disruption occurring to a portion of the Commonwealth's energy matrix and to address the needs of businesses during the transition to clean energy; 7. Minimize the Commonwealth's long-term exposure to volatility and increases in world energy prices by expanding the use of innovative clean energy technology within the Commonwealth; 8. Create training opportunities and green career pathways for local workers and workers in historically economically disadvantaged communities in onshore and offshore wind, solar energy, electrification, energy efficiency, clean transportation, and other emerging clean energy industries; 9. Support the repurposing and development of clean energy resources on previously developed project sites as defined in § 56-576; 10. Ensure that decision making is transparent and includes opportunities for full participation by the public; 11. Explore approaches to maximizing and leveraging the capacity of lands and waters in the Commonwealth to store energy; and 12. Increase the Commonwealth's reliance on and production of sustainably produced biofuels made from traditional agricultural crops and other feedstocks, such as winter cover crops, warm season grasses, fast-growing trees, algae, or other suitable feedstocks grown in the Commonwealth, that will (i) create jobs and income, (ii) produce clean-burning fuels that will help to improve air quality, and (iii) provide the new markets for Virginia's silvicultural and agricultural products needed to preserve farm employment, conserve farmland and forestland, and increase implementation of silvicultural and agricultural best management practices to protect water quality. D. The elements of the policy set forth in subsections A, B, and C shall be referred to collectively in this title as the Commonwealth Clean Energy Policy. E. All agencies and political subdivisions of the Commonwealth, in taking discretionary action with regard to energy issues, shall recognize the elements of the Commonwealth Clean Energy Policy and, where appropriate, shall act in a manner consistent therewith. F. The Commonwealth Clean Energy Policy is intended to provide guidance to the agencies and political subdivisions of the Commonwealth in taking discretionary action with regard to energy issues and shall not be construed to amend, repeal, or override any contrary provision of applicable law. Nothing in this section shall preclude reliable access to electricity and natural gas during the transition to renewable energy. The failure or refusal of any person to recognize the elements of the Commonwealth Clean Energy Policy, to act in a manner consistent with the Commonwealth Clean Energy Policy, or to take any other action whatsoever shall not create any right, action, or cause of action or provide standing for any person to challenge the action of the Commonwealth or any of its agencies or political subdivisions. 2021, Sp. Sess. I, cc. 326, 327.

Va. Code § 45.2-1708

§ 45.2-1708. Role of local governments in achieving objectives of the Commonwealth Clean Energy Policy.A. In the development of any local ordinance addressing the siting of renewable energy facilities that generate electricity from wind or solar resources, such ordinance shall: 1. Be consistent with the provisions of the Commonwealth Clean Energy Policy pursuant to subsection E of § 45.2-1706.1; 2. Provide reasonable criteria to be addressed in the siting of any renewable energy facility that generates electricity from wind or solar resources. Such criteria shall provide for the protection of the locality in a manner consistent with the goals of the Commonwealth to promote the generation of energy from wind and solar resources; and 3. Include provisions establishing reasonable requirements upon the siting of any such renewable energy facility, including provisions limiting noise, requiring buffer areas and setbacks, and addressing generation facility decommissioning. B. Any measures required by an ordinance adopted pursuant to subsection A shall be consistent with the locality's existing ordinances. 2011, c. 750, § 67-103; 2021, Sp. Sess. I, cc. 327, 387.

Va. Code § 45.2-1710

§ 45.2-1710. Development of the Virginia Energy Plan.A. The Division, in consultation with the State Corporation Commission, the Department of Environmental Quality, the Clean Energy Advisory Board, the solar, wind, energy efficiency, and transportation electrification sectors, and a stakeholder group that includes representatives of consumer, environmental, manufacturing, forestry, and agricultural organizations and natural gas and electric utilities, shall prepare a comprehensive Virginia Energy Plan (the Plan) that identifies actions over a 10-year period consistent with the goal of the Commonwealth Clean Energy Policy set forth in § 45.2-1706.1 to achieve, no later than 2045, a net-zero carbon energy economy for all sectors, including the electricity, transportation, building, agricultural, and industrial sectors. The Plan shall propose actions, consistent with the objectives enumerated in § 45.2-1706.1, that will implement the Commonwealth Clean Energy Policy set forth in § 45.2-1706.1. B. In addition, the Plan shall include: 1. Projections of energy consumption in the Commonwealth, including the use of fuel sources and costs of electricity, natural gas, gasoline, coal, renewable resources, and other forms of non-greenhouse-gas-generating energy resources, such as nuclear power, used in the Commonwealth; 2. An analysis of the adequacy of electricity generation, transmission, and distribution resources in the Commonwealth for the natural gas and electric industries, and how distributed energy resources and regional generation, transmission, and distribution resources affect the Commonwealth; 3. An analysis of siting requirements for electric generation resources and natural gas and electric transmission and distribution resources, including an assessment of state and local impediments to expanded use of distributed resources and recommendations to reduce or eliminate such impediments; 4. An analysis of fuel diversity for electricity generation, recognizing the importance of flexibility in meeting future capacity needs; 5. An analysis of the efficient use of energy resources and conservation initiatives; 6. An analysis of how such Virginia-specific issues relate to regional initiatives to ensure the adequacy of fuel production, generation, transmission, and distribution assets; 7. An analysis of the siting of energy resource development, refining, and transmission facilities to identify any disproportionate adverse impact of such activities on economically disadvantaged or minority communities; 8. With regard to any regulations proposed or adopted by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to reduce carbon dioxide emissions from fossil fuel-fired electric generating units under § 111(d) of the federal Clean Air Act, 42 U.S.C. § 7411(d), an analysis of (i) the costs to and benefits for energy producers and electric utility customers, (ii) the effect on energy markets and reliability, and (iii) the commercial availability of technology required to comply with such regulations; 9. An inventory of greenhouse gas emissions compiled using a method determined by the Department of Environmental Quality for the four years prior to the issuance of the Plan; 10. Data regarding the number and type of electric and hybrid electric vehicles currently registered in the Commonwealth; projections of future electric vehicle sales across all vehicle classes, taking into consideration the impact of current and potential statewide policies; and analysis of the impact that the growth of electrified transit on the Commonwealth's electric system; 11. An analysis of the Commonwealth's current electric vehicle charging infrastructure and all future infrastructure needed to support the 2045 net-zero carbon target in the transportation sector, including chargers, make-ready electrical equipment, and supporting hardware and software needed to support the electrification of all vehicle categories used on and off roads and highways, including light-duty, medium-duty, and heavy-duty vehicles and electric bicycles, as well as that needed to electrify ground transportation at all ports and airports, with particular attention to the needs of historically economically disadvantaged communities as defined in § 56-576 and any state or local impediments to deployment; and 12. Recommendations, based on the analyses completed under subdivisions 1 through 11, for legislative, regulatory, and other public and private actions to implement the elements of the Commonwealth Clean Energy Policy. C. In preparing the Plan, the Division and other agencies involved in the planning process shall utilize state geographic information systems, to the extent deemed practicable, to assess how recommendations in the Plan may affect pristine natural areas and other significant onshore natural resources. Effective October 1, 2024, interim updates on the Plan shall also contain projections for greenhouse gas emissions that would result from implementation of the Plan's recommendations. D. In preparing the Plan, the Division and other agencies involved in the planning process shall develop a system for assigning numerical scores to any parcel of real property based on the extent to which such parcel is suitable for the siting of a wind energy facility or solar energy facility. For a wind energy facility, the scoring system shall address the wind velocity, sustained velocity, and turbulence. For either a wind energy facility or a solar energy facility, the scoring system shall address the parcel's proximity to electric power transmission lines or systems, potential impacts of such a facility to natural and historic resources and to economically disadvantaged or minority communities, and compatibility with the local land use plan. The system developed pursuant to this section shall allow the suitability of the parcel for the siting of a wind energy or solar energy facility to be compared to the suitability of other parcels so scored, and shall be based on a scale that allows the suitability of the parcel for the siting of such a facility to be measured against the hypothetical score of an ideal location for such a facility. E. Upon receipt by the Division of a recommendation from the Department of General Services, a local governing body, or the parcel's owner stating that a parcel of real property is a potentially suitable location for a wind energy facility or solar energy facility, the Division shall analyze the suitability of the parcel for the location of such a facility. In conducting its analysis, the Division shall ascribe a numerical score to the parcel using the scoring system developed pursuant to subsection D. 2006, c. 939, § 67-201; 2014, cc. 603, 756; 2020, cc. 1191, 1192; 2021, Sp. Sess. I, cc. 326, 327, 387.

Va. Code § 45.2-1711

§ 45.2-1711. Schedule for the Plan.A. The Division shall complete the Plan. B. Prior to the completion of the Plan and each update thereof, the Division shall present drafts to, and consult with, the Virginia Coal and Energy Commission established pursuant to Chapter 25 (§ 30-188 et seq.) of Title 30 and the Commission on Electric Utility Regulation established pursuant to Chapter 31 (§ 30-201 et seq.) of Title 30. C. The Plan shall be updated by the Division and submitted as provided in § 45.2-1713 by October 1, 2014, and every fourth October 1 thereafter. In addition, the Division shall provide interim updates on the Plan by October 1 of the third year of each Governor's administration. Updated reports shall specify any progress attained toward each proposed action of the Plan, as well as reassess goals for energy conservation on the basis of progress to date in meeting the goals in the previous Plan and lessons learned from attempts to meet such goals. D. Beginning with the Plan update in 2014, the Division shall include a section setting forth energy policy positions relevant to any potential regulations proposed or promulgated by the State Air Pollution Control Board to reduce carbon dioxide emissions from fossil fuel-fired electric generating units under § 111(d) of the federal Clean Air Act, 42 U.S.C. § 7411(d). In such section of the Plan, the Division shall address policy options for establishing separate standards of performance pursuant to § 111(d) of the federal Clean Air Act, 42 U.S.C. § 7411(d), for carbon dioxide emissions from existing fossil fuel-fired electric generating units to promote the Plan's overall goal of fuel diversity as follows: 1. The Plan shall address policy options for establishing the standards of performance for existing coal-fired electric generating units, including the following factors: a. The most suitable system of emission reduction that (i) takes into consideration (a) the cost and benefit of achieving such reduction, (b) any non-air quality health and environmental impacts, and (c) the energy requirements of the Commonwealth and (ii) has been adequately demonstrated for coal-fired electric generating units that are subject to the standard of performance; b. Reductions in emissions of carbon dioxide that can be achieved through measures reasonably undertaken at each coal-fired electric generating unit; and c. Increased efficiencies and other measures that can be implemented at each coal-fired electric generating unit to reduce carbon dioxide emissions from the unit without converting from coal to other fuels, co-firing other fuels with coal, or limiting the utilization of the unit. 2. The Plan shall also address policy options for establishing the standards of performance for existing gas-fired electric generating units, including the following factors: a. The application of the criteria specified in subdivisions 1 a and b to natural gas-fired electric generating units instead of to coal-fired electric generating units; and b. Increased efficiencies and other measures that can be reasonably implemented at the unit to reduce carbon dioxide emissions from the unit without switching from natural gas to other lower-carbon fuels or limiting the utilization of the unit. 3. The Plan shall examine policy options for state regulatory action to adopt less stringent standards or longer compliance schedules than those provided for in applicable federal rules or guidelines based on analysis of the following: a. Consumer impacts, including any disproportionate impacts of energy price increases on lower-income populations; b. Unreasonable cost of reducing emissions resulting from plant age, location, or basic process design; c. Physical difficulties with or impossibility of implementing emission reduction measures; d. The absolute cost of applying the performance standard to the unit; e. The expected remaining useful life of the unit; f. The economic impacts of closing the unit, including expected job losses, if the unit is unable to comply with the performance standard; and g. Any other factors specific to the unit that make application of a less stringent standard or longer compliance schedule more reasonable. 4. The Plan shall identify options, to the maximum extent permissible, for any federally required regulation of carbon dioxide emissions from existing fossil fuel-fired electric generating units and regulatory mechanisms that provide flexibility in complying with such standards, including the averaging of emissions, emissions trading, or other alternative implementation measures that are determined to further the interests of the Commonwealth and its citizens. 2006, c. 939, § 67-202; 2008, cc. 651, 883; 2014, cc. 161, 419, 603, 756; 2021, Sp. Sess. I, cc. 326, 387.

Va. Code § 45.2-1712

§ 45.2-1712. Annual reporting by investor-owned public utilities.Each investor-owned public utility providing electric service in the Commonwealth shall prepare an annual report disclosing its efforts to conserve energy, including (i) its implementation of customer demand-side management programs and (ii) efforts by the utility to improve efficiency and conserve energy in its internal operations pursuant to § 56-235.1. The utility shall submit each annual report to the Division and the Commission on Electric Utility Regulation by November 1 of each year, and the Division shall compile the reports of the utilities and submit the compilation to the Governor and the General Assembly as provided in the procedures of the Division of Legislative Automated Systems for the processing of legislative documents. 2008, c. 651, § 67-202.1; 2021, Sp. Sess. I, c. 387; 2023, cc. 753, 793.

Va. Code § 45.2-1713

§ 45.2-1713. Submission of the Plan.Upon completion, the Division shall submit the Plan, including periodic updates thereto, to the Governor, the Commissioners of the State Corporation Commission, and the General Assembly and shall present the Plan to the Commission on Electric Utility Regulation at a public meeting. The Plan shall be submitted as provided in the procedures of the Division of Legislative Automated Systems for the processing of legislative documents. The Plan's executive summary shall be posted on the General Assembly's website. 2006, c. 939, § 67-203; 2021, Sp. Sess. I, c. 387; 2023, cc. 753, 793. Article 5. Virginia Coastal Energy Research Consortium.

Va. Code § 45.2-1725

§ 45.2-1725. Virginia Brownfield and Coal Mine Renewable Energy Grant Fund and Program.A. For the purposes of this section: "Brownfield" means real property, the expansion, redevelopment, or reuse of which may be complicated by the presence or potential presence of a hazardous substance, pollutant, or contaminant. "Fund" means the Virginia Brownfield and Coal Mine Renewable Energy Grant Fund. "Previously coal mined lands" means lands, associated waters, and surrounding watersheds where coal extraction, beneficiation, or processing has occurred. "Program" means Virginia Brownfield and Coal Mine Renewable Energy Grant Program. "Project" means all or any part of the following activities necessary or desirable for the restoration and redevelopment of a brownfield site or previously coal mined lands for renewable energy purposes: (i) environmental or cultural resource site assessments; (ii) the monitoring, remediation, cleanup, or containment of property to remove hazardous substances, hazardous wastes, solid wastes, or petroleum; (iii) the appropriate treatment of grave sites, and the appropriate and necessary treatment of significant archaeological resources, or the stabilization or restoration of structures listed on or eligible for the Virginia Landmarks Register; (iv) the demolition and removal of existing structures, or other site work necessary to make a site or certain real property usable for economic development; (v) the development of a remediation and reuse plan; and (vi) the development or operation of such site for renewable energy generation or storage. "Renewable energy" means energy derived from sunlight, wind, and geothermal power. B. There is hereby created in the state treasury a special nonreverting fund to be known as the Virginia Brownfield and Coal Mine Renewable Energy Grant Fund. The Fund shall be established on the books of the Comptroller. All funds appropriated for such purpose and any gifts, donations, grants, bequests, and other funds received on its behalf shall be paid into the state treasury and credited to the Fund. Interest earned on moneys in the Fund shall remain in the Fund and be credited to it. Any moneys remaining in the Fund, including interest thereon, at the end of each fiscal year shall not revert to the general fund but shall remain in the Fund. Moneys in the Fund shall be used solely for the purposes of (i) awarding grants on a competitive basis through the Virginia Brownfield and Coal Mine Renewable Energy Grant Program established pursuant to subsection C or (ii) implementing and administering the Virginia Brownfield and Coal Mine Renewable Energy Grant Fund and Program. Moneys used for implementing and administering the Fund and Program shall be limited to 10 percent of the amount available in the Fund each year. Expenditures and disbursements from the Fund shall be made by the State Treasurer on warrants issued by the Comptroller upon written request signed by the Director. C. The Virginia Brownfield and Coal Mine Renewable Energy Grant Program is hereby established for the purpose of awarding grants on a competitive basis from such funds as may be available from the Fund to renewable energy projects located on brownfields or previously coal mined lands. The Program shall be administered by the Department. In administering the Program, the Department shall consult with the Department of Environmental Quality and establish and publish guidelines and criteria for grant awards, including guidelines and criteria governing agreements between the Department and grant recipients relating to the development of renewable energy projects on brownfields or previously coal mined lands. The criteria for grant recipients shall include requirements for project developers to hire local residents. The Department shall oversee each grant awarded through the Program and ensure thorough annual reporting on each such grant. D. Grants shall be awarded in an amount of $500 per kilowatt of nameplate capacity from renewable energy sources that are located on previously coal mined lands and $100 per kilowatt of nameplate capacity from renewable energy sources that are located on brownfields. No more than $10 million shall be awarded to any single previously coal mined lands project and no more than $5 million shall be awarded to any single brownfield project that is not located on previously coal mined lands. If a project is eligible to receive a grant as a previously coal mined lands project, it shall not be eligible to receive a grant as a brownfields project, and vice versa. No more than $35 million per year shall be allocated by the Program. Of this amount, $20 million shall be reserved for projects sited on previously coal mined lands. However, if less than $20 million is distributed to previously coal mined lands projects in a given year, any remaining funds may be reallocated to brownfield projects. E. The Department shall, in consultation with the Department of Environmental Quality, localities, interest groups, private businesses, and other stakeholders, develop an online handbook for renewable energy and energy storage development on brownfields and previously coal mined lands. The online handbook shall include a discussion of coal mining permit types and reclamation requirements, permitting requirements for development on brownfields and previously coal mined lands, and policy recommendations for encouraging renewable energy development on brownfields and coal mines. The handbook shall be completed no later than July 1, 2022, and shall be updated as needed at the discretion of the Department. F. The Department shall submit an annual report to the General Assembly regarding administration of the Fund and Program for the preceding fiscal year. The report shall include the number of grants awarded, the number of acres reclaimed or revitalized, the amount of nameplate capacity constructed, the number of jobs created, and the general economic impact of the Fund and Program. The report shall be furnished to the Chairmen of the House Committee on Labor and Commerce and the Senate Committee on Commerce and Labor no later than November 1 of each year. However, no annual report shall be required if the Fund and Program do not receive funding. 2021, Sp. Sess. I, c. 141, § 67-1800; 2024, cc. 1, 100. Article 8. Electric Vehicle Rebate Program.

Va. Code § 45.2-1726

§ 45.2-1726. (Effective until January 1, 2027) Definitions.As used in this article, unless the context requires a different meaning: "Advisory Council" means the Electric Vehicle Rebate Program Advisory Council. "Base price" means the manufacturer's base price for the lowest price trim level of the model and shall not include charges for optional equipment, taxes, title, or registration fees. "Dealer" means a motor vehicle dealer licensed pursuant to Chapter 15 (§ 46.2-1500 et seq.) of Title 46.2. "Electric motor vehicle" means a two-axle motor vehicle with a base price of not more than $55,000 that uses electricity as its only source of motive power. "Electric motor vehicle" includes fuel cell electric vehicles. "EPA" means the federal Environmental Protection Agency. "Fund" means the Electric Vehicle Rebate Program Fund. "Participating dealer" means a dealer who is participating in the Program. "Program" means the Electric Vehicle Rebate Program established pursuant to this article. "Purchase" means the purchase or lease of a new or used electric motor vehicle. "Qualified resident of the Commonwealth" means a resident of the Commonwealth whose annual household income does not exceed 300 percent of the current poverty guidelines. "Used electric motor vehicle" means a previously owned or leased electric motor vehicle that is more than two years old and not more than seven years old. 2021, Sp. Sess. I, c. 493, § 67-1800.

Va. Code § 45.2-1727

§ 45.2-1727. (Effective until January 1, 2027) Electric Vehicle Rebate Program.There is hereby established an Electric Vehicle Rebate Program for the purchase of new and used electric motor vehicles to provide an incentive to increase electric vehicle awareness and adoption in the Commonwealth. The Program shall be administered by the Department. The Department shall determine the best method to administer the Program, which may include contracting with a third-party administrator. As provided in § 58.1-2420, the Commissioner of the Department of Motor Vehicles may examine all records, books, papers, or other documents of any dealer in motor vehicles to verify the truth and accuracy of any statement or any other information relating to rebates claimed by the dealer. 2021, Sp. Sess. I, c. 493, § 67-1901.

Va. Code § 45.2-1728

§ 45.2-1728. (Effective until January 1, 2027) Eligibility for rebate; amount of rebate.A. Beginning January 1, 2022, a resident of the Commonwealth who purchases a new electric motor vehicle from a participating dealer shall be eligible for a rebate of $2,500. A qualified resident of the Commonwealth who purchases such vehicle shall also be eligible for an additional $2,000 enhanced rebate. B. Beginning January 1, 2022, a resident of the Commonwealth who purchases a used electric motor vehicle from a participating dealer with a sale price as provided by § 58.1-2401 of not more than $25,000 shall be eligible for a rebate of $2,500. A qualified resident of the Commonwealth who purchases such vehicle shall also be eligible for an additional $2,000 enhanced rebate. C. Any rebate provided under this article shall be applied toward payment for the purchase. The participating dealer shall be reimbursed by the Department from the Fund for each eligible rebate. D. Rebates available pursuant to this article are subject to availability of funds in the Fund. E. The amount of the rebates provided under this article may be increased or decreased annually by the Department in an amount not to exceed the recommendation of the Advisory Council pursuant to subsection A of § 45.2-1730. F. The Department in consultation with the Advisory Council, shall develop and implement a process for verifying eligible purchasers and shall ensure that such process (i) is capable of being administered at the point of sale or lease of a vehicle, (ii) allows for the immediate determination of purchaser eligibility and the total amount of the rebate to which the purchaser is entitled, and (iii) confirms the rebate to the participating dealer. 2021, Sp. Sess. I, c. 493, § 67-1902.

Va. Code § 45.2-1730

§ 45.2-1730. (Effective until January 1, 2027) Electric Vehicle Rebate Program Advisory Council.A. The Electric Vehicle Rebate Program Advisory Council is established to monitor the implementation and operation of the Program and to make recommendations to the Department regarding suggested changes to the Program, including regular assessment to determine the effect of the rebate on increasing electric vehicle sales, whether the Fund allocations pursuant to subsection B of § 45.2-1731 should be adjusted, and whether an income cap should be established to determine the eligibility of purchasers for a rebate pursuant to this article. The Advisory Council shall consider the goal of increasing electric vehicle awareness and adoption in developing and making its recommendations. The Advisory Council shall annually evaluate and recommend an increase or decrease in the amount of the rebates provided under this article to reflect the rate of inflation, as defined by the Federal Bureau of Labor Statistics, and the relative price of electric motor vehicles compared with the price of traditional motor vehicles. B. The Advisory Council shall consist of three legislative members and 13 nonlegislative members as follows: (i) two members of the House of Delegates, to be appointed by the Speaker of the House of Delegates; (ii) one member of the Senate, to be appointed by the Senate Committee on Rules; (iii) three nonlegislative citizen members to be appointed by the Secretary of Transportation, two of whom shall be licensed new motor vehicle dealers and one of whom shall represent a new vehicle dealer association to which a majority of new motor vehicle dealers in the Commonwealth belong; (iv) seven nonlegislative citizen members to be appointed by the Secretary of Natural and Historic Resources, two of whom shall represent environmental justice organizations, two of whom shall represent environmental advocacy organizations, one of whom shall represent a vehicle manufacturer association to which a majority of vehicle manufacturers belong, and two of whom shall represent vehicle original equipment manufacturers; (v) the Director of the Department, or his designee, who shall serve ex officio with voting privileges; (vi) the Director of the Department of Environmental Quality, or his designee, who shall serve ex officio with voting privileges; and (vii) the Executive Director of the Motor Vehicle Dealer Board, who shall serve ex officio with voting privileges. After an initial staggering of terms, legislative and nonlegislative members shall be appointed for a term of four years. Appointments to fill vacancies, other than by expiration of a term, shall be for the unexpired terms. All members may be reappointed. Vacancies shall be filled in the same manner as the original appointments. C. The Advisory Council shall elect a chairman and vice-chairman annually from among the members. The meetings of the Advisory Council shall be at the call of the chairman, the Director of the Department, or whenever a majority of the members so request. D. Nonlegislative citizen members shall receive compensation and shall be reimbursed for all reasonable and necessary expenses incurred in the performance of their duties, as provided in §§ 2.2-2813 and 2.2-2825. Funding for the costs of compensation and expenses of the members shall be provided by the Department. E. The Department shall serve as staff to the Advisory Council. 2021, Sp. Sess. I, c. 493, § 67-1904.

Va. Code § 45.2-1731

§ 45.2-1731. (Effective until January 1, 2027) Electric Vehicle Rebate Program Fund.A. There is hereby created in the state treasury a special nonreverting fund to be known as the Electric Vehicle Rebate Program Fund. The Fund shall be established on the books of the Comptroller. All funds appropriated for such purpose and any gifts, donations, grants, bequests, and other funds received on its behalf shall be paid into the state treasury and credited to the Fund. Interest earned on moneys in the Fund shall remain in the Fund and be credited to it. Any moneys remaining in the Fund, including interest thereon, at the end of each fiscal year shall not revert to the general fund but shall remain in the Fund. Moneys in the Fund shall be used solely for the purposes set forth in this article, including expenses related to the administration of the Program by the Department. Expenditures and disbursements from the Fund shall be made by the State Treasurer on warrants issued by the Comptroller upon written request signed by the Director of the Department. B. All funds shall be allocated for the payment of rebates and enhanced rebates in this article. Beginning July 1, 2024, 25 percent of any unused funds remaining in the Fund at the end of the fiscal year shall be reallocated to fund electric vehicle charging infrastructure as approved by the General Assembly. 2021, Sp. Sess. I, c. 493, § 67-1905.

Va. Code § 45.2-1803

§ 45.2-1803. Definitions.As used in this article, unless the context requires a different meaning: "Developer" means any private developer of an offshore wind energy project. "Offshore wind energy project" means a wind-powered electric energy facility, including tower, turbine, and associated equipment, located off the coast of the Commonwealth beyond the Commonwealth's three-mile jurisdictional limit, and includes interests in land, improvements, and ancillary facilities. "Transmission study" means a study to determine the potential interconnection options to accommodate multiple offshore wind energy projects in the Hampton Roads region. 2010, cc. 507, 681, § 67-1200; 2021, Sp. Sess. I, c. 387.

Va. Code § 45.2-1914

§ 45.2-1914. Membership; terms; quorum; meetings.A. The Board shall have a total membership of 17 members that shall consist of 16 nonlegislative citizen members and one ex officio member. Members may reside within or without the Commonwealth. Nonlegislative citizen members shall be appointed as follows: 1. Six nonlegislative citizen members to be appointed by the Speaker of the House of Delegates upon consideration of the recommendations of the Board of Directors of the Maryland-DC-Delaware-Virginia Solar Energy Industries Association (the MDV-SEIA Board) and the Governor's Advisory Council on Environmental Justice (the Council), one of whom shall be a designee of the Virginia Housing Development Authority, created pursuant to the provisions of Chapter 1.2 (§ 36-55.24 et seq.) of Title 36; one of whom shall be a rooftop solar energy professional or employer or representative of rooftop solar energy professionals; one of whom shall be a current or former member of the Council; one of whom shall be a member or representative of the Virginia, Maryland and Delaware Association of Electric Cooperatives (VMDAEC); one of whom shall be an expert with experience developing low-income or moderate-income incentive and loan programs for distributed renewable energy resources; and one of whom shall be an attorney who is licensed to practice in the Commonwealth and maintains a legal practice dedicated to rural development, rural electrification, and energy policy; 2. Three nonlegislative citizen members to be appointed by the Senate Committee on Rules upon consideration of the recommendations of the MDV-SEIA Board, one of whom shall be a solar energy professional or employer or representative of solar energy professionals, one of whom shall work for or with an investor-owned electric utility company based in the Commonwealth, and one of whom shall be a member or representative of VMDAEC; and 3. Seven nonlegislative citizen members to be appointed by the Governor upon consideration of the recommendations of the MDV-SEIA Board and the Council and subject to confirmation by the General Assembly, one of whom shall be an attorney who is licensed to practice in the Commonwealth and maintains a legal practice in renewable energy law and transactions, one of whom shall be an attorney who is licensed to practice in the Commonwealth and specializes in tax law and energy transactions, one of whom shall be an attorney with the Division of Consumer Counsel created pursuant to the provisions of § 2.2-517, one of whom shall be an employee of a community development financial institution who specializes in impact investing, one of whom shall be a member of a Virginia environmental organization, and two of whom shall be designees of the Department of Housing and Community Development, created pursuant to the provisions of Chapter 8 (§ 36-131 et seq.) of Title 36. B. The Director or his designee shall serve ex officio with voting privileges and shall assist in convening the meetings of the Board. C. Nonlegislative citizen members of the Board shall be citizens of the Commonwealth. The ex officio member of the Board shall serve a term coincident with his term of office. Nonlegislative citizen members shall be appointed for a term of three years. Appointments to fill vacancies, other than by expiration of a term, shall be for the unexpired terms. Vacancies shall be filled in the same manner as the original appointments. All members may be reappointed. D. The Board shall elect a chairman and vice-chairman from among its membership. A majority of the members shall constitute a quorum. The meetings of the Board shall be held at the call of the chairman or whenever the majority of the members so request. 2019, c. 554, § 45.1-396; 2020, c. 803; 2021, Sp. Sess. I, c. 387.

Va. Code § 45.2-1916

§ 45.2-1916. Low-to-Moderate Income Solar Loan and Rebate Fund.There is hereby established in the state treasury a special nonreverting fund to be known as the Low-to-Moderate Income Solar Loan and Rebate Fund. The Fund shall be established on the books of the Comptroller. All funds appropriated for such purpose and any gifts, donations, grants, bequests, and other funds received on its behalf shall be paid into the state treasury and credited to the Fund. Interest earned on moneys in the Fund shall remain in the Fund and be credited to it. Any moneys remaining in the Fund, including interest thereon, at the end of each fiscal year shall not revert to the general fund but shall remain in the Fund. Moneys in the Fund shall be used solely for the purposes of extending loans or paying rebates to electric customers who complete solar installations or energy efficiency improvements pursuant to the provisions of § 45.2-1917. Expenditures and disbursements from the Fund shall be made by the State Treasurer on warrants issued by the Comptroller upon written request signed by the Director. 2019, c. 554, § 45.1-398; 2021, Sp. Sess. I, c. 387.

Va. Code § 45.2-1917

§ 45.2-1917. Low-to-Moderate Income Solar Loan and Rebate Pilot Program.A. The Board, with the approval of the Director, shall develop and establish a Low-to-Moderate Income Solar Loan and Rebate Pilot Program and rules for the loan or rebate application process. The Program shall be open to any Virginia resident whose household income is at or below 80 percent of the state median income or regional median income, whichever is greater. The Program shall allow only one loan per residence, irrespective of the ownership of the solar energy system that is installed. Such loan shall be available only for a solar installation or energy efficiency improvements pursuant to the provisions of Chapter 1.2 (§ 36-55.24 et seq.) of Title 36. B. The Board shall accept an application only from the installer of the solar installation or the agent of the customer. Each application shall include (i) 12 months of the customer's utility bills prior to installation of the solar energy system and an agreement to provide 12 months of utility bills to the Board following the installation; (ii) the customer's permission for the Director to (a) create a customer profile for the customer if he becomes an eligible loan or rebate customer, (b) aggregate the data provided by such eligible loan or rebate customers, and (c) use such aggregate data for the purpose of lowering energy costs and implementing effective programs; (iii) evidence of the completion of a home performance audit, conducted by a qualified local weatherization service provider, before and after installation of energy efficiency services such as lighting or insulation improvements, attic tents, weatherization, air sealing of openings in the building envelope, sealing of ducts, or thermostat upgrades, to demonstrate that such energy efficiency services were completed and resulted in a reduction in consumption of at least 12 percent; and (iv) an affidavit attesting to the receipt of a public benefit at the time the solar energy system is to be installed. C. The Board shall review each application submitted to it on a first-come, first-served basis and shall recommend to the Director the approval or denial of each such application within 30 days of receipt. If the Director approves an application, he shall hold a reservation of funds for as long as 180 days for final loan or rebate claim and disbursement. D. A customer whose application is approved may install an energy system that is interconnected pursuant to the provisions of § 56-594 or any section in Title 56 that addresses net energy metering provisions for electric cooperative service territories. E. All of the work of installing the energy system shall be completed by a licensed contractor that (i) possesses an Alternative Energy System (AES) Contracting specialty as defined by the Board for Contractors pursuant to the provisions of Chapter 11 (§ 54.1-1100 et seq.) of Title 54.1; (ii) possesses certification for solar installation from the North American Board of Certified Energy Practitioners, Solar Energy International, Roof Integrated Solar Energy, or a similar installer certification program; (iii) possesses a rating of "A" or higher from the local Better Business Bureau; and (iv) has installed a minimum of 150 net-metered residential solar systems in the Commonwealth. If the work of installing the solar energy system requires electrical work, such work shall be completed by an electrical contractor licensed by the Department of Professional and Occupational Regulation. All photovoltaic panels, inverters, and other electrical apparatus used in the solar energy system shall be tested and certified by a federal Occupational Safety and Health Administration Nationally Recognized Testing Laboratory such as UL LLC and installed in compliance with manufacturer specifications and all applicable building and electrical codes. F. The customer or the installer, acting on behalf of the customer, shall submit any loan or rebate claim within 90 days of completion of the installation of the solar energy system, with completion deemed to have occurred once the solar energy system's bi-directional meter or net meter, or the respective utility's revenue grade meter, has been installed and the system has been electrified. Each rebate claim shall include, at a minimum, a date of system electrification and a time-stamped and date-stamped verification of (i) bi-directional net meter delivery or (ii) the operation of a compatible programmed smart meter capable of tracking net metering activity. G. The Director shall review and approve or deny a loan or rebate claim within 60 days of receipt and shall provide a written explanation of each denial to the respective claimant. The Director shall disburse from the Fund created pursuant to § 45.2-1916 the loan or rebate for each approved claim within 60 days of its receipt of the claim and according to the order in which its respective application was approved. Any rebate or grant shall be in the amount of no more than $2 per DC watt for up to six kilowatts of solar capacity installed. The customer may use a rebate in addition to any federal tax credits or state incentives or enhancements earned for the same solar installation. 2019, c. 554, § 45.1-399; 2021, Sp. Sess. I, c. 387. Chapter 20. Geothermal Energy. Article 1. General Provisions.

Va. Code § 45.2-501

§ 45.2-501. Definitions.As used in the Coal Mine Safety Act, unless the context requires a different meaning: "Accident" means (i) a death of an individual at a mine; (ii) a serious personal injury; (iii) an entrapment of an individual for more than 30 minutes; (iv) an unplanned inundation of a mine by liquid or gas; (v) an unplanned ignition or explosion of gas or dust; (vi) an unplanned fire not extinguished within 30 minutes of discovery; (vii) an unplanned ignition or explosion of a blasting agent or an explosive; (viii) an unplanned roof fall at or above the anchorage zone in active workings where roof bolts are in use, or an unplanned roof or rib fall in active workings that impairs ventilation or impedes passage; (ix) a coal or rock outburst that causes withdrawal of miners or that disrupts regular mining activity for more than one hour; (x) an unstable condition at an impoundment, refuse pile, or culm bank that requires emergency action in order to prevent failure or that causes individuals to evacuate an area, or failure of an impoundment, refuse pile, or culm bank; (xi) damage to hoisting equipment in a shaft or slope that endangers an individual or interferes with use of the equipment for more than 30 minutes; (xii) an event at a mine that causes death or bodily injury to any individual not at a mine at the time the event occurs; and (xiii) the unintentional fall of highwall that entraps equipment for more than 30 minutes. "Active area" means any place in a mine that is ventilated, if underground, and examined regularly. "Active workings" means any place in a mine where miners are normally required to work or travel. "Agent" means any person charged by the operator with responsibility for the operation of all or a part of a mine or the supervision of miners in a mine. "Approved" means, with reference to a device, apparatus, equipment, condition, method, course, or practice, approved in writing by the Chief or the Director. "Authorized person" means a person who is assigned by the operator or agent to perform a specific type of duty or to be at a specific location in the mine and is trained and has demonstrated the ability to perform such duty safely and effectively. "Auxiliary fan" means a supplemental underground fan installed to increase the volume of air to a specified location for the purpose of controlling dust, methane, or air quality. "Board" means the Board of Coal Mining Examiners established pursuant to Article 3 (§ 45.2-515 et seq.). "Cable" means (i) a stranded conductor, known as single-conductor cable, or (ii) a combination of conductors insulated from one another, known as multiple-conductor cable. "Certified person" means a person who holds a valid certificate from the Board of Coal Mining Examiners authorizing him to perform the task to which he is assigned. "Circuit" means a conducting part or a system of conducting parts through which an electric current is intended to flow. "Circuit breaker" means a device for interrupting a circuit between separable contacts under normal or abnormal conditions. "Coal mine" means a surface coal mine or an underground coal mine. "Coal Mine Safety Act" or "the Act" means this chapter and Chapters 7 (§ 45.2-700 et seq.), 8 (§ 45.2-800 et seq.), and 9 (§ 45.2-900 et seq.) and includes any regulations adopted thereunder, where applicable. "Cross entry" means any entry or set of entries, turned from main entries, from which room entries are turned. "Experienced surface miner" means a person with six months or more of experience working at a surface mine or the surface area of an underground coal mine. "Experienced underground miner" means a person with six months or more of underground coal mining experience. "Federal mine safety law" means the Federal Mine Safety and Health Act of 1977 (P.L. 91-173, as amended by 95-164), and regulations adopted thereunder. "Fuse" means an overcurrent protective device with a circuit-opening fusible member directly heated and destroyed by the passage of overcurrent through it. "Ground" means a conducting connection between an electric circuit or electrical equipment and earth or to some conducting body that serves in place of earth. "Grounded" means connected to earth or to some connecting body that serves in place of earth. "Hazardous condition" means a condition that is likely to cause death or serious personal injury to any person exposed to such condition. "Imminent danger" means the existence of any condition or practice in a mine that could reasonably be expected to cause death or serious personal injury before such condition or practice can be abated. "Inactive mine" means a mine (i) at which (a) coal or minerals have not been excavated or processed or (b) work, other than examination by a certified person or emergency work to preserve the mine, has not been performed for a period of 30 days at an underground coal mine or for a period of 60 days at a surface mine; (ii) for which a valid license is in effect; and (iii) at which reclamation activities have not been completed. "Inexperienced underground miner" means a person with less than six months of underground coal mining experience. "Intake air" means air that has not passed through the last active working place of the split of any working section or any worked-out area, whether pillared or nonpillared, and by analysis contains at least 19.5 percent oxygen and not more than 0.5 percent carbon dioxide and does not contain a hazardous quantity of flammable gas or a harmful quantity of poisonous gas. "Interested persons" means members of the mine safety committee and other duly authorized representatives of the employees at a mine, MSHA employees, mine inspectors, and, to the extent required by the Act, any other person. "Main entry" means the principal entry or set of entries driven through the coal bed or mineral deposit and from which cross entries, room entries, or rooms are turned. "Mine" means any underground coal mine or surface coal mine. Mines that are adjacent to each other and under the same management and that are administered as distinct units are considered separate mines. A site is not considered a mine unless the coal extracted or excavated from it is offered for sale or exchange or used for any other commercial purpose. The area in which coal is excavated under an exemption to the permitting requirements of § 45.2-1009 is not a mine. "Mine fire" means an unplanned fire not extinguished within 30 minutes of discovery. "Mine foreman" means a person who holds a valid certificate of qualification as a foreman duly issued by action of the Board of Coal Mining Examiners. "Mine inspector" means a public employee assigned by the Chief or the Director to make mine inspections as required by the Act and other applicable laws. "Miner" means any individual working in a mine. "Mineral" means clay, stone, sand, gravel, metalliferous and nonmetalliferous ores, and any other solid material or substance of commercial value excavated in solid form from natural deposits on or in the earth, exclusive of coal and any mineral that occurs naturally in liquid or gaseous form. "Monthly" means, unless otherwise stated, occurring any time during the period of the first through the last day of a calendar month. "Mine Safety and Health Administration" or "MSHA" means the federal Mine Safety and Health Administration. "Operator" means any person who operates, controls, or supervises a mine or any independent contractor performing services or construction at a mine. "Panel entry" means a room entry. "Permissible" means a device, process, equipment, or method classified as "permissible" by MSHA, when such classification is adopted by the Chief or the Director, and includes all requirements, restrictions, exceptions, limitations, and conditions attached to such classification by MSHA unless otherwise expressly stated in the Act. "Return air" means air that has passed through (i) the last active working place on each split or (ii) worked-out areas, whether pillared or nonpillared. "Room entry" means any entry or set of entries from which rooms are turned. "Serious personal injury" means any injury that has a reasonable potential to cause death or any injury other than a sprain or strain that requires an admission to a hospital for 24 hours or more for medical treatment. "Substation" means an electrical installation containing generating or power-conversion equipment and associated electric equipment and parts, such as switchboards, switches, wiring, fuses, circuit breakers, compensators, and transformers. "Surface coal mine" means (i) the pit and other active and inactive areas of surface extraction of coal; (ii) on-site preparation plants, shops, tipples, and related facilities appurtenant to the extraction and processing of coal; (iii) surface areas for the transportation and storage of coal extracted at the site; (iv) impoundments, retention dams, tailing ponds, and refuse disposal areas appurtenant to the extraction of coal from the site; (v) equipment, machinery, tools, and other property used in or to be used in the extraction of coal from the site; (vi) private ways and roads appurtenant to such areas; and (vii) the areas used to prepare a site for surface coal extraction activities. A site commences being a surface coal mine upon the beginning of any site preparation activity other than exploratory drilling or other exploration activity that does not disturb the surface and ceases to be a surface coal mine upon completion of initial reclamation activities. "Travel way" means a passage, walk, or way regularly used and designated for persons to go from one place to another. "Underground coal mine" means (i) the working face and other active and inactive areas of underground excavation of coal; (ii) underground travel ways, shafts, slopes, drifts, inclines, and tunnels connected to such areas; (iii) on-site preparation plants, shops, tipples, and related facilities appurtenant to the excavation and processing of coal; (iv) on-site surface areas for the transportation and storage of coal excavated at the site; (v) impoundments, retention dams, and tailing ponds appurtenant to the excavation of coal from the site; (vi) equipment, machinery, tools, and other property, on the surface and underground, used in or to be used in the excavation of coal from the site; (vii) private ways and roads appurtenant to such areas; (viii) the areas used to prepare a site for underground coal excavation activities; and (ix) areas used for the drilling of vertical ventilation holes. A site commences being an underground coal mine upon the beginning of any site preparation activity other than exploratory drilling or other exploration activity and ceases to be an underground coal mine upon completion of initial reclamation activities. "Weekly" means, unless otherwise stated, occurring any time during the period of Sunday through Saturday of a calendar week. "Work area" means an area of a surface coal mine in production or being prepared for production and an area of the mine that may pose a danger to miners at such area. "Worked-out area" means an area where underground coal mining has been completed, whether pillared or nonpillared, excluding developing entries, return air courses, and intake air courses. "Working face" means any place in a mine in which work of extracting coal from its natural deposit in the earth is performed during the mining cycle. "Working place" means the area of an underground coal mine inby the last open crosscut. "Working section" means all areas from the loading point of a section to and including the working faces. Code 1950, § 45-0.2; 1954, c. 191; 1966, c. 594, § 45.1-2; 1975, c. 520; 1978, cc. 120, 489; 1980, c. 442; 1984, c. 590; 1993, c. 442; 1994, c. 28, § 45.1-161.8; 1996, c. 774; 1997, c. 390; 1999, c. 256; 2005, c. 3; 2021, Sp. Sess. I, c. 387.

Va. Code § 45.2-509

§ 45.2-509. Qualification of Chief.The Chief shall have a thorough knowledge of the various systems of working and ventilating coal mines, the nature and properties of mine gases and methods for their detection and control, the control of mine roof, methods of rescue and recovery work in mine disasters, the application of electricity and mechanical loading in mining operations, equipment and explosives used in mining, methods for preventing gas and dust explosions in mines, and mine haulage. The Chief shall possess such experience or educational background in management as determined necessary by the Governor and shall be at least 30 years of age. Code 1950, §§ 45-4, 45-5, 45-6; 1954, c. 191; 1966, c. 594, § 45.1-4; 1972, c. 784; 1978, cc. 120, 727; 1981, c. 32; 1984, cc. 184, 337, 590; 1987, Sp. Sess., c. 1; 1994, c. 28, § 45.1-161.16; 2021, Sp. Sess. I, c. 387.

Va. Code § 45.2-512

§ 45.2-512. Qualifications of coal mine inspectors.A. Each mine inspector conducting inspections of underground coal mines shall have a thorough knowledge of the various systems of working and ventilating underground coal mines; the nature and properties of mine gases and methods for their detection and control; the control of mine roof and ground control; methods of rescue and recovery work in mine disasters; the application of electricity and mechanical loading in mining operations; equipment and explosives used in mining; methods for preventing gas and dust explosions in mines; and mine haulage. B. Each mine inspector conducting inspections of surface coal mines shall have a thorough knowledge of the various systems of working surface coal mines, the nature and properties of mine gases and methods of their detection and control, ground control, methods of rescue and recovery work in surface mine disasters, the application of electricity and mechanical loading in mining operations, equipment and explosives used in mining, methods for preventing gas and dust explosions in surface facilities on mine property, and mine haulage. Code 1950, §§ 45-4, 45-5, 45-6; 1954, c. 191; 1966, c. 594, § 45.1-4; 1972, c. 784; 1978, cc. 120, 727; 1981, c. 32; 1984, cc. 184, 337, 590; 1987, Sp. Sess., c. 1; 1994, c. 28, § 45.1-161.20; 1997, c. 390; 2005, c. 3; 2021, Sp. Sess. I, c. 387.

Va. Code § 45.2-514

§ 45.2-514. Technical specialists.The Director may appoint technical specialists in the areas of roof control, electricity, ventilation, and other mine specialties. Each technical specialist shall have all the qualifications of a mine inspector plus the specialized knowledge required in his field. A technical specialist shall advise the Director and mine operators in the areas of his specialty and shall have the power of an inspector to issue a closure order only in a case of imminent danger. Code 1950, §§ 45-4, 45-5, 45-6; 1954, c. 191; 1966, c. 594, § 45.1-4; 1972, c. 784; 1978, cc. 120, 727; 1981, c. 32; 1984, cc. 184, 337, 590; 1987, Sp. Sess., c. 1; 1994, c. 28, § 45.1-161.23; 2021, Sp. Sess. I, c. 387. Article 3. Certification of Coal Mine Workers.

Va. Code § 45.2-520

§ 45.2-520. Certification of certain persons employed in coal mines; powers and duties of the Board.A. The Board of Coal Mining Examiners may require certification of persons who work in coal mines and persons whose duties and responsibilities in relation to coal mining require competency, skill, or knowledge in order to perform in a manner consistent with the preservation of the health and safety of persons and property. Each of the following certificates shall be issued by the Board, and a person who holds such a certificate is authorized to perform the tasks that the Act or any regulation adopted by the Board or by the Department requires to be performed by such certified person: 1. First-class mine foreman; 2. First-class shaft or slope foreman; 3. Surface foreman; 4. Preparation plant foreman; 5. Electrical maintenance foreman; 6. Dock foreman; 7. Top person; 8. Underground shot firer; 9. Surface blaster; 10. Hoisting engineer; 11. Electrical repairman; 12. Automatic elevator operator; 13. Mine inspector; 14. Qualified gas detector; 15. Diesel engine mechanic; 16. Diesel engine mechanic instructor; 17. First aid instructor; 18. Advanced first aid; 19. Chief electrician; and 20. General coal miner. B. Certification shall also be required for any additional tasks that the Board requires by regulation. C. The Board may adopt regulations necessary or incidental to the performance of duties or the execution of powers conferred under this title. Such regulations shall be adopted in accordance with the provisions of Article 2 (§ 2.2-4006 et seq.) of the Administrative Process Act. D. The Board may adopt regulations regarding on-site examinations of mine foremen conducted by mine inspectors pursuant to § 45.2-528. Code 1950, §§ 45-23, 45-28, 45-31, 45-33.1; 1954, c. 191; 1966, c. 594, §§ 45.1-12, 45.1-14; 1972, c. 784; 1978, c. 729; 1980, c. 442; 1984, c. 237; 1993, c. 442; 1994, c. 28, § 45.1-161.28; 2021, Sp. Sess. I, c. 387.

Va. Code § 45.2-533

§ 45.2-533. Chief electrician certification.Each applicant for a chief electrician certificate shall demonstrate to the Board of Coal Mining Examiners by written and oral examination that he has a thorough knowledge of the theory and practice of electricity that pertains to coal mining. In addition, each applicant shall pass the examinations in first aid and gas detection. The holder of a chief electrician certificate issued by the Board may act as chief electrician in any coal mine. Code 1950, §§ 45-23, 45-28; 1954, c. 191; 1966, c. 594, § 45.1-12; 1972, c. 784; 1978, c. 729; 1980, c. 442; 1984, c. 237; 1994, c. 28, § 45.1-161.40; 2021, Sp. Sess. I, c. 387.

Va. Code § 45.2-566

§ 45.2-566. Duties of inspectors.A. During a complete inspection of a mine, other than an inactive mine, the mine inspector shall inspect, where applicable, the surface plant; all active workings; all active travel ways; entrances to inaccessible worked-out areas; accessible worked-out areas; at least one entry of each intake and return airway in its entirety; escapeways and other places where miners work or travel or where hazardous conditions might exist; electric installations and equipment; haulage facilities; first aid equipment; ventilation facilities; communication installations; roof and rib conditions; roof-support practices; blasting practices; haulage practices and equipment; and any other condition, practice, or equipment pertaining to the health and safety of the miners. The mine inspector shall make tests for the quantity of air flows, and for gas and oxygen deficiency, in each place that he is required to inspect in an underground coal mine. In a mine operating more than one shift in a 24-hour period, the mine inspector shall devote sufficient time on the second and third shifts to determine conditions and practices relating to the health and safety of the miners. For an inactive mine, the mine inspector shall inspect all areas of the mine where persons may work or travel during the period the mine is an inactive mine. B. The inspector shall make a personal examination of the interior of the mine and of the outside of the mine where any danger may exist to the miners. Code 1950, §§ 45-4.1, 45-9, 45-12, 45-74; 1954, c. 191; 1966, c. 594, § 45.1-5; 1976, c. 598; 1978, c. 120; 1984, c. 236; 1985, c. 448; 1987, c. 470; 1990, c. 963; 1994, c. 28, § 45.1-161.88; 1996, c. 774; 1999, c. 256; 2021, Sp. Sess. I, c. 387.

Va. Code § 45.2-701

§ 45.2-701. Regulations governing conditions and practices at underground coal mines.A. The Chief may, after consultation with the Virginia Coal Mine Safety Board, created by Article 9 (§ 45.2-576 et seq.) of Chapter 5, and in accordance with the provisions of Article 2 (§ 2.2-4006 et seq.) of the Administrative Process Act, adopt regulations necessary to ensure safe and healthy working conditions in underground coal mines in the Commonwealth. Such regulations governing underground coal mines shall relate to: 1. The maintenance, operation, storage, and transportation of any mechanical or electrical equipment, device, or machinery used for any purpose in the underground mining of coal; 2. Safety and health standards for the protection of the life, health, and property of, and the prevention of injuries to, any person involved in or likely to be affected by any underground coal mining operation. Such standards shall include the control of dust concentration levels; the use of respiratory equipment and ventilating systems; the development and maintenance of roof control systems; the handling of combustible materials and rock dusting; the installation, maintenance, and use of electrical devices, equipment, cables, and wires; fire protection, including equipment, emergency evacuation plans, emergency shelters, and communication facilities; the use and storage of explosives; and the establishment and maintenance of barriers in underground coal mines around gas and oil wells. The Chief may adopt regulations setting forth specific occupations and conditions under which a miner is prohibited from working alone underground; and 3. The storage or disposal of any matter or materials (i) extracted or disturbed as the result of an underground coal mining operation or (ii) used in the mining operation or for the refinement or preparation of the materials extracted from the coal mining operation, so that such matter or material does not threaten the health or safety of the miners or the general public. B. The Chief shall not adopt any regulation establishing any requirement for the operation of, or conditions at, an underground coal mine that is inconsistent with requirements established by the Act. Code 1950, §§ 45-8, 45-84; 1954, c. 191; 1966, c. 594, § 45.1-104; 1972, c. 784; 1974, c. 323; 1975, c. 520; 1978, c. 120; 1982, c. 118; 1990, c. 963; 1994, c. 28, § 45.1-161.106; 2021, Sp. Sess. I, c. 387.

Va. Code § 45.2-719

§ 45.2-719. Surface storage of explosives and detonators.A. Two or more surface magazines shall be provided for the storage of explosives and the separate storage of detonators. B. Every surface magazine for storing and distributing explosives in an amount exceeding 150 pounds shall be: 1. Reasonably bullet-resistant and constructed of incombustible material or covered with fire-resistant material. The roof of a magazine that is located in such a way as to make it impossible to fire a bullet directly through the roof from the ground need not be bullet-resistant. Where it is possible to fire a bullet directly through a roof from the ground, such roof shall be made bullet-resistant by material construction, by the use of a ceiling that forms a tray containing not less than a four-inch thickness of sand, or by another method; 2. Provided with doors that are constructed of three-eighth-inch steel plate. Such doors shall be lined with a two-inch thickness of wood or the equivalent; 3. Provided with dry floors that are made of wood or other nonsparking material and have no metal exposed inside the magazine; 4. Provided with suitable warning signs located so that a bullet passing directly through the face of a sign will not strike the magazine; 5. Provided with properly screened ventilators; 6. Equipped with no openings except for entrance and ventilation openings; 7. Kept locked securely when unattended; and 8. Electrically bonded and grounded if constructed of metal. C. A surface magazine for storing detonators need not be bullet-resistant, but it shall comply with the other provisions of subsection B regarding the storage of explosives. D. Explosives weighing a total of no more than 150 pounds, or detonators numbering 5,000 or fewer, shall be stored (i) in accordance with the standards set forth in subsection A, B, or C or (ii) in a separate locked box-type magazine. A box-type magazine may also be used as a distributing magazine when the weight of the explosives or the number of detonators does not exceed the limits set forth in this subsection. Every box-type magazine shall be strongly constructed of two-inch hardwood or the equivalent. Every metal magazine shall be lined with nonsparking material. No magazine shall be placed (a) in a building containing oil, grease, gasoline, wastepaper, or other highly flammable material or (b) within 20 feet of a stove, furnace, open fire, or flame. E. No magazine shall be placed less than 300 feet from any mine opening. However, if a magazine cannot be practicably located at such distance, it may be located less than 300 feet from a mine opening if it is sufficiently barricaded and is approved by the Chief. Unless approved by the Chief, no magazine shall be located closer to an occupied building, public road, or passenger railway than the distance recommended in the "American Table of Distances for Storage of Explosive Materials" published by the Institute of Makers of Explosives. F. The supply kept in a distribution magazine shall be limited to approximately a 48-hour supply, and supplies of explosives and detonators may be distributed from the same magazine if they are separated by a substantially fastened hardwood partition at least four inches thick or the equivalent. G. The area surrounding any magazine shall be kept free of rubbish, dry grass, or other materials of a combustible nature for at least 25 feet in every direction. H. If an explosives magazine is illuminated electrically, each lamp shall be vapor-proof and installed and wired so as to minimize any fire or contact hazard. I. Only nonmetallic tools shall be used for opening any wooden explosives container. Extraneous materials shall not be stored with explosives or detonators in an explosives magazine. J. Smoking or carrying smokers' articles or open flames is prohibited in or near any magazine. Code 1950, § 45-53.2; 1954, c. 191; 1966, c. 594, § 45.1-44; 1978, c. 729; 1994, c. 28, § 45.1-161.126; 2005, c. 3; 2021, Sp. Sess. I, c. 387.

Va. Code § 45.2-721

§ 45.2-721. Underground storage of explosives and detonators.A. If a supply of explosives or detonators for use in one or more sections is stored underground, it shall be kept in a section box or magazine of substantial construction with no metal exposed on the inside. Such box or magazine shall be located at least 25 feet from any roadway or power wire and in a reasonably dry, well rock-dusted location protected from falls of roof. In a pitching bed, where it is not possible to comply with such location requirement, such box shall be placed in a niche cut into the solid coal or rock. B. If explosives and detonators are both stored in the section, they shall be kept in separate boxes or magazines not less than 12 feet apart if feasible; if kept in the same box or magazine, they shall be separated by a substantially fastened hardwood partition at least four inches thick or the equivalent. Not more than a 48-hour supply of explosives or detonators shall be stored underground in such box or magazine. C. If explosives and detonators are kept near the face for the use of miners, they shall be kept in separate individual closed containers, in niches in the ribs, not less than 12 feet apart, and at least 50 feet from the working place and out of the line of blast. Each such container shall be constructed of substantial material and maintained electrically nonconductive. Where it is physically impracticable to comply with such distance requirements, the explosives and detonator containers shall be stored in the safest available places not less than 15 feet from any pipe, rail, conveyor, haulage road, or power line, not less than 12 feet apart, and at least 50 feet from the working face and out of the line of blast. D. Explosives and detonators shall be kept in their containers pursuant to subsection C until immediately before use at a working face. Code 1950, § 45-53.4; 1954, c. 191; 1966, c. 594, § 45.1-47; 1994, c. 28, § 45.1-161.128; 1996, c. 774; 2021, Sp. Sess. I, c. 387.

Va. Code § 45.2-722

§ 45.2-722. Blasting practices; penalty.A. All explosives shall be of the permissible type except where addressed in the plan for shaft and slope development required by subsection B of § 45.2-704. B. All explosives shall be used as follows: 1. Explosives shall be fired only with electric detonators of proper strength; 2. Explosives shall be fired with permissible shot-firing units, unless firing is done from the surface when all persons are out of the mine, or in accordance with a plan approved by the Chief; 3. Where the coal is cut, no borehole in coal shall be drilled beyond the limits of the cut or into the roof or floor; 4. Every borehole shall be cleaned and checked to ensure that it is placed properly and is of the correct depth in relation to the cut before being charged; 5. Every blasting charge in coal shall have a burden of at least 18 inches in every direction if the height of the coal permits; 6. Every borehole shall be stemmed with at least 24 inches of incombustible material, or at least one-half of the length of the hole shall be stemmed if the hole is less than four feet in depth. The Chief may approve the use of other stemming devices; 7. An examination for gas shall be made immediately before firing each shot or group of shots and after blasting is completed; 8. No shot shall be fired in any place where a methane level of one percent or greater can be detected with a permissible methane detector as directed by the Chief; 9. Without approval, no charge of greater than one and one-half pounds shall be used unless (i) each borehole is six feet or more in depth; (ii) the explosives are charged in a continuous train, with no cartridges deliberately deformed or crushed; (iii) all cartridges are in contact with each other, with the end cartridges touching the back of the hole and the stemming, respectively; and (iv) explosives permissible pursuant to this article are used. No charge exceeding three pounds shall be used; however, such three-pound limit shall not apply to solid rock work; 10. Any solid shooting shall be done in compliance with conditions prescribed by the Chief; 11. Any shot shall be fired by a certified underground shot firer; 12. No borehole shall be charged while any other work is being done at the face, and any shot shall be fired before any other work is done in the zone of danger from blasting except that which is necessary to safeguard the miners; 13. Only nonmetallic tamping bars, including a nonmetallic tamping bar with a nonsparking metallic scraper on one end, shall be used for charging and tamping boreholes; 14. The leg wires of every electric detonator shall be kept shunted until ready to connect to the firing cable; 15. The roof and faces of each working place shall be tested before and after firing each shot or group of shots; 16. Ample warning shall be given before any shot is fired, and care shall be taken to ascertain that all miners are in the clear; 17. Every miner shall be removed to a distance of at least 100 feet from the working place and any immediately adjoining working place and shall be accounted for before any shot is fired; 18. No mixed types or brands of explosives shall be charged or fired in any borehole; 19. No adobe, mudcap, or other open, unconfined shot shall be fired in any mine except a type approved by MSHA and the Chief; 20. Any power wire or cable that could contact any blasting cable or leg wire shall be de-energized during charging and firing; 21. Firing a shot from a properly installed and protected blasting circuit may be permitted by the Chief; 22. No miner shall return or be allowed to return to the working place after the firing of any shot until the smoke has reasonably cleared away; 23. Before any miner returns to work and begins to load coal, slate, or refuse, such miner shall make a careful examination of the condition of the roof and do what is necessary to make the working place safe; and 24. An examination for fire shall be made of the working area after any blasting. C. It is unlawful for an operator, his agent, or a mine foreman to cause or permit any solid shooting to be done without first obtaining a written permit from the Chief. It is unlawful for any miner to shoot coal from the solid without first obtaining permission to do so from the operator, his agent, or a mine foreman. A violation of this subsection is a Class 1 misdemeanor. Code 1950, §§ 45-53.1, 45-53.5; 1954, c. 191; 1966, c. 594, § 45.1-48; 1978, c. 729; 1981, c. 179; 1984, c. 229; 1993, c. 442; 1994, c. 28, § 45.1-161.129; 1999, c. 256; 2021, Sp. Sess. I, c. 387.

Va. Code § 45.2-723

§ 45.2-723. Blasting cables.Each blasting cable shall be: 1. Well insulated and as long as necessary to allow the shot firer to move to a safe place around a corner; 2. Short-circuited at the battery end until it is ready to attach to the blasting unit; 3. Staggered as to length, or shall have its ends kept well separated when attached to the detonator leg wires; and 4. Kept clear of power wires and all other possible sources of active or stray electric currents. Code 1950, § 45-53.6; 1954, c. 191; 1966, c. 594, § 45.1-49; 1994, c. 28, § 45.1-161.130; 2021, Sp. Sess. I, c. 387.

Va. Code § 45.2-724

§ 45.2-724. Misfires.A. Where a misfire occurs with an electric detonator, a waiting period of at least 15 minutes is required before any miner is allowed to return to the shot area. After such failure, the blasting cable shall be disconnected from the source of power and the battery ends short-circuited before electric connections are examined. B. Explosives shall be removed by (i) firing a separate charge at least two feet away from, and parallel to, the misfired charge; (ii) washing the stemming and the charge from the borehole with water; or (iii) inserting and firing a new primer after the stemming has been washed out. C. A careful search of the working place and, if necessary, of the coal after it reaches the tipple shall be made after blasting a misfired hole to recover any undetonated explosive. D. The handling of a misfired shot shall occur under the direct supervision of the mine foreman or a certified person designated by him. Code 1950, § 45-53.7; 1954, c. 191; 1966, c. 594, § 45.1-50; 1994, c. 28, § 45.1-161.131; 2021, Sp. Sess. I, c. 387.

Va. Code § 45.2-725

§ 45.2-725. Explosives and blasting practices in shaft and slope operations.A. Every blasting area in a shaft or slope operation shall be covered with mats or materials when the excavations are too shallow to retain the blasted material. B. If explosives are in the shaft or slope when an electrical storm approaches, every miner shall be removed from the working place until the storm has passed. 1978, c. 729, § 45.1-53.1; 1994, c. 28, § 45.1-161.132; 2021, Sp. Sess. I, c. 387. Article 6. Mine Openings and Escapeways.

Va. Code § 45.2-744

§ 45.2-744. Haulage roads.A. The roadbed, rails, joints, switches, frogs, and other elements of the track of each haulage road shall be constructed, installed, and maintained in a manner that ensures the safe operation of the haulage road. In determining its safety, consideration shall be given to the speed of equipment and the type of haulage operations conducted on the haulage road. B. Haulage tracks shall be kept free of accumulations of coal spillage and debris, and water shall not be allowed to accumulate over the top of the rail. C. Every off-track haulage equipment operator shall observe the haulage road for hazardous conditions during the course of travel and shall promptly correct or report to the mine foreman any hazardous condition observed. D. Each off-track haulage road shall be maintained reasonably free of bottom irregularities, excess spillage, debris, wet or muddy conditions that make controlling off-track haulage equipment difficult, and any accumulation of water over such an area of the haulage road and in such a depth as to allow water to enter an electrical panel and create a potentially hazardous condition. E. No uninsulated trolley lines shall be used or installed in any underground coal mine without approval of the Chief. Code 1950, § 45-69.4; 1954, c. 191; 1966, c. 594, § 45.1-70; 1994, c. 28, § 45.1-161.133; 1996, c. 774; 1999, c. 256; 2011, cc. 826, 862; 2021, Sp. Sess. I, c. 387.

Va. Code § 45.2-750

§ 45.2-750. Inspection of underground equipment.Once per week, or more often if necessary, the mine foreman or a certified person shall inspect electrical and diesel transportation equipment to ensure its safe operating condition. Such equipment located on the surface shall be inspected once per month, or more often if necessary. Such person shall correct any defect found during the inspection. A record of such examinations shall be maintained. 1966, c. 594, § 45.1-85; 1978, c. 118; 1993, c. 442; 1994, c. 28, § 45.1-161.139; 1996, c. 774; 2021, Sp. Sess. I, c. 387.

Va. Code § 45.2-762

§ 45.2-762. Mantrip loading and unloading areas.A. Any area used regularly for loading or unloading mantrips shall be kept clear and free of obstructions and have ample clearance for moving equipment. Each miner shall remain in such area until the mantrip is ready to load. B. Trolley and power wires shall be guarded effectively at any area where persons regularly load or unload from mantrips or cages and where there is a possibility that a person could come into contact with energized electric wiring while boarding or disembarking the mantrip or cage. Code 1950, § 45-69.2; 1954, c. 191; 1966, c. 594, § 45.1-74; 1985, c. 296; 1994, c. 28, § 45.1-161.151; 1996, c. 774; 1999, c. 256; 2021, Sp. Sess. I, c. 387.

Va. Code § 45.2-768

§ 45.2-768. Controlling dust at the surface.A. In each surface structure, enclosure, or facility at any excessively dusty mine, every electric motor, switch, lighting fixture, and control shall be protected by dust-tight construction. B. Each surface structure and piece of equipment shall be kept free of coal dust accumulations. C. If mining operations raise an excessive amount of dust into the air, such dust shall be allayed at its sources by the use of water, water with a wetting agent added to it, or another effective method. Code 1950, §§ 45-77, 45-85.5; 1954, c. 191; 1966, c. 594, §§ 45.1-34, 45.1-67; 1978, cc. 120, 729; 1994, c. 28, § 45.1-161.240; 2021, Sp. Sess. I, c. 387.

Va. Code § 45.2-776

§ 45.2-776. Ground control.The provisions of Article 11 (§ 45.2-934) of Chapter 9 shall apply with respect to any pit, highwall, wall, bank, or bench associated with any coal mining activity conducted at any surface area of an underground coal mine. 1994, c. 28, § 45.1-161.248; 2021, Sp. Sess. I, c. 387. Chapter 8. Requirements Applicable to Underground Coal Mines; Electricity, Safety, Etc. Article 1. Mechanical Equipment.

Va. Code § 45.2-800

§ 45.2-800. Face and other equipment.A. The cutter chains of any mining machine shall be locked securely by mechanical means or an electrical interlock while such machine is parked or being trammed. B. Drilling in rock shall be conducted wet or other means of dust control shall be used. C. Each electric drill or other electrically operated rotating tool intended to be held in the hand shall have the electric switch constructed so as to break the circuit when the hand releases the switch or shall be equipped with a properly adjusted friction or safety clutch. D. While equipment is in operation or is being trammed, no miner shall position himself or be placed in a pinch point between such equipment and the face or any rib of the mine or another piece of equipment in the mine. E. Each piece of equipment that is raised for repairs or other work shall be securely blocked prior to any person positioning himself where the falling of such equipment could create a hazardous condition. Code 1950, § 45-85.1; 1954, c. 191; 1966, c. 594, § 45.1-87; 1979, c. 315; 1994, c. 28, § 45.1-161.123; 1996, c. 774; 1999, c. 256; 2021, Sp. Sess. I, c. 387.

Va. Code § 45.2-802

§ 45.2-802. Hydraulic hoses.Every hydraulic hose used on equipment purchased after January 1, 1986, shall be clearly stamped or labeled by the hydraulic hose manufacturer to indicate the manufacturer's rated pressure in pounds per square inch (psi) Every hose purchased after January 1, 1989, shall have the rated pressure permanently affixed on the outer surface of the hose and repeated at least every two feet. Every hose purchased and installed on an automatic displacement hydraulic system shall either (i) have a four-to-one safety factor based on the ratio between minimum burst pressure and the setting of the hydraulic unloading system, such as a relief valve, or (ii) meet the minimum hose pressure requirements set by the hydraulic equipment manufacturer per the applicable hose standards for each type of equipment. No hydraulic hose shall be used in an application where the hydraulic unloading system is set higher than the hose's rated pressure. 1985, c. 612, § 45.1-88.1; 1988, c. 301; 1994, c. 28, § 45.1-161.125; 2021, Sp. Sess. I, c. 387. Article 2. Electricity.

Va. Code § 45.2-803

§ 45.2-803. Surface electrical installations.A. Any overhead high-potential power line shall be (i) placed at least 15 feet above the ground and 20 feet above any driveway, (ii) installed on insulators, and (iii) supported and guarded to prevent contact with other circuits. B. Any surface transmission line, including a trolley circuit, shall be protected against short circuits and lightning. Each power circuit that leads underground shall be equipped with lightning arrestors within 100 feet of the location at which the circuit enters the mine. C. Electric wiring in any surface building shall be installed so as to prevent fire and contact hazards. Code 1950, §§ 45-82, 45-82.3; 1954, c. 191; 1966, c. 594, § 45.1-75; 1994, c. 28, § 45.1-161.181; 1996, c. 774; 1999, c. 256; 2021, Sp. Sess. I, c. 387.

Va. Code § 45.2-807

§ 45.2-807. Power circuits.A. All underground power wires and cables shall (i) have adequate current-carrying capacity, (ii) be guarded from mechanical injury, and (iii) be installed in a permanent manner. B. Wires and cables that are not encased in armor shall be supported by well-installed insulators and shall not touch any roof, rib, or combustible material; however, this prohibition shall not apply to ground wires, grounded power conductors, or trailing cables. C. Power wires or cables that are installed in a belt-haulage slope shall be insulated adequately and buried in a trench at least one foot below any combustible material, unless such wires or cables are encased in armor or otherwise fully protected against mechanical injury. D. Any splice or repair in a power cable shall: 1. Be mechanically strong and have adequate electrical conductivity; 2. Be effectively insulated and sealed so as to exclude moisture; 3. If the cable has metallic armor, possess mechanical protection and electrical conductivity equivalent to that of the original armor; and 4. If the cable has metallic shielding around each conductor, possess new shielding that is equivalent to the original shielding. E. Every underground high-voltage transmission cable shall be: 1. Installed only in a regularly inspected airway; 2. Covered, buried, or placed on insulators so as to afford protection against damage by derailed equipment if it is installed along a haulage road; 3. Guarded if miners regularly work or pass under such cable, unless it is at least 6.5 feet above the floor or rail; 4. Securely anchored, properly insulated, and guarded at its ends; and 5. Covered, insulated, or placed to prevent contact with any trolley circuit or other low-voltage circuit. F. Any new high-voltage disconnect that is installed on underground electrical equipment shall automatically ground all three power leads when in the open position. Every high-voltage disconnect that is rebuilt or remanufactured after July 1, 2011, shall meet this standard. G. Every power wire or cable shall be insulated adequately where it passes into or out of an electrical compartment and where it passes through a door or stopping. H. Where track is used as a power conductor: 1. Both rails of main-line tracks shall be welded or bonded at every joint, and cross bonds shall be installed at intervals of not more than 200 feet. If the rails are paralleled with a feeder circuit of like polarity, such paralleled feeder shall be bonded to the track rails at intervals of not more than 1,000 feet; 2. At least one rail on any secondary track-haulage road shall be welded or bonded at every joint, and cross bonds shall be installed at intervals of not more than 200 feet; and 3. Track switches on entries shall be well bonded. Code 1950, §§ 45-82, 45-82.1; 1954, c. 191; 1966, c. 594, § 45.1-78; 1993, c. 442; 1994, c. 28, § 45.1-161.186; 1996, c. 774; 1999, c. 256; 2005, c. 3; 2011, cc. 826, 862; 2021, Sp. Sess. I, c. 387.

Va. Code § 45.2-809

§ 45.2-809. Grounding.A. Every metallic sheath, armor, or conduit that encloses a power conductor shall be electrically continuous throughout and shall be grounded effectively. B. Every metallic frame, casing, or other enclosure of stationary electrical equipment that can become electrified through failure of insulation or by contact with energized parts shall be grounded effectively, or equivalent protection shall be provided. C. Any three-phase alternating current circuit that is used underground shall contain either a direct or derived neutral that shall be grounded through a suitable resistor at the power center. A grounding circuit that originates at the grounded side of the grounding resistor shall extend with the power conductors and serve as the grounding conductor for the frame of every piece of electrical equipment that is supplied with power from that circuit. A grounding resistor that is manufactured to meet the extended time rating as set forth in American National standard IEEE C57.32-2015 is deemed to meet the requirements of this section. High-voltage circuits extending underground shall be supplied with a grounding resistor of a proper Ohmic value located on the surface to limit the voltage drop in the grounding circuit external to the resistor to not more than 100 volts under fault conditions. Such grounding resistor shall be rated for maximum fault current continuously and insulated from ground for a voltage equal to the phase-to-phase voltage of the system. Every resistance-grounded alternating circuit used underground shall include a fail-safe ground check circuit to monitor continuously the grounding circuit to ensure the continuity of the ground conductor. 1966, c. 594, § 45.1-79; 1994, c. 28, § 45.1-161.188; 1999, c. 256; 2011, cc. 826, 862; 2021, Sp. Sess. I, c. 387.

Va. Code § 45.2-810

§ 45.2-810. Circuit breakers and switches.A. Automatic circuit breaking devices or fuses of the correct type and capacity shall be installed so as to protect each piece of electrical equipment and each power circuit against excessive overload; however, this requirement shall not apply to any locomotive that is operated regularly on a grade that exceeds five percent. Wire or other conducting material shall not be used as a substitute for a properly designed fuse, and every circuit breaking device shall be maintained in safe operating condition. B. An automatic circuit breaker of the correct type and capacity shall be installed on each resistance-grounded circuit used underground. Such circuit breaker shall be located at the power source and equipped with devices to provide protection against under-voltage, grounded phase, short circuit, and overcurrent. C. Operating controls such as switches, starters, and switch buttons shall be installed so that they are readily accessible and can be operated without danger of contact with moving or electrified parts. D. A disconnecting switch shall be installed underground in each main power circuit within approximately 500 feet of the bottom of each shaft or borehole and at any other place at which a main power circuit enters the mine. E. Each piece of electrical equipment and each circuit shall be provided with switches or other controls of safe design, construction, and installation. F. Insulating mats or other electrically nonconductive material shall be kept in place at each power-control switch and at any piece of stationary machinery at which a shock hazard exists. G. Each circuit breaker, disconnecting device, and switch shall be marked for identification. Code 1950, § 45-82.3; 1954, c. 191; 1966, c. 594, § 45.1-80; 1994, c. 28, § 45.1-161.189; 1999, c. 256; 2021, Sp. Sess. I, c. 387.

Va. Code § 45.2-811

§ 45.2-811. Communication systems.A. Telephone service or equivalent two-way communication facilities shall be provided between the top and each landing of each main shaft or slope. A telephone or equivalent two-way communication facility shall be located on the surface within 500 feet of each main portal and installed in either a building or a box-like structure that is designed to protect the facility from damage by inclement weather. At least one of these communication facilities shall be at a location where an authorized person who is always on duty when miners are underground can see or hear the facility and respond immediately in the event of an emergency. B. Telephone lines, other than cables, shall be carried on insulators, installed on the opposite side from power or trolley wires, and insulated adequately where they cross power or trolley wires. C. Lightning arrestors shall be provided at each point where a telephone circuit enters the mine and at each telephone on the surface. Where the telephone circuit enters a building or structure, a lightning arrestor is required only at the point at which the circuit enters such building or structure. D. If a communication system other than telephones is used and its operation depends entirely upon power from the mine electric system, a means shall be provided to permit continued communication in the event the mine electric power fails or is cut off. E. Communication systems equipped with audible and visual signals that become operative when telephone communication is being established between the phones of the communication station on the surface and the underground working sections shall be provided. F. The Chief shall adopt regulations governing any disruption of communication in a mine. Code 1950, § 45-82.4; 1954, c. 191; 1966, c. 594, § 45.1-81; 1978, c. 118; 1979, c. 315; 1994, c. 28, § 45.1-161.191; 1996, c. 774; 1999, c. 256; 2021, Sp. Sess. I, c. 387.

Va. Code § 45.2-812

§ 45.2-812. Electrical equipment.A. Electrical equipment that is taken into or used inby the last open crosscut or in other than an intake airway constitutes permissible equipment. B. Permissible equipment that is used in an area specified in subsection A shall be maintained in permissible condition. C. No electrical equipment shall be taken into or operated in any place where a methane level of one percent or more is detected. D. Voltage limitations for underground installations of electrical equipment using direct or alternating current shall conform to the voltages provided in 30 C.F.R. § 18.47. E. Electrical equipment shall be classified as permissible and shall be maintained in a permissible condition when such equipment is located within 150 feet of any pillar workings or longwall face. F. Any electrical conductors and cables installed in or inby the last open crosscut, or within 150 feet of any pillar workings or longwall face, shall be: 1. Shielded high-voltage cables supplying power to permissible longwall equipment or other equipment; 2. Interconnecting conductors and cables of permissible longwall equipment; 3. Conductors and cables of intrinsically safe circuits; or 4. Cables and conductors supplying power to low-voltage or medium-voltage permissible equipment. G. Electrical equipment shall be maintained in safe operating condition at all times while it is being used, and any unsafe condition shall be corrected promptly or the equipment shall be removed from service. Code 1950, § 45-83; 1954, c. 191; 1966, c. 594, § 45.1-83; 1993, c. 442; 1994, c. 28, § 45.1-161.193; 1999, c. 256; 2011, cc. 826, 862; 2015, cc. 103, 397; 2021, Sp. Sess. I, c. 387.

Va. Code § 45.2-813

§ 45.2-813. Trailing cables.A. Trailing cables that are used underground shall be flame-resistant. B. Trailing cables shall be provided with suitable short-circuit protection and some means of disconnecting power from the cable. Any power connection that is made in other than an intake airway shall be by means of a permissible connector. C. Any temporary splice in a trailing cable shall be made in a workmanlike manner and shall be mechanically strong and well insulated. D. No more than one temporary, unvulcanized splice shall be allowed in any trailing cable. E. Any permanent splice or repair in a trailing cable shall: 1. Be mechanically strong, with adequate electrical conductivity and flexibility; 2. Be effectively insulated and sealed so as to exclude moisture; 3. Be vulcanized or otherwise treated with suitable materials to provide flame-resistant properties and good bonding to the outer jacket; and 4. If the cable has metallic shielding around each conductor, possess new shielding that is equivalent to the original shielding. F. Trailing cables shall be protected against mechanical damage. A trailing cable that is damaged in a manner that exposes the insulated inner power conductors shall be repaired promptly or removed from service. Code 1950, § 45-82.5; 1954, c. 191; 1966, c. 594, § 45.1-84; 1978, c. 118; 1993, c. 442; 1994, c. 28, § 45.1-161.194; 1999, c. 256; 2005, c. 3; 2021, Sp. Sess. I, c. 387.

Va. Code § 45.2-814

§ 45.2-814. Inspection of electrical equipment and wiring; checking and testing methane monitors.A. Electrical equipment and wiring shall be inspected by a certified person at least weekly if it is located underground and at least monthly if it is located on the surface. Such equipment and wiring shall be inspected more often if doing so is necessary to ensure safe operating conditions. Any hazardous condition that is found shall be promptly corrected or the equipment or wiring shall be removed from service. Records of such inspections shall be maintained at the mine for a period of one year. B. A functional check of methane monitors on electrical face equipment shall be conducted to determine whether such monitors are de-energizing the electrical face equipment properly. Such check shall be (i) made on each production shift, (ii) conducted by the equipment operator in the presence of a mine foreman, and (iii) recorded in the on-shift report of the mine foreman. C. To determine the accuracy and operation of methane monitors on electrical face equipment, weekly calibration tests of such monitors shall be conducted with a known mixture of methane at the flow rate recommended by the methane monitor manufacturer. A record of the results shall be maintained. D. Required methane monitors shall be maintained in permissible and proper operating condition. 1966, c. 594, § 45.1-85; 1978, c. 118; 1993, c. 442; 1994, c. 28, § 45.1-161.195; 1996, c. 774; 1999, c. 256; 2005, c. 3; 2021, Sp. Sess. I, c. 387.

Va. Code § 45.2-815

§ 45.2-815. Repairs to circuits and electric equipment.A. No electrical work shall be performed on any low-voltage, medium-voltage, or high-voltage distribution circuit or equipment except by a certified person or a person who is trained to perform electrical work and to maintain electrical equipment and is working under the direct supervision of a certified person. Every high-voltage circuit shall be grounded before repair work is performed. Disconnecting devices shall be locked out and suitably tagged by the person who performs electrical or mechanical work on such a circuit or piece of equipment connected to such a circuit, except that where locking out is not possible, such devices shall be opened and suitably tagged by such person. Locks and tags shall be removed only by the person who installed them or, if such person is unavailable, by a certified person authorized by the operator or his agent. B. A miner may, where necessary, repair energized trolley wires if he wears insulated shoes and lineman's gloves. C. This section does not prohibit a certified electrical repairman from making checks on or troubleshooting energized circuits or an authorized person from performing repairs or maintenance on equipment once the power is off and the equipment is blocked against motion, except where motion is necessary to make adjustments. Code 1950, §§ 45-82, 45-82.1; 1954, c. 191; 1966, c. 594, § 45.1-78; 1993, c. 442; 1994, c. 28, § 45.1-161.196; 1996, c. 774; 1999, c. 256; 2021, Sp. Sess. I, c. 387.

Va. Code § 45.2-816

§ 45.2-816. Underground illumination.A. Electric-light wires shall be supported by suitable insulators or installed in conduit, shall be fastened securely to the power conductors, and shall not contact any combustible material. B. Every electric light shall be guarded and installed so that it does not contact any combustible material. Code 1950, § 45-82.6; 1954, c. 191; 1966, c. 594, § 45.1-86; 1994, c. 28, § 45.1-161.172; 2005, c. 3; 2021, Sp. Sess. I, c. 387.

Va. Code § 45.2-817

§ 45.2-817. Inspection of electric illumination equipment.Every lamp, extension light, and permissible form of portable illumination, such as a cap lamp or flashlight, that is used for personal illumination underground shall be inspected by an authorized person at least once per week, and more often if necessary, to ensure safe operating conditions. When such equipment is located at the surface, it shall be inspected by an authorized person at least once per month, and more often if necessary, to ensure safe operating conditions. Any defect found shall be corrected. 1966, c. 594, § 45.1-85; 1978, c. 118; 1993, c. 442; 1994, c. 28, § 45.1-161.173; 1999, c. 256; 2021, Sp. Sess. I, c. 387. Article 3. Fire Prevention and Fire Control.

Va. Code § 45.2-818

§ 45.2-818. Firefighting equipment; fire prevention.A. Each mine shall be provided with suitable firefighting equipment that is adequate for the size of the mine. B. The following equipment, at a minimum, shall be immediately available at each mine: 1. A water car filled with water and provided with hose and pump, or waterlines and necessary hoses; 2. At least three 20-pound dry chemical fire extinguishers; 3. Ten 50-pound bags of rock dust, which shall be made available at doors or other strategic places; 4. Bolt cutters that can be used to cut trolley wire in an emergency; 5. One pair of rubber gloves that shall be used with each pair of bolt cutters when cutting trolley wire; 6. Two sledge hammers; and 7. Five hundred square feet of brattice cloth, nails, and a hammer. C. Clean, dry sand, rock dust, or fire extinguishers that are suitable from a toxic and shock standpoint shall be placed at each electrical station, including each substation, transformer station, and permanent pump station, so as to be out of the smoke in case of a fire in the station. D. Suitable fire extinguishers shall be provided at each (i) electrical station, including each substation, transformer station, and permanent pump station; (ii) piece of self-propelled mobile equipment; (iii) belt head and at the inby end of each belt; (iv) area used for the storage of flammable materials; (v) fueling station; and (vi) any other area that may constitute a fire hazard, so as to be on the fresh air side in case of a fire. E. All firefighting equipment and each fire sensor system shall be maintained in a usable and operative condition. Each chemical extinguisher shall be examined every six months and the date of the examination shall be indicated on a tag attached to each extinguisher. F. A sufficient number of approved one-hour, self-contained, self-rescuers shall be readily available, not more than 100 feet away, for the persons involved in the moving or transporting of any piece of off-track mining equipment. Code 1950, § 45-14.1; 1954, c. 191; 1966, c. 594, § 45.1-89; 1974, c. 323; 1978, c. 118; 1984, c. 590; 1985, c. 500; 1994, c. 28, § 45.1-161.200; 1996, c. 774; 2005, c. 3; 2015, cc. 103, 397; 2021, Sp. Sess. I, c. 387.

Va. Code § 45.2-822

§ 45.2-822. Fire prevention in transportation of mining equipment.A. Prior to moving or transporting any piece of off-track mining equipment in any area of the active workings where energized trolley wires or trolley feeder wires are present, (i) the piece of equipment shall be examined by a certified person to ensure that accumulations of coal dust, float coal dust, loose coal, oil, grease, and other combustible materials have been removed from such piece of equipment and (ii) a qualified person shall examine the trolley wires, trolley feeder wires, and the associated automatic circuit interrupting devices to ensure that proper short circuit protection exists. B. A record shall be kept of the examinations required pursuant to subsection A and shall be made available, upon request, to the Chief or his authorized representative. C. Off-track mining equipment shall not be moved or transported in any area of the active workings where energized trolley wires or trolley feeder wires are present unless under the direct supervision of a certified person who is physically present at all times during the moving or transporting of such equipment. D. The frame of any unit of off-track mining equipment that is being moved or transported shall be covered on the top and on the trolley wire side with fire-resistant material. E. Electrical contact shall be maintained between the mine track and the frame of any piece of off-track mining equipment that is being moved in a track and trolley entry. However, rubber-tired equipment need not be grounded to a transporting vehicle if no metal part of such rubber-tired equipment can come into contact with the transporting vehicle. F. To avoid accidental contact with power lines, the equipment being transported or trammed shall be insulated or, if necessary, the assemblage shall be removed if the clearance to the power lines is six inches or less. G. Sufficient prior notice shall be given to the Department so that a mine inspector, if he deems it necessary, can travel the route of the move before the actual move is made. H. A minimum vertical clearance of one foot shall be maintained between the farthest projection of the piece of equipment that is being moved and the energized trolley wires or trolley feeder wires at all times during the movement or transportation of such equipment. If the height of the coal seam does not permit one foot of vertical clearance to be so maintained, the following additional precautions shall be taken: 1. Electric power shall be supplied to the trolley wires or trolley feeder wires only from outby the piece of equipment being moved or transported. Where direct current electric power is used and such electric power can be supplied only from inby the equipment being moved or transported, such power may be supplied from inby such equipment if a miner who has the means to cut off the power is in direct communication with the persons actually engaged in the moving or transporting operation and is stationed outby the equipment being moved; 2. The settings of automatic circuit interrupting devices used to provide short circuit protection for the trolley circuit shall be reduced to not more than one-half of the maximum current that could flow if the equipment being moved or transported were to come into contact with the trolley wire or trolley feeder wire; 3. At all times when the piece of equipment is being moved or transported, a miner shall be stationed at the first automatic circuit breaker outby the equipment being moved. Such miner shall be (i) in direct communication with the persons actually engaged in the moving or transporting operation and (ii) capable of communicating with the authorized person on the surface who is required to be on duty; 4. Where trolley phones are utilized to satisfy the requirements of subdivision 3, telephones or other equivalent two-way communication devices that can readily be connected with the mine communication system shall be carried by (i) the miner who is stationed at the first automatic circuit breaker outby the equipment being moved and (ii) by a miner who is actually engaged in the moving or transporting operation; and 5. No person shall be permitted to be inby the piece of equipment being moved or transported, or in the ventilating current of air that is passing over such equipment, except a person who is directly engaged in moving such equipment. I. The provisions of subsection H shall not apply to a piece of mining equipment that is transported in a mine car if no part of the equipment extends above or over the sides of the mine car. Code 1950, § 45-14.1; 1954, c. 191; 1966, c. 594, § 45.1-89; 1974, c. 323; 1978, c. 118; 1984, c. 590; 1985, c. 500; 1994, c. 28, § 45.1-161.204; 2021, Sp. Sess. I, c. 387.

Va. Code § 45.2-827

§ 45.2-827. On-shift examinations.A. At least once during each shift, and more often if necessary, a certified person shall examine each underground section where coal is produced and any other area where mechanized mining equipment is being installed or removed during the shift. The certified person shall (i) examine for hazardous conditions, (ii) test for methane and oxygen deficiency with a suitable permissible device, and (iii) determine whether the air is traveling in its regular course and in sufficient volume in each split. Any hazardous condition shall be corrected immediately or the miners shall be withdrawn and the affected area plainly marked with danger signs. B. During each shift in which coal is produced, a certified person shall examine for hazardous conditions along each underground belt conveyor entry where a belt conveyor is operated. Such examination may be conducted at the same time as the pre-shift examination of the belt conveyors and the belt conveyor entries, if the examination is conducted within three hours before the established eight-hour interval. The person conducting the examination shall certify by initials, date, and time at enough locations to show that the entire area has been examined. C. A person conducting an on-shift examination shall determine at the following underground locations: 1. The volume of air in the last open crosscut of each set of entries or rooms on each working section and in any area in which mechanized mining equipment is being installed or removed; 2. The volume of air on a longwall or shortwall, including any area where longwall or shortwall equipment is being installed or removed, in the intake entry or entries at the intake end of the longwall or shortwall; 3. The velocity of air at each end of the longwall or shortwall face at each location specified in the approved ventilation plan required pursuant to the federal mine safety law; and 4. The volume of air at the intake end of any pillar line (i) in the intake entry furthest from the return air course, immediately outby the first open crosscut outby the line of pillars being mined, if a single split of air is used or (ii) in the intake entries of each split, immediately inby the split point, if a split system is used. D. A test shall be made for methane before (i) any electrically powered equipment is taken inby the last open crosscut, (ii) any blasting takes place, and (iii) work is resumed after blasting. When a longwall or shortwall mining system is used, such methane test shall be made from under permanent roof support at the shearer, the plow, or the cutting head. Such methane test shall be made at least once every 20 minutes or more often as necessary for safety while such equipment is in operation. When mining has been stopped for more than 20 minutes, a methane test shall be conducted prior to the start-up of equipment. E. Each idle or worked-out area underground, including any section belt that has been idle for a period of 24 hours or more, shall be examined by a certified person immediately before miners are permitted to enter or work in such area. The person conducting the examination shall certify completion of the examination by initials, date, and time at enough locations to show that the entire area has been examined. F. Daily and on-shift examinations of surface areas of underground coal mines shall be made in accordance with the requirements for daily and on-shift examinations at surface coal mines as provided in § 45.2-903. Code 1950, §§ 45-32, 45-33, 45-60.4, 45-60.5, 45-68.1, 45-69.7, 45-83; 1954, c. 191; 1966, c. 594, §§ 45.1-20, 45.1-62, 45.1-65, 45.1-83; 1978, c. 120; 1982, c. 385; 1993, c. 442; 1994, c. 28, § 45.1-161.209; 1996, c. 774; 1999, c. 256; 2005, c. 3; 2021, Sp. Sess. I, c. 387.

Va. Code § 45.2-833

§ 45.2-833. Main fans.A. The active workings of a mine shall be ventilated by means of main fans. B. Unless otherwise approved by the Chief, each fan shall be (i) provided with pressure-recording gauges, (ii) installed on the surface in a fireproof housing, and (iii) equipped with fireproof air ducts. C. In addition to the requirements of subsection B, each main fan shall either: 1. Be equipped with ample means of pressure relief and be offset not less than 15 feet from the nearest side of the mine opening; or 2. Be directly in front of, or over, the mine opening; however, such opening shall not be in direct line with forces coming out of the mine if an explosion were to occur. There shall be another opening, equipped with a weak-wall stopping or with explosion doors, that is located not less than 15 feet or more than 100 feet from the fan opening and in direct line with the forces coming out of the mine if an explosion were to occur; and 3. In a mine ventilated by multiple main mine fans, incombustible doors shall be installed so that if any main mine fan stops and air reversals through the fan are possible, the doors on the affected fan automatically close. D. Each main mine fan shall be provided with an automatic device to give alarm when the fan slows down or stops. Unless otherwise approved by the Chief, such device shall be placed so that it will be seen or heard by an authorized person. E. Each main fan shall be on a separate power circuit, independent of the mine circuit. F. The area surrounding a main fan installation shall be kept free of combustible material for at least 100 feet in every direction where physical conditions permit. G. Each mine fan shall be operated continuously except when no miner is underground and such mine fan is intentionally stopped for necessary testing, adjustment, maintenance, or repairs, or as otherwise approved by the Chief. If the main fan is intentionally stopped for testing, adjustment, maintenance, or repairs, the mine operator shall comply with the requirements set forth in the approved fan stoppage plan for that mine. If the main fan is stopped after all miners are out of the mine, the fan shall be operated for a period specified in the approved fan stoppage plan for that mine, prepared pursuant to § 45.2-834, before any miner is allowed underground. H. Where electric power is available, no main mine fan shall be powered by means of an internal combustion engine. However, if electric power is not available or the fan is employed for emergency use, a main mine fan may be powered with an internal combustion engine. Unless otherwise approved by the Chief, such fan shall be operated exhausting and the engine operating such fan shall be offset at least 10 feet from the fan and housed in a separate fireproof structure. Code 1950, § 45-60.1; 1954, c. 191; 1966, c. 594, § 45.1-54; 1978, c. 120; 1988, c. 597; 1993, c. 442; 1994, c. 28, § 45.1-161.216; 1996, c. 774; 2005, c. 3; 2011, cc. 826, 862; 2021, Sp. Sess. I, c. 387.

Va. Code § 45.2-839

§ 45.2-839. Actions for excessive methane.A. Tests for methane concentration under this section shall be made by certified or qualified persons trained in the use of an approved detecting device that is properly maintained and calibrated. Tests shall be made at least one foot from the roof, face, ribs, and floor. B. If a methane concentration of one percent or more is present in a working place; an intake air course, including an air course in which a belt conveyor is located; or an area where mining equipment is being installed or removed, work shall cease and electrically powered equipment shall be de-energized in the affected working place, except for any intrinsically safe atmospheric monitoring system (AMS), which need not be de-energized. Changes or adjustments shall be made to such ventilation system to reduce the methane concentration to below one percent. Only work to reduce the methane concentration to below one percent is permitted. Such limitation does not apply to any other face in the entry or slope in which work can be safely continued. C. If a methane concentration of 1.5 percent or more is present in a working place; an intake air course, including an air course in which a belt conveyor is located; or an area where mining equipment is being installed or removed, only work necessary to reduce the methane concentration to less than 1.5 percent is permitted, and all miners except those required to perform such necessary work shall be withdrawn from the affected area. Electrically powered equipment in the affected area shall be de-energized and other mechanized equipment in the affected area shall be shut off, except for any intrinsically safe AMS. D. If a methane concentration of one percent or more is present in a return or split between the last working place on a working section and the location at which such split of air meets another split of air, or the location at which such split is used to ventilate a seal or worked-out area, changes or adjustments shall be made to the ventilation system to reduce the methane concentration in the return air to less than one percent. E. If a methane concentration of 1.5 percent or more is present in a return air split between the last working place on a working section and the location at which such split of air meets another split of air, or the location at which such split is used to ventilate a seal or worked-out area, all miners except those required to perform necessary work to correct the problem shall be withdrawn from the affected area. Other than an intrinsically safe AMS, all equipment in the affected area shall be de-energized at the source. No other work is permitted in the affected area until the methane concentration in the return air is less than one percent. F. An alternative methane concentration of as much as 1.5 percent is allowed in a return air split if the following conditions are met: (i) the quantity of air in the split ventilating the active workings is at least 27,000 cubic feet per minute in the last open crosscut; (ii) the methane concentration in the split is continuously monitored during mining operations by an intrinsically safe AMS that gives a visual and audible signal on the working section when the methane concentration in the return air reaches 1.5 percent; and (iii) rock dust is continuously applied with a mechanical duster to the return air course during coal production at a location in the air course that is immediately outby the most inby monitoring point or inby such point if the mechanical duster is maintained in a permissible condition and does not adversely affect the AMS. If a methane concentration of 1.5 percent or more is present at the location at which a return air alternative is applied, all persons shall be withdrawn, except those necessary to improve ventilation, and changes or adjustments shall be made to reduce the methane concentration in the return air to below 1.5 percent as set forth in subsection E. G. The methane concentration in a bleeder split of air immediately before the air in such split joins another split of air, or in a return air course other than described in subsections D and E, shall not exceed two percent. Code 1950, § 45-60.3; 1954, c. 191; 1966, c. 594, § 45.1-58; 1978, c. 120; 1994, c. 28, § 45.1-161.222; 1996, c. 774; 1999, c. 256; 2021, Sp. Sess. I, c. 387.

Va. Code § 45.2-850

§ 45.2-850. Intentionally bypassing a safety device; prohibition.A. No person shall intentionally bypass, bridge, or otherwise impair an electrical or hydraulic circuit that affects the safe operation of electrical or mechanical equipment. B. The provisions of subsection A shall not prohibit (i) a certified electrical repairman from bypassing an energized circuit for troubleshooting; (ii) an authorized person from performing repairs or maintenance on equipment once the power is off and the equipment is blocked against motion, except where motion is necessary to make adjustment or to move the equipment to a safe location; (iii) an authorized person from bypassing a hydraulic circuit for the purpose of troubleshooting or moving equipment to a safe location in order to make necessary repairs or take such equipment out of service; or (iv) an authorized person from activating an override feature that is designed by the machine manufacturer to allow such machine to be moved to a safe location in order to undergo necessary repairs or be taken out of service. 2005, c. 3, § 45.1-161.233:1; 2021, Sp. Sess. I, c. 387.

Va. Code § 45.2-852

§ 45.2-852. Rock dusting.A. Every underground area of a mine, except an area in which the coal dust is too wet or too high in incombustible content to propagate an explosion, shall be rock-dusted to within 40 feet of every working face, unless such area is inaccessible or unsafe to enter or unless the Chief or his authorized representative permits an exception upon his finding that such exception does not pose a hazard to any miner. Every crosscut that is less than 40 feet from a working face shall also be rock-dusted. B. Every other area of a mine shall be rock-dusted if conditions are found by a proper inspection to be so dusty as to constitute a hazard. If such conditions are found to exist, the Chief or his authorized representative shall require the necessary rock dusting to make every such area of the mine safe. C. Coal dust, including float coal dust deposited on rock-dusted surfaces, loose coal, and other combustible material, shall be cleaned up and shall not be permitted to accumulate excessively in active workings or on electric equipment therein. Code 1950, § 45-77; 1954, c. 191; 1966, c. 594, § 45.1-67; 1978, c. 120; 1994, c. 28, § 45.1-161.235; 1999, c. 256; 2021, Sp. Sess. I, c. 387. Article 5. Personal Safety; Smoking.

Va. Code § 45.2-860

§ 45.2-860. Portable illumination.A. For portable illumination underground, every miner shall use a permissible electric cap lamp that is worn on the person. Such requirement shall not preclude the use of any other type of permissible electric lamp, permissible flashlight, permissible safety lamp, or other permissible portable illumination device. B. Any light bulb on an extension cable shall be guarded adequately. Code 1950, § 45-33; 1954, c. 191; 1966, c. 594, §§ 45.1-20, 45.1-96; 1978, c. 120; 1982, c. 385; 1994, c. 28, § 45.1-161.171; 2021, Sp. Sess. I, c. 387. Article 6. First Aid Equipment; Medical Care; Emergency Medical Services Providers.

Va. Code § 45.2-901

§ 45.2-901. Regulations governing conditions and practices at surface coal mines.A. The Chief may, after consultation with the Virginia Coal Mine Safety Board and in accordance with the provisions of the Administrative Process Act (§ 2.2-4000 et seq.), adopt regulations necessary to ensure safe and healthy working conditions in surface coal mines in the Commonwealth. Such regulations governing surface coal mines shall relate to: 1. Safety and health standards for the protection of the life, health, and property of, and the prevention of injuries to, persons involved in or likely to be affected by any surface coal mining. Such regulations shall include standards for the control of dust concentration levels; the installation, maintenance, and use of electrical devices, equipment, cables, and wires; fire protection; the use and storage of explosives; hoistings; drilling; loading and haulage areas; the training of surface miners; the preparation of responses to emergencies; examinations of conditions at a surface mine site; and reporting requirements; 2. The storage or disposal of any matter or material that is (i) extracted or disturbed as the result of a surface coal mining operation or (ii) used in the surface coal mining operation or for the refinement or preparation of the material that is extracted from the surface coal mining operation, so that such matter or material does not threaten the health, safety, or property of miners or the general public; and 3. The operation, inspection, operating condition, and movement of drilling equipment and machines to protect the health, safety, and property of miners and the general public. B. The Chief shall adopt no regulation establishing a requirement for the operation of, or for conditions at, a surface coal mine that is inconsistent with any requirement established by the Act. Code 1950, §§ 45-8, 45-84; 1954, c. 191; 1966, c. 594, § 45.1-104; 1972, c. 784; 1974, c. 323; 1975, c. 520; 1978, c. 120; 1982, c. 118; 1990, c. 963; 1994, c. 28, § 45.1-161.254; 2021, Sp. Sess. I, c. 387.

Va. Code § 45.2-903

§ 45.2-903. Safety examinations.A. An on-shift examination of the work area, including any pit, auger, thin seam, or highwall operation, shall be conducted by a certified person for each production shift and at such other times or frequency as the Chief designates as necessary for hazardous conditions. B. A pre-operational examination of all mobile equipment shall be conducted by an authorized person. C. A pre-shift examination shall be conducted by a certified person for certain hazardous conditions designated by the Chief. D. Each mine refuse pile, as defined in § 45.2-617, shall be examined by an authorized person on each day on which any person works at such location. E. The location of each natural gas pipeline on a permitted surface mine area shall be identified and conspicuously marked so that equipment operators can readily identify the location of such pipeline. A pre-shift examination shall be conducted of the location of each pipeline whenever the work area approaches within 500 feet of such pipeline unless otherwise approved by the Chief. F. An air quality examination shall be conducted by a certified person when a surface coal mining operation intersects an underground mine, auger hole, or other underground working. G. At least one examination for methane shall be conducted for each production shift in each surface installation, enclosure, or other facility in which coal is handled or stored. Each such area shall also be tested for methane before any activity involving welding, cutting, or an open flame. An examination conducted pursuant to this subsection shall be made by an authorized person certified to make gas tests. H. Electrical equipment and wiring shall be inspected as often as necessary but at least once per month. I. Each fire extinguisher shall be examined at least once every six months. J. Each area of an inactive surface coal mine shall be examined for hazardous conditions by a mine foreman immediately before any miner is permitted to enter into such area to take emergency actions to preserve a mine. Code 1950, §§ 45-32, 45-33, 45-60.4, 45-61, 45-68.1, 45-69.7; 1954, c. 191; 1966, c. 594, §§ 45.1-20, 45.1-42, 45.1-65; 1976, c. 598; 1978, cc. 118, 120; 1982, c. 385; 1994, c. 28, § 45.1-161.256; 1996, c. 774; 1999, c. 256; 2005, c. 3; 2021, Sp. Sess. I, c. 387.

Va. Code § 45.2-912

§ 45.2-912. Firefighting equipment; duties in case of fire; fire precaution in transportation of mining equipment; fire prevention generally.A. Each mine shall be provided with suitable firefighting equipment that is adequate for the size of the mine and includes at least three 20-pound dry chemical fire extinguishers. Equipment and devices used for the detection, warning, and extinguishing of fires shall be suitable in type, size, and quantity for the type of fire hazard that could be encountered. Such equipment and devices shall be strategically located and plainly identified. B. Suitable fire extinguishers shall be provided at or on each (i) electrical station, such as a substation, transformer station, or permanent pump station; (ii) piece of self-propelled mobile equipment; (iii) belt head; (iv) area used for the storage of flammable materials; (v) fueling station; and (vi) other area that could constitute a fire hazard. Such fire extinguishers shall be placed so as to be out of the smoke in case of a fire. Code 1950, § 45-14.1; 1954, c. 191; 1966, c. 594, § 45.1-89; 1974, c. 323; 1978, c. 118; 1984, c. 590; 1985, c. 500; 1994, c. 28, § 45.1-161.265; 2005, c. 3; 2021, Sp. Sess. I, c. 387.

Va. Code § 45.2-914

§ 45.2-914. Fire precautions.A. An examination for fire shall be made after every blasting operation. B. No person shall smoke or use an open flame within 25 feet of any location used to handle or store flammable or combustible liquids or where an arc or flame could cause a fire or explosion. C. Any area surrounding a flammable liquid storage tank or electrical substation or transformer shall be kept free of combustible material for at least 25 feet in every direction. Each such storage tank, substation, or transformer shall be posted with readily visible fire hazard warning signs. D. Any structure or area used for storage of flammable materials shall be constructed of fire resistant material; kept well-ventilated, clean, and orderly; and posted with readily visible fire hazard warning signs. E. Every fuel line shall be equipped with a shut-off valve at its source. Each such valve shall be readily accessible and maintained in good operating condition. F. Every battery charging area shall be well-ventilated and posted with warning signs prohibiting smoking or open flames within 25 feet. G. Oil, grease, flammable hydraulic fluid, and other flammable materials shall be kept in closed metal containers and separated from other materials so as to not create a fire hazard. H. Combustible materials, grease, lubricants, paints, and other flammable materials and liquids shall not be allowed to accumulate where they could create a fire hazard. Provision shall be made to prevent the accumulation of such material on any equipment, at any storage area, and at any location where the material is used. I. Electric motors, switches, lighting fixtures, and controls shall be protected by dust-tight construction. J. Precautions shall be taken to ensure that no spark or other hot material results in a fire when welding or cutting. No welding or cutting with an arc or flame shall be done in any excessively dusty atmosphere or location. Firefighting apparatus shall be readily available when welding or cutting is performed. K. Precautions shall be taken before applying heat, cutting, or welding on any pipe or container that has contained a flammable or combustible material. L. Every oxygen or acetylene bottle shall be (i) stored in a rack constructed and designated for the storage of such bottles with their caps in place and (ii) secured when not in use. Such bottles shall not be stored near oil, grease, or other flammable material. M. Every oxygen and acetylene gauge and regulator shall be kept clean and free of oil, grease, and other combustible materials. N. Every belt conveyor shall be equipped with a control switch to automatically stop the driving motor of the conveyor in the event that the belt is stopped by slipping on the driving pulley as a result of breakage or other accident. O. The area surrounding every main fan installation or other mine opening shall be kept free from grass, weeds, underbrush, and other combustible materials for 25 feet in every direction. P. Every internal combustion engine, except a diesel engine, shall be shut off prior to fueling. Code 1950, § 45-85.9; 1954, c. 191; 1966, c. 594, § 45.1-39; 1978, c. 729; 1994, c. 28, § 45.1-161.267; 2021, Sp. Sess. I, c. 387. Article 6. Surface Equipment.

Va. Code § 45.2-920

§ 45.2-920. Shop and other equipment.A. The following shall be guarded and maintained adequately: 1. Gears, sprockets, pulleys, fan blades or propellers, friction devices, and couplings with protruding bolts or nuts. 2. Shafting and projecting shaft ends that are within seven feet of the floor or the platform level. 3. Belt, chain, or rope drives that are within seven feet of the floor or the platform. 4. Fly wheels. Any fly wheel that extends more than seven feet above the floor shall be guarded to a height of at least seven feet. 5. Circular and band saws and planers. 6. Repair pits. Guards shall be kept in place when a pit is not in use. 7. Counterweights. 8. Mine fans. The approach to any mine fan shall be guarded. 9. Lighting and other electrical equipment that could create a shock hazard or cause personal injury. B. No machinery shall be repaired or oiled while in motion unless a safe remote oiling device is used. C. A guard or safety device that is removed from any machine shall be replaced before the machine is put in operation. D. Every mechanically operated grinding wheel shall be equipped with: 1. Safety washers and tool rests; 2. A substantial retaining hood, the hood opening of which shall not expose more than a 90-degree sector of the wheel. Each such hood shall include a device to control and collect excess rock, metal, or dust particles. If no such device is provided, equivalent protection shall be provided to each employee operating such machinery; and 3. Eyeshields, unless goggles are worn by the operator. E. The operator or his agent shall develop proper procedures for examining for potential hazards, completing maintenance, and operating each type of centrifugal pump. The procedures shall, at a minimum, address the manufacturers' recommendations for start-up and shutdown of each type of pump, the proper actions to be taken when a pump is suspected of overheating, the safe location of start and stop switches, and the actions to be taken when signs of structural metal fatigue, such as cracks in the frame, damaged cover mounting brackets, or missing bolts or other components, are detected. Every miner who repairs, maintains, or operates any such pump shall be trained in these procedures. Code 1950, § 45-85.3; 1954, c. 191; 1966, c. 594, § 45.1-88; 1978, c. 118; 1994, c. 28, § 45.1-161.273; 2005, c. 3; 2021, Sp. Sess. I, c. 387.

Va. Code § 45.2-925

§ 45.2-925. Control of dust and combustible material.A. Where a surface coal mining operation raises an excessive amount of dust into the air, such dust shall be allayed at its sources by the use of water, water with a wetting agent added to it, or another effective method. B. Drilling in rock shall be done wet or other means of dust control shall be used. C. Loose coal, coal dust, oil, grease, or other combustible materials shall not be permitted to accumulate excessively on equipment or surface structures. Code 1950, §§ 45-77.1, 45-85.1; 1954, c. 191; 1966, c. 594, §§ 45.1-66, 45.1-87; 1979, c. 315; 1994, c. 28, § 45.1-161.278; 2005, c. 3; 2021, Sp. Sess. I, c. 387. Article 9. Electricity.

Va. Code § 45.2-926

§ 45.2-926. Overhead high-potential power lines; surface transmission lines; electric wiring in surface buildings.A. Overhead high-potential power lines shall be (i) placed at least 15 feet above the ground and 20 feet above any driveway or haulage road, (ii) installed on insulators, and (iii) supported and guarded to prevent contact with other circuits. B. Surface transmission lines shall be protected against short circuits and lightning. C. Electric wiring in surface buildings shall be installed so as to prevent fire and contact hazards. Code 1950, §§ 45-82, 45-82.3; 1954, c. 191; 1966, c. 594, § 45.1-75; 1994, c. 28, § 45.1-161.279; 1996, c. 774; 2021, Sp. Sess. I, c. 387.

Va. Code § 45.2-927

§ 45.2-927. Transformers.A. Unless a surface transformer is isolated by elevation to a height of eight feet or more above the ground, it shall be enclosed in a transformer house or surrounded by a suitable fence at least six feet high. If the enclosure or fence is made of metal, such enclosure or fence shall be grounded effectively. The gate or door to the enclosure shall be kept locked at all times unless an authorized person is present. B. Any surface transformer that contains flammable oil and is installed where it presents a fire hazard shall be provided with a means to drain or confine the oil in the event of a rupture of the transformer casing. C. Suitable warning signs shall be posted conspicuously at every transformer station on the surface. D. Every transformer station on the surface shall be kept free of nonessential combustible materials and refuse. E. No electrical work shall be performed on any low-voltage, medium-voltage, or high-voltage distribution circuit or equipment except by (i) a certified person or (ii) a person who is trained to perform electrical work and to maintain electrical equipment and who is working under the direct supervision of a certified person. Every high-voltage circuit shall be grounded before repair work is performed. Disconnecting devices shall be locked out and suitably tagged by the person who performs electrical or mechanical work on such a circuit or on any equipment connected to the circuit. However, in a case in which such locking out is not possible, such devices shall be opened and suitably tagged by such person. Each lock and tag shall be removed only by the person who installed it or, if such person is unavailable, by a certified person who is authorized by the operator or his agent. However, an employee may, where necessary, repair energized trolley wires if he wears insulated shoes and lineman's gloves. F. This section does not prohibit a certified electrical repairman from making checks on or troubleshooting an energized circuit or an authorized person from performing repairs or maintenance on equipment once the power is off and the equipment is blocked against motion, except where motion is necessary to make adjustments. Code 1950, §§ 45-82 to 45-82.2; 1954, c. 191; 1966, c. 594, §§ 45.1-76, 45.1-78; 1993, c. 442; 1994, c. 28, § 45.1-161.280; 1996, c. 774; 1999, c. 256; 2005, c. 3; 2021, Sp. Sess. I, c. 387.

Va. Code § 45.2-928

§ 45.2-928. Grounding.A. Every metallic sheath, armor, or conduit enclosing a power conductor shall be electrically continuous throughout and shall be grounded effectively. B. Every metallic frame, casing, or other enclosure of stationary electric equipment that can become electrified through failure of insulation or by contact with energized parts shall be grounded effectively, or equivalent protection shall be provided. C. When electric equipment is operated from a three-phase alternating current circuit originating in a transformer that is connected to provide a neutral point, a continuous grounding conductor of adequate size shall be installed and connected to the neutral point and to the frame of the power-utilizing equipment. Such grounding conductor shall be grounded at the neutral point and at intervals along the conductor, if feasible. A suitable circuit breaker or switching device shall be provided having a ground-trip coil connected in series with the grounding conductor to provide effective ground-fault tripping. 1966, c. 594, § 45.1-79; 1994, c. 28, § 45.1-161.281; 2021, Sp. Sess. I, c. 387.

Va. Code § 45.2-929

§ 45.2-929. Circuit breakers and switches.A. An automatic circuit breaking device or fuse of the correct type and capacity shall be installed so as to protect each piece of electric equipment and power circuit against excessive overload. Wire or another conducting material shall not be used as a substitute for a properly designed fuse, and every circuit breaking device shall be maintained in safe operating condition. B. Operating controls, such as switches, starters, or switch buttons, shall be so installed that they are readily accessible and can be operated without danger of contact with moving or live parts. C. Electric equipment and circuits shall be provided with switches or other controls of safe design, construction, and installation. D. An insulating mat or other electrically nonconductive material shall be kept in place at each power-control switch and at stationary machinery where a shock hazard exists. E. Suitable warning signs shall be posted conspicuously at every high-voltage installation. F. Every power wire or cable shall have adequate current-carrying capacity, be guarded from mechanical injury, and be installed in a permanent manner. G. Every power circuit shall be labeled to indicate the unit or circuit that it controls. H. All persons shall stay clear of any electrically powered shovel or other similar heavy equipment during an electrical storm. I. Every device that is installed on or after July 1, 2005, that provides either short circuit protection or protection against overload shall conform to the minimum requirements for protection of electric circuits and equipment of the National Electrical Code in effect at the time of its installation. J. Every electric conductor installed on or after July 1, 2005, shall be sufficient in size to meet the minimum current-carrying capacity provided for in the National Electrical Code in effect at the time of its installation. K. Every trailing cable purchased on or after July 1, 2005, shall meet the minimum requirements for ampacity provided in the standards of the Insulated Cable Engineers Association/National Electrical Manufacturers Association in effect at the time such cable is purchased. Code 1950, §§ 45-82, 45-82.1, 45-82.3, 45-82.4; 1954, c. 191; 1966, c. 594, §§ 45.1-78, 45.1-80, 45.1-81; 1978, c. 118; 1979, c. 315; 1993, c. 442; 1994, c. 28, § 45.1-161.282; 1999, c. 256; 2005, c. 3; 2021, Sp. Sess. I, c. 387.

Va. Code § 45.2-930

§ 45.2-930. Electrical trailing cables.A. Every trailing cable shall be provided with suitable short-circuit protection and a means of disconnecting power from the cable. B Any temporary splice in a trailing cable shall be made in a workmanlike manner and shall be mechanically strong and well-insulated. C. The number of temporary, unvulcanized splices in a trailing cable shall be limited to one. D. Every permanent splice in a trailing cable shall be made mechanically strong, with adequate electrical conductivity and flexibility, and shall be effectively insulated and sealed so as to exclude moisture. The finished splice shall be vulcanized or otherwise treated with suitable materials to provide flame-resistant properties and good bonding to the outer jacket. E. Every trailing cable shall be protected against mechanical injury. Code 1950, § 45-82.5; 1954, c. 191; 1966, c. 594, § 45.1-84; 1978, c. 118; 1993, c. 442; 1994, c. 28, § 45.1-161.283; 2021, Sp. Sess. I, c. 387. Article 10. Explosives and Blasting.

Va. Code § 45.2-931

§ 45.2-931. Surface storage of explosives and detonators.A. Two or more surface magazines shall be provided for the storage of explosives and the separate storage of detonators. B. Every surface magazine for storing and distributing explosives in an amount exceeding 150 pounds shall be: 1. Reasonably bullet-resistant and constructed of incombustible material or covered with fire-resistant material. The roof of a magazine that is located in such a way as to make it impossible to fire a bullet directly through the roof from the ground need not be bullet-resistant. Where it is possible to fire a bullet directly through a roof from the ground, such roof shall be made bullet-resistant by material construction, by the use of a ceiling that forms a tray containing not less than a four-inch thickness of sand, or by another method; 2. Provided with doors that are constructed of three-eighth-inch steel plate. Such doors shall be lined with a two-inch thickness of wood or the equivalent; 3. Provided with dry floors made of wood or other nonsparking material and have no metal exposed inside the magazine; 4. Provided with suitable warning signs located so that a bullet passing directly through the face of a sign will not strike the magazine; 5. Provided with properly screened ventilators; 6. Equipped with no openings except for entrance and ventilation openings; 7. Kept locked securely when unattended; and 8. Electrically bonded and grounded if constructed of metal. C. A surface magazine for storing detonators need not be bullet-resistant, but it shall comply with other provisions for storing explosives. D. Explosives weighing a total of no more than 150 pounds, or detonators numbering 5,000 or fewer, shall be stored either (i) in accordance with the standards set forth in subsection A, B, or C or (ii) in a separate locked box-type magazine. A box-type magazine may also be used as a distributing magazine when the weight of the explosives or the number of detonators does not exceed the limits set forth in this subsection. Every box-type magazine shall be strongly constructed of two-inch hardwood or the equivalent. Every metal magazine shall be lined with nonsparking material. No magazine shall be placed (a) in a building containing oil, grease, gasoline, wastepaper, or other highly flammable material or (b) within 20 feet of a stove, furnace, open fire, or flame. E. No magazine shall be placed less than 300 feet from any mine opening. However, if a magazine cannot be practicably located at such a distance, it may be located less than 300 feet from a mine opening if it is sufficiently barricaded and is approved by the Chief. Unless approved by the Chief, no magazine shall be located closer to an occupied building, public road, or passenger railway than the distance recommended in the "American Table of Distances for Storage of Explosive Materials" published by the Institute of Makers of Explosives. F. The supply kept in a distribution magazine shall be limited to approximately a 48-hour supply, and supplies of explosives and detonators may be distributed from the same magazine if they are separated by a substantially fastened hardwood partition at least four inches thick or the equivalent. G. The area surrounding any magazine shall be kept free of rubbish, dry grass, or other materials of a combustible nature for at least 25 feet in every direction. H. If an explosives magazine is illuminated electrically, each lamp shall be of vapor-proof type and installed and wired so as to present a minimal fire or contact hazard. I. Only nonmetallic tools shall be used for opening any wooden explosives container. Extraneous materials shall not be stored with explosives or detonators in an explosives magazine. J. Smoking or carrying smokers' articles or open flames is prohibited in or near any magazine. Code 1950, § 45-53.2; 1954, c. 191; 1966, c. 594, § 45.1-44; 1978, c. 729; 1994, c. 28, § 45.1-161.284; 2010, cc. 809, 857; 2021, Sp. Sess. I, c. 387.

Va. Code § 45.2-932

§ 45.2-932. Misfires.A. Every misfire shall be reported promptly to the mine foreman, and no other work shall be performed in the blasting area until the hazard has been corrected. A waiting period of at least 15 minutes is required before anyone is allowed to any misfired hole. If explosives are suspected of burning in a hole, every person affected shall move to a safe location for one hour or until the danger has passed, whichever time is longer. When such failure involves an electronic detonator, the blasting cable shall be disconnected from the source of power and the battery ends short-circuited before any electrical connection is examined. B. Explosives shall be removed by (i) firing a separate charge at least two feet away from, and parallel to, the misfired charge; (ii) washing the stemming and the charge from the borehole with water; or (iii) inserting and firing a new primer after the stemming has been washed out. C. A careful search of the blasting area and, if necessary, of the coal after it reaches the tipple shall be made after blasting a misfired hole to recover any undetonated explosive. D. The handling of a misfired shot shall occur under the direct supervision of the foreman or an authorized person designated by him. Code 1950, § 45-53.7; 1954, c. 191; 1966, c. 594, § 45.1-50; 1994, c. 28, § 45.1-161.285; 1999, c. 256; 2021, Sp. Sess. I, c. 387.

Va. Code § 45.2-933

§ 45.2-933. Minimum blasting practices.A. If explosives are in use on the surface and an electrical storm approaches, all persons shall be removed from the blast area until the storm has passed. B. In accordance with the standards set forth in § 45.2-902, the Chief shall adopt regulations regarding the safe storage, transportation, handling, and use of blasting agents and other explosives. Code 1950, §§ 45-53.1, 45-53.5; 1954, c. 191; 1966, c. 594, §§ 45.1-48, 45.1-53.1; 1978, c. 729; 1981, c. 179; 1984, c. 229; 1993, c. 442; 1994, c. 28, § 45.1-161.286; 1996, c. 774; 2021, Sp. Sess. I, c. 387. Article 11. Ground Control.

Va. Code § 45.2-935

§ 45.2-935. Inspection of electric equipment and wiring; checking and testing methane monitors.Electric equipment and wiring that extends to an underground area shall be inspected by a certified person at least once a week and more often if necessary to ensure safe operating conditions. Any hazardous condition found shall be corrected or the equipment or wiring shall be removed from service. Such surface inspection is also required for any trailing cable or circuit breaker used in conjunction with such equipment and wiring. 1966, c. 594, § 45.1-85; 1978, c. 118; 1993, c. 442; 1994, c. 28, § 45.1-161.288; 2005, c. 3; 2011, cc. 826, 862; 2021, Sp. Sess. I, c. 387.

Va. Code § 46.2-100

§ 46.2-100. Definitions.As used in this title, unless the context requires a different meaning: "All-terrain vehicle" means a motor vehicle having three or more wheels that is powered by a motor and is manufactured for off-highway use. "All-terrain vehicle" does not include four-wheeled vehicles commonly known as "go-carts" that have low centers of gravity and are typically used in racing on relatively level surfaces, nor does the term include any riding lawn mower. "Antique motor vehicle" means every motor vehicle, as defined in this section, which was actually manufactured or designated by the manufacturer as a model manufactured in a calendar year not less than 25 years prior to January 1 of each calendar year and is owned solely as a collector's item. "Antique trailer" means every trailer or semitrailer, as defined in this section, that was actually manufactured or designated by the manufacturer as a model manufactured in a calendar year not less than 25 years prior to January 1 of each calendar year and is owned solely as a collector's item. "Autocycle" means a three-wheeled motor vehicle that has a steering wheel and seating that does not require the operator to straddle or sit astride and is manufactured to comply with federal safety requirements for motorcycles. Except as otherwise provided, an autocycle shall not be deemed to be a motorcycle. "Automobile transporter" means any tractor truck, lowboy, vehicle, or combination, including vehicles or combinations that transport motor vehicles on their power unit, designed and used exclusively for the transportation of motor vehicles or used to transport cargo or general freight on a backhaul pursuant to the provisions of 49 U.S.C. § 31111(a)(1). "Bicycle" means a device propelled solely by human power, upon which a person may ride either on or astride a regular seat attached thereto, having two or more wheels in tandem, including children's bicycles, except a toy vehicle intended for use by young children. For purposes of Chapter 8 (§ 46.2-800 et seq.), a bicycle shall be a vehicle while operated on the highway. "Bicycle lane" means that portion of a roadway designated by signs and/or pavement markings for the preferential use of bicycles, electric power-assisted bicycles, motorized skateboards or scooters, and mopeds. "Business district" means the territory contiguous to a highway where 75 percent or more of the property contiguous to a highway, on either side of the highway, for a distance of 300 feet or more along the highway, is occupied by land and buildings actually in use for business purposes. "Camping trailer" means every vehicle that has collapsible sides and contains sleeping quarters but may or may not contain bathing and cooking facilities and is designed to be drawn by a motor vehicle. "Cancel" or "cancellation" means that the document or privilege cancelled has been annulled or terminated because of some error, defect, or ineligibility, but the cancellation is without prejudice and reapplication may be made at any time after cancellation. "Chauffeur" means every person employed for the principal purpose of driving a motor vehicle and every person who drives a motor vehicle while in use as a public or common carrier of persons or property. "Circular intersection" means an intersection that has an island, generally circular in design, located in the center of the intersection, where all vehicles pass to the right of the island. Circular intersections include roundabouts, rotaries, and traffic circles. "Commission" means the State Corporation Commission. "Commissioner" means the Commissioner of the Department of Motor Vehicles of the Commonwealth. "Converted electric vehicle" means any motor vehicle, other than a motorcycle or autocycle, that has been modified subsequent to its manufacture to replace an internal combustion engine with an electric propulsion system. Such vehicles shall retain their original vehicle identification number, line-make, and model year. A converted electric vehicle shall not be deemed a "reconstructed vehicle" as defined in this section unless it has been materially altered from its original construction by the removal, addition, or substitution of new or used essential parts other than those required for the conversion to electric propulsion. "Crosswalk" means that part of a roadway at an intersection included within the connections of the lateral lines of the sidewalks on opposite sides of the highway measured from the curbs or, in the absence of curbs, from the edges of the traversable roadway; or any portion of a roadway at an intersection or elsewhere distinctly indicated for pedestrian crossing by lines or other markings on the surface. "Decal" means a device to be attached to a license plate that validates the license plate for a predetermined registration period. "Department" means the Department of Motor Vehicles of the Commonwealth. "Disabled parking license plate" means a license plate that displays the international symbol of access in the same size as the numbers and letters on the plate and in a color that contrasts with the background. "Disabled veteran" means a veteran who (i) has either lost, or lost the use of, a leg, arm, or hand; (ii) is blind; or (iii) is permanently and totally disabled as certified by the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs. A veteran shall be considered blind if he has a permanent impairment of both eyes to the following extent: central visual acuity of 20/200 or less in the better eye, with corrective lenses, or central visual acuity of more than 20/200, if there is a field defect in which the peripheral field has contracted to such an extent that the widest diameter of visual field subtends an angular distance no greater than 20 degrees in the better eye. "Driver's license" means any license, including a commercial driver's license as defined in the Virginia Commercial Driver's License Act (§ 46.2-341.1 et seq.) and a driver privilege card issued pursuant to § 46.2-328.3, issued under the laws of the Commonwealth authorizing the operation of a motor vehicle. "Electric personal assistive mobility device" means a self-balancing two-nontandem-wheeled device that is designed to transport only one person and powered by an electric propulsion system that limits the device's maximum speed to 15 miles per hour or less. For purposes of Chapter 8 (§ 46.2-800 et seq.), an electric personal assistive mobility device shall be a vehicle when operated on a highway. "Electric power-assisted bicycle" means a vehicle that travels on not more than three wheels in contact with the ground and is equipped with (i) pedals that allow propulsion by human power, (ii) a seat for the use of the rider, and (iii) an electric motor with an input of no more than 750 watts. Electric power-assisted bicycles shall be classified as follows: 1. "Class one" means an electric power-assisted bicycle equipped with a motor that provides assistance only when the rider is pedaling and that ceases to provide assistance when the bicycle reaches a speed of 20 miles per hour; 2. "Class two" means an electric power-assisted bicycle equipped with a motor that may be used exclusively to propel the bicycle and that ceases to provide assistance when the bicycle reaches the speed of 20 miles per hour; and 3. "Class three" means an electric power-assisted bicycle equipped with a motor that provides assistance only when the rider is pedaling and that ceases to provide assistance when the bicycle reaches the speed of 28 miles per hour. For the purposes of Chapter 8 (§ 46.2-800 et seq.), an electric power-assisted bicycle shall be a vehicle when operated on a highway. "Essential parts" means all integral parts and body parts, the removal, alteration, or substitution of which will tend to conceal the identity of a vehicle. "Farm tractor" means every motor vehicle designed and used as a farm, agricultural, or horticultural implement for drawing plows, mowing machines, and other farm, agricultural, or horticultural machinery and implements, including self-propelled mowers designed and used for mowing lawns. "Farm utility vehicle" means a vehicle that is powered by a motor and is designed for off-road use and is used as a farm, agricultural, or horticultural service vehicle, generally having four or more wheels, bench seating for the operator and a passenger, a steering wheel for control, and a cargo bed. "Farm utility vehicle" does not include pickup or panel trucks, golf carts, low-speed vehicles, or riding lawn mowers. "Federal safety requirements" means applicable provisions of 49 U.S.C. § 30101 et seq. and all administrative regulations and policies adopted pursuant thereto. "Financial responsibility" means the ability to respond in damages for liability thereafter incurred arising out of the ownership, maintenance, use, or operation of a motor vehicle, in the amounts provided for in § 46.2-472. "Financial responsibility in the future" means the future ability to respond to damages for liability incurred arising out of the ownership, maintenance, use, or operation of a motor vehicle in the amounts provided for in §§ 46.2-316 and 46.2-472. "Foreign market vehicle" means any motor vehicle originally manufactured outside the United States, which was not manufactured in accordance with 49 U.S.C. § 30101 et seq. and the policies and regulations adopted pursuant to that Act, and for which a Virginia title or registration is sought. "Foreign vehicle" means every motor vehicle, trailer, or semitrailer that is brought into the Commonwealth otherwise than in the ordinary course of business by or through a manufacturer or dealer and that has not been registered in the Commonwealth. "Golf cart" means a self-propelled vehicle that is designed to transport persons playing golf and their equipment on a golf course. "Governing body" means the board of supervisors of a county, council of a city, or council of a town, as context may require. "Gross weight" means the aggregate weight of a vehicle or combination of vehicles and the load thereon. "Highway" means the entire width between the boundary lines of every way or place open to the use of the public for purposes of vehicular travel in the Commonwealth, including the streets and alleys, and, for law-enforcement purposes, (i) the entire width between the boundary lines of all private roads or private streets that have been specifically designated "highways" by an ordinance adopted by the governing body of the county, city, or town in which such private roads or streets are located and (ii) the entire width between the boundary lines of every way or place used for purposes of vehicular travel on any property owned, leased, or controlled by the United States government and located in the Commonwealth. "Intersection" means (i) the area embraced within the prolongation or connection of the lateral curblines or, if none, then the lateral boundary lines of the roadways of two highways that join one another at, or approximately at, right angles, or the area within which vehicles traveling on different highways joining at any other angle may come in conflict; (ii) where a highway includes two roadways 30 feet or more apart, then every crossing of each roadway of such divided highway by an intersecting highway shall be regarded as a separate intersection, in the event such intersecting highway also includes two roadways 30 feet or more apart, then every crossing of two roadways of such highways shall be regarded as a separate intersection; or (iii) for purposes only of authorizing installation of traffic-control devices, every crossing of a highway or street at grade by a pedestrian crosswalk. "Lane-use control signal" means a signal face displaying indications to permit or prohibit the use of specific lanes of a roadway or to indicate the impending prohibition of such use. "Law-enforcement officer" means any officer authorized to direct or regulate traffic or to make arrests for violations of this title or local ordinances authorized by law. For the purposes of access to law-enforcement databases regarding motor vehicle registration and ownership only, "law-enforcement officer" also includes city and county commissioners of the revenue and treasurers, together with their duly designated deputies and employees, when such officials are actually engaged in the enforcement of §§ 46.2-752, 46.2-753, and 46.2-754 and local ordinances enacted thereunder. "License plate" means a device containing letters, numerals, or a combination of both, attached to a motor vehicle, trailer, or semitrailer to indicate that the vehicle is properly registered with the Department. "Light" means a device for producing illumination or the illumination produced by the device. "Low-speed vehicle" means any four-wheeled electrically powered or gas-powered vehicle, except a motor vehicle or low-speed vehicle that is used exclusively for agricultural or horticultural purposes or a golf cart, whose maximum speed is greater than 20 miles per hour but not greater than 25 miles per hour and is manufactured to comply with safety standards contained in Title 49 of the Code of Federal Regulations, § 571.500. "Manufactured home" means a structure subject to federal regulation, transportable in one or more sections, which in the traveling mode is eight body feet or more in width or 40 body feet or more in length, or, when erected on site, is 320 or more square feet, and which is built on a permanent chassis and designed to be used as a dwelling with or without a permanent foundation when connected to the required utilities, and includes the plumbing, heating, air conditioning, and electrical systems contained therein. "Manufactured home" does not include a park model recreational vehicle, which is a vehicle that is (i) designed and marketed as temporary living quarters for recreational, camping, travel, or seasonal use; (ii) not permanently affixed to real property for use as a permanent dwelling; (iii) built on a single chassis mounted on wheels; and (iv) certified by the manufacturer as complying with the American National Standards Institute (ANSI) A119.5 Park Model Recreational Vehicle Standard. "Military surplus motor vehicle" means a multipurpose or tactical vehicle that was manufactured by or under the direction of the United States Armed Forces for off-road use and subsequently authorized for sale to civilians. "Military surplus motor vehicle" does not include specialized mobile equipment as defined in § 46.2-700, trailers, or semitrailers. "Moped" means every vehicle that travels on not more than three wheels in contact with the ground that (i) has a seat that is no less than 24 inches in height, measured from the middle of the seat perpendicular to the ground; (ii) has a gasoline, electric, or hybrid motor that (a) displaces 50 cubic centimeters or less or (b) has an input of 1500 watts or less; (iii) is power-driven, with or without pedals that allow propulsion by human power; and (iv) is not operated at speeds in excess of 35 miles per hour. "Moped" does not include an electric power-assisted bicycle or a motorized skateboard or scooter. For purposes of this title, a moped shall be a motorcycle when operated at speeds in excess of 35 miles per hour. For purposes of Chapter 8 (§ 46.2-800 et seq.), a moped shall be a vehicle while operated on a highway. "Motor-driven cycle" means every motorcycle that has a gasoline engine that (i) displaces less than 150 cubic centimeters; (ii) has a seat less than 24 inches in height, measured from the middle of the seat perpendicular to the ground; and (iii) has no manufacturer-issued vehicle identification number. "Motor home" means every private motor vehicle with a normal seating capacity of not more than 10 persons, including the driver, designed primarily for use as living quarters for human beings. "Motor vehicle" means every vehicle as defined in this section that is self-propelled or designed for self-propulsion except as otherwise provided in this title. Any structure designed, used, or maintained primarily to be loaded on or affixed to a motor vehicle to provide a mobile dwelling, sleeping place, office, or commercial space shall be considered a part of a motor vehicle. Except as otherwise provided, for the purposes of this title, any device herein defined as a bicycle, electric personal assistive mobility device, electric power-assisted bicycle, motorized skateboard or scooter, moped, or personal delivery device shall be deemed not to be a motor vehicle. "Motorcycle" means every motor vehicle designed to travel on not more than three wheels in contact with the ground and is capable of traveling at speeds in excess of 35 miles per hour. "Motorcycle" does not include any "autocycle," "electric personal assistive mobility device," "electric power-assisted bicycle," "farm tractor," "golf cart," "moped," "motorized skateboard or scooter," "utility vehicle," or "wheelchair or wheelchair conveyance" as defined in this section. "Motorized skateboard or scooter" means every vehicle, regardless of the number of its wheels in contact with the ground, that (i) is designed to allow an operator to sit or stand, (ii) has no manufacturer-issued vehicle identification number, (iii) is powered in whole or in part by an electric motor, (iv) weighs less than 100 pounds, and (v) has a speed of no more than 20 miles per hour on a paved level surface when powered solely by the electric motor. "Motorized skateboard or scooter" includes vehicles with or without handlebars but does not include electric personal assistive mobility devices or electric power-assisted bicycles. "Nonresident" means every person who is not domiciled in the Commonwealth, except: (i) any foreign corporation that is authorized to do business in the Commonwealth by the State Corporation Commission shall be a resident of the Commonwealth for the purpose of this title; in the case of corporations incorporated in the Commonwealth but doing business outside the Commonwealth, only such principal place of business or branches located within the Commonwealth shall be dealt with as residents of the Commonwealth; (ii) a person who becomes engaged in a gainful occupation in the Commonwealth for a period exceeding 60 days shall be a resident for the purposes of this title except for the purposes of Chapter 3 (§ 46.2-300 et seq.); (iii) a person, other than (a) a nonresident student as defined in this section or (b) a person who is serving a full-time church service or proselyting mission of not more than 36 months and who is not gainfully employed, who has actually resided in the Commonwealth for a period of six months, whether employed or not, or who has registered a motor vehicle, listing an address in the Commonwealth in the application for registration, shall be deemed a resident for the purposes of this title, except for the purposes of the Virginia Commercial Driver's License Act (§ 46.2-341.1 et seq.). "Nonresident student" means every nonresident person who is enrolled as a full-time student in an accredited institution of learning in the Commonwealth and who is not gainfully employed. "Off-road motorcycle" means every motorcycle designed exclusively for off-road use by an individual rider with not more than two wheels in contact with the ground. Except as otherwise provided in this chapter, for the purposes of this chapter off-road motorcycles shall be deemed to be "motorcycles." "Operation or use for rent or for hire, for the transportation of passengers, or as a property carrier for compensation," and "business of transporting persons or property" mean any owner or operator of any motor vehicle, trailer, or semitrailer operating over the highways in the Commonwealth who accepts or receives compensation for the service, directly or indirectly; but these terms do not mean a "truck lessor" as defined in this section and do not include persons or businesses that receive compensation for delivering a product that they themselves sell or produce, where a separate charge is made for delivery of the product or the cost of delivery is included in the sale price of the product, but where the person or business does not derive all or a substantial portion of its income from the transportation of persons or property except as part of a sales transaction. "Operator" or "driver" means every person who either (i) drives or is in actual physical control of a motor vehicle on a highway or (ii) is exercising control over or steering a vehicle being towed by a motor vehicle. "Owner" means a person who holds the legal title to a vehicle; however, if a vehicle is the subject of an agreement for its conditional sale or lease with the right of purchase on performance of the conditions stated in the agreement and with an immediate right of possession vested in the conditional vendee or lessee or if a mortgagor of a vehicle is entitled to possession, then the conditional vendee or lessee or mortgagor shall be the owner for the purpose of this title. In all such instances when the rent paid by the lessee includes charges for services of any nature or when the lease does not provide that title shall pass to the lessee on payment of the rent stipulated, the lessor shall be regarded as the owner of the vehicle, and the vehicle shall be subject to such requirements of this title as are applicable to vehicles operated for compensation. A "truck lessor" as defined in this section shall be regarded as the owner, and his vehicles shall be subject to such requirements of this title as are applicable to vehicles of private carriers. "Passenger car" means every motor vehicle other than a motorcycle or autocycle designed and used primarily for the transportation of no more than 10 persons, including the driver. "Payment device" means any credit card as defined in 15 U.S.C. § 1602 (k) or any "accepted card or other means of access" set forth in 15 U.S.C. § 1693a (1). For the purposes of this title, this definition shall also include a card that enables a person to pay for transactions through the use of value stored on the card itself. "Personal delivery device" means a powered device operated primarily on sidewalks and crosswalks and intended primarily for the transport of property on public rights-of-way that does not exceed 500 pounds, excluding cargo, and is capable of navigating with or without the active control or monitoring of a natural person. Notwithstanding any other provision of law, a personal delivery device shall not be considered a motor vehicle or a vehicle. "Personal delivery device operator" means an entity or its agent that exercises direct physical control or monitoring over the navigation system and operation of a personal delivery device. For the purposes of this definition, "agent" means a person not less than 16 years of age charged by an entity with the responsibility of navigating and operating a personal delivery device. "Personal delivery device operator" does not include (i) an entity or person who requests the services of a personal delivery device to transport property or (ii) an entity or person who only arranges for and dispatches the requested services of a personal delivery device. "Pickup or panel truck" means (i) every motor vehicle designed for the transportation of property and having a registered gross weight of 7,500 pounds or less or (ii) every motor vehicle registered for personal use, designed to transport property on its own structure independent of any other vehicle, and having a registered gross weight in excess of 7,500 pounds but not in excess of 10,000 pounds. "Private road or driveway" means every way in private ownership and used for vehicular travel by the owner and those having express or implied permission from the owner, but not by other persons. "Reconstructed vehicle" means every vehicle of a type required to be registered under this title materially altered from its original construction by the removal, addition, or substitution of new or used essential parts. Such vehicles, at the discretion of the Department, shall retain their original vehicle identification number, line-make, and model year. Except as otherwise provided in this title, this definition shall not include a "converted electric vehicle" as defined in this section. "Replica vehicle" means every vehicle of a type required to be registered under this title not fully constructed by a licensed manufacturer but either constructed or assembled from components. Such components may be from a single vehicle, multiple vehicles, a kit, parts, or fabricated components. The kit may be made up of "major components" as defined in § 46.2-1600, a full body, or a full chassis, or a combination of these parts. The vehicle shall resemble a vehicle of distinctive name, line-make, model, or type as produced by a licensed manufacturer or manufacturer no longer in business and is not a reconstructed or specially constructed vehicle as herein defined. "Residence district" means the territory contiguous to a highway, not comprising a business district, where 75 percent or more of the property abutting such highway, on either side of the highway, for a distance of 300 feet or more along the highway consists of land improved for dwelling purposes, or is occupied by dwellings, or consists of land or buildings in use for business purposes, or consists of territory zoned residential or territory in residential subdivisions created under Chapter 22 (§ 15.2-2200 et seq.) of Title 15.2. "Revoke" or "revocation" means that the document or privilege revoked is not subject to renewal or restoration except through reapplication after the expiration of the period of revocation. "Roadway" means that portion of a highway improved, designed, or ordinarily used for vehicular travel, exclusive of the shoulder. A highway may include two or more roadways if divided by a physical barrier or barriers or an unpaved area. "Safety zone" means the area officially set apart within a roadway for the exclusive use of pedestrians and that is protected or is so marked or indicated by plainly visible signs. "School bus" means any motor vehicle, other than a station wagon, automobile, truck, or commercial bus, which is: (i) designed and used primarily for the transportation of pupils to and from public, private or religious schools, or used for the transportation of individuals with mental or physical disabilities to and from a sheltered workshop; (ii) painted yellow and bears the words "School Bus" in black letters of a specified size on front and rear; and (iii) is equipped with warning devices prescribed in § 46.2-1090. A yellow school bus may have a white roof provided such vehicle is painted in accordance with regulations promulgated by the Department of Education. "Semitrailer" means every vehicle of the trailer type so designed and used in conjunction with a motor vehicle that some part of its own weight and that of its own load rests on or is carried by another vehicle. "Shared-use path" means a bikeway that is physically separated from motorized vehicular traffic by an open space or barrier and is located either within the highway right-of-way or within a separate right-of-way. Shared-use paths may also be used by pedestrians, skaters, users of wheel chairs or wheel chair conveyances, joggers, and other nonmotorized users and personal delivery devices. "Shoulder" means that part of a highway between the portion regularly traveled by vehicular traffic and the lateral curbline or ditch. "Sidewalk" means the portion of a street between the curb lines, or the lateral lines of a roadway, and the adjacent property lines, intended for use by pedestrians. "Snowmobile" means a self-propelled vehicle designed to travel on snow or ice, steered by skis or runners, and supported in whole or in part by one or more skis, belts, or cleats. "Special construction and forestry equipment" means any vehicle which is designed primarily for highway construction, highway maintenance, earth moving, timber harvesting or other construction or forestry work and which is not designed for the transportation of persons or property on a public highway. "Specially constructed vehicle" means any vehicle that was not originally constructed under a distinctive name, make, model, or type by a generally recognized manufacturer of vehicles and not a reconstructed vehicle as herein defined. "Stinger-steered automobile or watercraft transporter" means an automobile or watercraft transporter configured as a semitrailer combination wherein the fifth wheel is located on a drop frame behind and below the rearmost axle of the power unit. "Superintendent" means the Superintendent of the Department of State Police of the Commonwealth. "Suspend" or "suspension" means that the document or privilege suspended has been temporarily withdrawn, but may be reinstated following the period of suspension unless it has expired prior to the end of the period of suspension. "Tow truck" means a motor vehicle for hire (i) designed to lift, pull, or carry another vehicle by means of a hoist or other mechanical apparatus and (ii) having a manufacturer's gross vehicle weight rating of at least 10,000 pounds. "Tow truck" also includes vehicles designed with a ramp on wheels and a hydraulic lift with a capacity to haul or tow another vehicle, commonly referred to as "rollbacks." "Tow truck" does not include any "automobile or watercraft transporter," "stinger-steered automobile or watercraft transporter," or "tractor truck" as those terms are defined in this section. "Towing and recovery operator" means a person engaged in the business of (i) removing disabled vehicles, parts of vehicles, their cargoes, and other objects to facilities for repair or safekeeping and (ii) restoring to the highway or other location where they either can be operated or removed to other locations for repair or safekeeping vehicles that have come to rest in places where they cannot be operated. "Toy vehicle" means any motorized or propellant-driven device that has no manufacturer-issued vehicle identification number that is designed or used to carry any person or persons, on any number of wheels, bearings, glides, blades, runners, or a cushion of air. "Toy vehicle" does not include electric personal assistive mobility devices, electric power-assisted bicycles, mopeds, motorized skateboards or scooters, or motorcycles, nor does it include any nonmotorized or nonpropellant-driven devices such as bicycles, roller skates, or skateboards. "Tractor truck" means every motor vehicle designed and used primarily for drawing other vehicles and not so constructed as to carry a load other than a part of the load and weight of the vehicle attached thereto. "Traffic control device" means a sign, signal, marking, or other device used to regulate, warn, or guide traffic placed on, over, or adjacent to a street, highway, private road open to public travel, pedestrian facility, or shared-use path by authority of a public agency or official having jurisdiction, or in the case of a private road open to public travel, by authority of the private owner or private official having jurisdiction. "Traffic infraction" means a violation of law punishable as provided in § 46.2-113, which is neither a felony nor a misdemeanor. "Traffic lane" or "lane" means that portion of a roadway designed or designated to accommodate the forward movement of a single line of vehicles. "Trailer" means every vehicle without motive power designed for carrying property or passengers wholly on its own structure and for being drawn by a motor vehicle, including manufactured homes. "Truck" means every motor vehicle designed to transport property on its own structure independent of any other vehicle and having a registered gross weight in excess of 7,500 pounds. "Truck" does not include any pickup or panel truck. "Truck lessor" means a person who holds the legal title to any motor vehicle, trailer, or semitrailer that is the subject of a bona fide written lease for a term of one year or more to another person, provided that: (i) neither the lessor nor the lessee is a common carrier by motor vehicle or restricted common carrier by motor vehicle or contract carrier by motor vehicle as defined in § 46.2-2000; (ii) the leased motor vehicle, trailer, or semitrailer is used exclusively for the transportation of property of the lessee; (iii) the lessor is not employed in any capacity by the lessee; (iv) the operator of the leased motor vehicle is a bona fide employee of the lessee and is not employed in any capacity by the lessor; and (v) a true copy of the lease, verified by affidavit of the lessor, is filed with the Commissioner. "Utility vehicle" means a motor vehicle that is (i) designed for off-road use, (ii) powered by a motor, and (iii) used for general maintenance, security, agricultural, or horticultural purposes. "Utility vehicle" does not include riding lawn mowers. "Vehicle" means every device in, on or by which any person or property is or may be transported or drawn on a highway, except personal delivery devices and devices moved by human power or used exclusively on stationary rails or tracks. For the purposes of Chapter 8 (§ 46.2-800 et seq.), bicycles, electric personal assistive mobility devices, electric power-assisted bicycles, motorized skateboards or scooters, and mopeds shall be vehicles while operated on a highway. "Watercraft transporter" means any tractor truck, lowboy, vehicle, or combination, including vehicles or combinations that transport watercraft on their power unit, designed and used exclusively for the transportation of watercraft. "Wheel chair or wheel chair conveyance" means a chair or seat equipped with wheels, typically used to provide mobility for persons who, by reason of physical disability, are otherwise unable to move about as pedestrians. "Wheel chair or wheel chair conveyance" includes both three-wheeled and four-wheeled devices. So long as it is operated only as provided in § 46.2-677, a self-propelled wheel chair or self-propelled wheel chair conveyance shall not be considered a motor vehicle. Code 1950, §§ 46-1, 46-169, 46-185, 46-186, 46-343; 1954, c. 59; 1958, cc. 501, 541, §§ 46.1-1, 46.1-161; 1964, c. 618; 1966, c. 643; 1968, cc. 285, 641, 653, 685; 1972, cc. 433, 609; 1974, c. 347; 1975, cc. 382, 426; 1976, c. 372; 1977, cc. 252, 585; 1978, cc. 36, 550, 605; 1979, c. 100; 1980, c. 51; 1981, c. 585; 1983, c. 386; 1984, cc. 404, 780; 1985, c. 447; 1986, cc. 72, 613; 1987, c. 151; 1988, cc. 107, 452, 865; 1989, cc. 645, 705, 727; 1990, cc. 45, 418; 1992, c. 98; 1993, c. 133; 1994, c. 866; 1996, cc. 943, 994; 1997, cc. 9, 186, 486, 783, 904; 1998, c. 888; 1999, cc. 67, 77; 2001, c. 834; 2002, cc. 214, 234, 254; 2003, cc. 29, 46; 2004, cc. 746, 796; 2005, cc. 310, 928; 2006, cc. 529, 538, 540, 874, 891, 896; 2007, cc. 209, 325, 366, 393; 2010, c. 135; 2011, c. 128; 2012, c. 177; 2013, cc. 128, 400, 783; 2014, cc. 53, 256; 2016, cc. 428, 500, 764; 2017, cc. 251, 370, 554, 788; 2018, c. 555; 2019, c. 780; 2020, cc. 59, 260, 1269; 2021, Sp. Sess. I, c. 421; 2023, cc. 148, 149; 2025, cc. 163, 177.

Va. Code § 46.2-1001.1

§ 46.2-1001.1. Special equipment required for converted electric vehicles.In addition to any other equipment required by this chapter, no converted electric vehicle may be registered in or operated on the highways of the Commonwealth without the following: 1. Orange-colored high voltage cables and high voltage markings on all conduit containing high voltage cables. No high voltage cables may be attached to the chassis of the vehicle in such a way as to cause the chassis to be used to ground the electric current; 2. A breaker or fuse in the high voltage circuit that contains the traction battery pack and the motor controller. Such breaker or fuse must be rated to interrupt the expected maximum current at or above the battery pack voltage; 3. An externally mounted switch to open the high voltage circuit in case of an emergency. Such switch must be located where the fuel tank filler cap was located prior to conversion. Any cover protecting the switch must be able to be opened from the outside of the vehicle; 4. Traction batteries mounted in secure nonconductive enclosures that provide for limited access. Multiple enclosures may be used but must be connected by high voltage cables encased in conduit made of metal, composite, or other materials of comparable strength, crush, and abrasion resistance to metal or composite; 5. If batteries other than lead acid batteries are used as traction batteries, a temperature monitoring system that monitors the temperature of at least one battery in each battery enclosure. Such system must warn the driver of the vehicle if the temperature of the battery is rising rapidly or is above safe levels; 6. Conduit made of metal, composite, or other materials of comparable strength, crush, and abrasion resistance to metal or composite, encasing any high voltage cables running under or outside of the vehicle. Such conduit must be secured to the vehicle chassis and must not violate the ground clearance provisions of § 46.2-1063; 7. A vacuum system and pump, or comparable equipment, to maintain proper brake function and capacity, as required by this chapter; and 8. Labeling on three sides of the vehicle identifying such vehicle as "CONVERTED ELECTRIC." Each label shall be at least six inches long and consist of lettering at least three inches tall. At such time as the federal government establishes minimum equipment and safety standards, including any related to synthetic vehicle sounds, for converted electric vehicles, to the extent that such standards are different from the standards established by this section, the federal standards shall apply to converted electric vehicles in the Commonwealth. If any federal standard conflicts with a standard set forth by this section, the stricter standard shall prevail. 2012, c. 177.

Va. Code § 46.2-1009

§ 46.2-1009. Exemptions for certain electrically powered vehicles; standards and permits for such vehicles.The provisions of §§ 46.2-1002 through 46.2-1008 shall not apply to vehicles which are powered solely by electricity, capable of speeds of no more than fifteen miles per hour. The Superintendent may establish standards for safety equipment to be used on such vehicles. Upon the establishment of such standards, permits to use such vehicles may be issued to persons owning vehicles meeting such standards by the officer in charge of the division of the Department of State Police having jurisdiction in the county, city, or town in which such person resides. 1973, c. 455, § 46.1-314.1; 1989, c. 727. Article 3. Lights and Turn Signals.

Va. Code § 46.2-1015

§ 46.2-1015. Lights on bicycles, electric personal assistive mobility devices, personal delivery devices, electric power-assisted bicycles, mopeds, and motorized skateboards or scooters.A. Every bicycle, electric personal assistive mobility device, personal delivery device, electric power-assisted bicycle, moped, and motorized skateboard or scooter with handlebars when in use between sunset and sunrise shall be equipped with a headlight on the front emitting a white light visible in clear weather from a distance of at least 500 feet to the front and a red reflector visible from a distance of at least 600 feet to the rear when directly in front of lawful lower beams of headlights on a motor vehicle. Such lights and reflector shall be of types approved by the Superintendent. Such headlights shall not have any aftermarket modifications that cause the headlights to appear as a blue light; however, such prohibition shall not be construed to prohibit the installation and use of headlights of types approved by the Superintendent. In addition to the foregoing provisions of this section, a bicycle or its rider may be equipped with lights or reflectors. These lights may be steady burning or blinking. B. Every bicycle, or its rider, shall be equipped with a taillight on the rear emitting a red light plainly visible in clear weather from a distance of at least 500 feet to the rear when in use between sunset and sunrise and operating on any highway with a speed limit of 35 mph or greater. Any such taillight shall be of a type approved by the Superintendent. Code 1950, §§ 46-268, 46-270; 1958, c. 541, § 46.1-263; 1981, c. 585; 1989, c. 727; 2001, c. 834; 2002, c. 254; 2004, cc. 947, 973; 2005, c. 381; 2017, cc. 251, 788; 2019, c. 780; 2020, c. 1269; 2023, c. 689.

Va. Code § 46.2-1026

§ 46.2-1026. Flashing high-intensity amber warning lights.A. High-intensity flashing, blinking, or alternating amber warning lights visible for at least 500 feet, of types approved by the Superintendent, shall be used on any vehicle engaged in either escorting or towing over-dimensional materials, equipment, boats, or manufactured housing units by authority of a highway hauling permit issued pursuant to § 46.2-1139. Such lights shall be mounted on the top of the escort and tow vehicles and on the upper rear end of the over-dimensional vehicles or loads for maximum visibility, front and rear. However, any vehicles operating under a permit issued pursuant to § 46.2-1139 shall be deemed to be in compliance with the requirements of this subsection if accompanied by escort vehicles. The provisions of this subsection shall apply only to vehicles or loads that are either (i) more than 12 feet wide or (ii) more than 75 feet long. B. Such amber warning lights may be used on any vehicle used by any public utility company for the purpose of repairing, installing, or maintaining electric or natural gas utility equipment or service. Code 1950, § 46-273; 1954, c. 310; 1958, c. 541, § 46.1-267; 1960, cc. 156, 391; 1962, c. 512; 1966, cc. 655, 664; 1968, c. 89; 1972, c. 7; 1974, c. 537; 1976, c. 6; 1977, c. 72; 1978, cc. 311, 357; 1980, c. 337; 1981, c. 338; 1984, cc. 440, 539; 1985, cc. 248, 269, 287, 462; 1986, cc. 124, 127, 229; 1987, cc. 347, 370; 1988, cc. 339, 351; 1989, c. 727; 2018, c. 263.

Va. Code § 46.2-1028.2

§ 46.2-1028.2. Auxiliary lights on public utility vehicles.Any electrical service utility vehicle owned and operated by a public utility, as defined in § 56-265.1, and having a gross vehicle weight rating greater than 15,000 pounds may be equipped with clear auxiliary lights that shall be mounted on the lower portion of the vehicle and aimed downward for the exclusive use of ground lighting. Such lights shall be of a type approved by the Superintendent and shall not be used in a manner that may blind or interfere with the vision of the drivers of approaching vehicles. In no event shall such lights be lighted while the vehicle is in motion. 2015, c. 341.

Va. Code § 46.2-1038

§ 46.2-1038. When turn signals required; exceptions.A. Any motor vehicle, trailer, or semitrailer which is so constructed or carries a load in such a manner as to prevent a hand and arm signal required in § 46.2-849 from being visible both to the front and rear of such motor vehicle, trailer, or semitrailer or any vehicle the driver of which is incapable of giving the required hand and arm signals, shall be equipped with electrical turn signals which meet the requirements of this title and are of a type that has been approved by the Superintendent. A tractor truck, however, need not be equipped with electrical turn signals on the rear if it is equipped with double faced signal lights mounted on the front fenders or on the sides near the front of the vehicle clearly visible to the rear. B. It shall be unlawful for any person to drive on any highway a motor vehicle registered in the Commonwealth and manufactured or assembled after January 1, 1955, unless such vehicle is equipped with such turn signals on both front and rear. C. Any such turn signal may be used in lieu of the hand and arm signal required by § 46.2-849. D. Subsections A and B of this section shall not apply to any motorcycle. The provisions of this section shall not apply to motor vehicles, trailers, or semitrailers used for agricultural or horticultural purposes and exempted from registration under Article 6 (§ 46.2-662 et seq.) of Chapter 6 of this title. Code 1950, § 46-302; 1954, c. 44; 1958, c. 541, § 46.1-298; 1962, c. 255; 1974, c. 217; 1989, c. 727.

Va. Code § 46.2-1048

§ 46.2-1048. Pollution control systems or devices.No motor vehicle registered in the Commonwealth and manufactured for the model year 1973 or for subsequent model years shall be operated on the highways in the Commonwealth unless it is equipped with an air pollution control system, device, or combination of such systems or devices installed in accordance with federal laws and regulations. It shall be unlawful for any person to operate a motor vehicle, as herein described, on the highways in the Commonwealth with its pollution control system or device removed or otherwise rendered inoperable. It shall be unlawful for any person to operate on the highways in the Commonwealth a motor vehicle, as described in this section, equipped with any emission control system or device unless it is of a type installed as standard factory equipment, or comparable to that designed for use upon the particular vehicle as standard factory equipment. No motor vehicle, as described in this section, shall be issued a safety inspection approval sticker unless it is equipped as provided under the foregoing provisions of this section or if it violates this section. The provisions of this section shall not prohibit or prevent shop adjustments or replacements of equipment for maintenance or repair or the conversion of engines to low polluting fuels, such as, but not limited to, natural gas or propane, so long as such action does not degrade the antipollution capabilities of the vehicle power system. The provisions of this section shall not apply to converted electric vehicles. 1972, c. 640, § 46.1-301.1; 1973, c. 5; 1989, c. 727; 2012, c. 177.

Va. Code § 46.2-1049

§ 46.2-1049. Exhaust system in good working order.No person shall drive and no owner of a vehicle shall permit or allow the operation of any such vehicle on a highway unless it is equipped with an exhaust system in good working order and in constant operation to prevent excessive or unusual levels of noise, provided, however, that for motor vehicles, such exhaust system shall be of a type installed as standard factory equipment, or comparable to that designed for use on the particular vehicle as standard factory equipment or other equipment that has been submitted to and approved by the Superintendent or meets or exceeds the standards and specifications of the Society of Automotive Engineers, the American National Standards Institute, or the federal Department of Transportation. As used in this section, "exhaust system" means all the parts of a vehicle through which the exhaust passes after leaving the engine block, including mufflers and other sound dissipative devices. Chambered pipes are not an effective muffling device to prevent excessive or unusual noise, and any vehicle equipped with chambered pipes shall be deemed in violation of this section. The provisions of this section shall not apply to (i) any antique motor vehicle licensed pursuant to § 46.2-730, provided that the engine is comparable to that designed as standard factory equipment for use on that particular vehicle, and the exhaust system is in good working order, or (ii) converted electric vehicles. Code 1950, § 46-305; 1952, c. 455; 1956, c. 651; 1958, c. 541, § 46.1-301; 1960, c. 120; 1970, c. 266; 1972, c. 66; 1989, c. 727; 2006, cc. 529, 538; 2012, c. 177; 2015, cc. 77, 165; 2018, c. 655; 2020, Sp. Sess. I, cc. 45, 51; 2022, c. 490.

Va. Code § 46.2-1055

§ 46.2-1055. Windshield wipers.Every permanent windshield on a motor vehicle shall be equipped with a device for cleaning snow, rain, moisture, or other matter from the windshield directly in front of the driver. The device shall be so constructed as to be controlled or operated by the driver of the vehicle. Every such device on a school bus or a vehicle designed or used to carry passengers for compensation or hire or as a public conveyance shall be of a mechanically or electrically operated type. The device or devices on any motor vehicle manufactured or assembled after January 1, 1943, shall clean both the right and left sides of the windshield and shall be of a mechanically or electrically operated type. Code 1950, § 46-296; 1958, c. 541, § 46.1-292; 1989, c. 727.

Va. Code § 46.2-1066

§ 46.2-1066. Brakes.Every motor vehicle when driven on a highway shall be equipped with brakes adequate to control the movements of and to stop and hold such vehicle. The brakes shall be maintained in good working order and shall conform to the provisions of this article. Every bicycle, electric power-assisted bicycle, and moped, when operated on a highway, shall be equipped with a brake that will enable the operator to make the braked wheels skid on dry, level, clean pavement. Every electric personal assistive mobility device, when operated on a highway, shall be equipped with a system that, when activated or engaged, will enable the operator to bring the device to a controlled stop. Code 1950, § 46-283; 1958, c. 541, § 46.1-277; 1974, c. 347; 1981, c. 585; 1989, c. 727; 2001, c. 834; 2002, c. 254.

Va. Code § 46.2-1078

§ 46.2-1078. Unlawful to operate motor vehicle, bicycle, electric personal assistive mobility device, electric power-assisted bicycle, or moped while using earphones.It shall be unlawful for any person to operate a motor vehicle, bicycle, electric personal assistive mobility device, electric power-assisted bicycle, or moped on the highways in the Commonwealth while using earphones on or in both ears. For the purpose of this section, "earphones" shall mean any device worn on or in both ears that converts electrical energy to sound waves or which impairs or hinders the person's ability to hear, but shall not include (i) any prosthetic device that aids the hard of hearing, (ii) earphones installed in helmets worn by motorcycle operators and riders and used as part of a communications system, or (iii) nonprosthetic, closed-ear, open-back, electronic noise-cancellation devices designed and used to enhance the hearing ability of persons who operate vehicles in high-noise environments, provided any such device is being worn by the operator of a vehicle with a gross vehicle weight rating of 26,000 pounds or more. The provisions of this section shall not apply to the driver of any emergency vehicle as defined in § 46.2-920. Code 1950, § 46-219.1; 1950, p. 882; 1958, c. 541, § 46.1-202.1; 1989, c. 727; 1993, c. 126; 1997, c. 36; 2001, c. 834; 2002, c. 254.

Va. Code § 46.2-1081

§ 46.2-1081. Slow-moving vehicle emblems.A. Every farm tractor, self-propelled unit of farm equipment or implement of husbandry, and any other vehicle designed for operation at speeds not in excess of 25 miles per hour or normally operated at speeds not in excess of 25 miles per hour, shall display a triangular slow-moving vehicle emblem on the rear of the vehicle when traveling on a public highway at any time of the day or night. B. Should a slow-moving vehicle tow a unit on a public highway, then the towing vehicle or the towed unit shall be equipped with the slow-moving vehicle emblem as follows: 1. If the towed unit or any load thereon obscures the slow-moving vehicle emblem on the towing vehicle, the towed unit shall be equipped with a slow-moving vehicle emblem, in which case the towing vehicle need not display such emblem. 2. If the slow-moving vehicle emblem on the towing vehicle is not obscured by the towed unit or any load thereon, then either or both such vehicles may be equipped with such emblem. C. The standards and specifications for the slow-moving vehicle emblem and the position of mounting of the emblem shall conform to standards and specifications adopted by the American Society of Agricultural Engineers, the Society of Automotive Engineers, the American National Standards Institute, Inc., or the federal Department of Transportation. D. The use of the slow-moving vehicle emblem shall be restricted to the uses specified in this title. E. The provisions of this section shall not apply to bicycles, electric power-assisted bicycles, mopeds, or motorized skateboards or scooters. Display of a slow-moving vehicle emblem on a bicycle, electric power-assisted bicycle, moped, or motorized skateboard or scooter shall not be deemed a violation of this section. 1970, c. 301, § 46.1-264.1; 1972, c. 146; 1978, c. 605; 1989, c. 727; 1996, c. 82; 2003, cc. 29, 46; 2019, c. 780.

Va. Code § 46.2-111

§ 46.2-111. Flares and other signals relating to stopped commercial motor vehicles.A. Whenever any commercial motor vehicle as defined in § 46.2-341.4 is stopped on any roadway or on the shoulder of any highway in the Commonwealth at any time for any cause other than stops necessary to comply with traffic control devices, lawfully installed signs, or signals of law-enforcement officers, the operator of such vehicle shall immediately activate the vehicular hazard warning signal flashers and as soon as possible, but in any event within 10 minutes of stopping, place or cause to be placed on the roadway or shoulder three red reflectorized triangular warning devices of a type approved by the Superintendent. One of the red reflectorized triangular warning devices shall be placed in the center of the lane of traffic or shoulder occupied by the stopped vehicle and not less than 100 feet therefrom in the direction of traffic approaching in that lane, a second not less than 100 feet from such vehicle in the opposite direction and a third at the traffic side of such vehicle not closer than 10 feet from its front or rear. However, if such vehicle is stopped within 500 feet of a curve or crest of a hill, or other obstruction to view, the red reflectorized triangular warning devices in that direction shall be so placed as to afford ample warning to other users of the highway, but in no case less than 500 feet from the stopped vehicle. Vehicular hazard warning signal flashers shall continue to flash until the operator has placed the three red reflectorized triangular warning devices required in this subsection. The placement of red reflectorized triangular warning devices is not required within the corporate limits of cities unless, during the time which lights are required to be illuminated on motor vehicles by § 46.2-1030, the street or highway lighting is insufficient to make such vehicle clearly discernable at a distance of 500 feet to a person on the highway. Flares or torches of a type approved by the Superintendent may be used in lieu of red reflectorized warning devices. In the event that the operator of the stopped vehicle elects to use flares or torches in lieu of red reflectorized triangular warning devices, the operator shall ensure that at least one flare or torch remains lighted at each of the prescribed locations as long as the vehicle is stopped. If gasoline or any other flammable liquid or combustible liquid or gas seeps or leaks from a fuel container or a commercial motor vehicle stopped upon a highway, no emergency warning signal producing a flame shall be lighted or placed except at such a distance from any such liquid or gas as will ensure the prevention of a fire or explosion. The exception provided in this subsection with respect to highways within the corporate limits of cities shall not apply to any portion of any interstate highway within the corporate limits of any city. The provisions of this section shall not apply to any vehicle in a work zone protected by flagmen or approved temporary traffic control channeling devices, as required by the Virginia Work Area Protection Manual or to any vehicle displaying a flashing amber light authorized by § 46.2-1025 when such vehicle is (i) used for the principal purpose of towing or servicing disabled vehicles, or (ii) engaged in road or utility construction or maintenance. B. If any such vehicle is used for the transportation of flammable liquids in bulk, whether loaded or empty, or for transporting inflammable gases, red reflectorized triangular warning devices or red electric lanterns of a type approved by the Superintendent of State Police shall be used. Such reflectors or lanterns shall be lighted and placed on the roadway in the manner provided in subsection A of this section. C. [Repealed.] Code 1950, §§ 46-260, 46-261, 46-262; 1950, p. 698; 1956, c. 56; 1958, c. 541, §§ 46.1-255 to 46.1-257; 1960, c. 156; 1966, c. 122; 1968, c. 155; 1970, c. 190; 1989, c. 727; 1999, c. 77; 2003, c. 971.

Va. Code § 46.2-1129.1

§ 46.2-1129.1. Further extension of weight limits for certain vehicles utilizing an auxiliary power unit or other idle reduction technology.Any motor vehicle that utilizes an auxiliary power unit or other idle reduction technology in order to promote reduction of fuel use and emissions due to engine idling shall be allowed up to an additional 550 pounds total in gross, single axle, tandem axle, or bridge formula weight limits. To be eligible for this exception, the operator of the vehicle must be able to prove (i) by written certification, the weight of the auxiliary power unit or other idle reduction technology unit and (ii) by demonstration or written certification, that such idle reduction technology is fully functional at all times. Certification of the weight of the auxiliary power unit must be available to law-enforcement officials if the vehicle is found in violation of applicable weight laws. The additional weight allowed cannot exceed 550 pounds or the weight certified, whichever is less. For purposes of this section, "auxiliary power unit" means a mechanical or electrical device affixed to a motor vehicle that is designed to be used to generate an alternative source of power for any of the motor vehicle's systems other than the primary propulsion engine, and "idle reduction technology" refers to a technology that allows engine operators to refrain from long-duration idling of the main propulsion engine by using an alternative technology. 2009, c. 92; 2013, c. 118.

Va. Code § 46.2-1129.2

§ 46.2-1129.2. Further extension of weight limits for vehicles fueled by natural gas or powered by means of electric battery power.A. On any highway other than an interstate highway, any motor vehicle that is fueled, wholly or partially, by natural gas or powered primarily by means of electric battery power shall be allowed up to an additional 2,000 pounds total in gross, single axle, tandem axle, or bridge formula weight limits, provided that such weight is on the power unit. To be eligible for this exception, the operator of the vehicle must be able to demonstrate that the vehicle is a natural gas vehicle, a bi-fuel vehicle using natural gas, a vehicle that has been converted to a natural gas vehicle, or a vehicle that is powered primarily by means of electric battery power. B. On an interstate highway, any motor vehicle that is fueled primarily by natural gas or powered primarily by means of electric battery power may exceed the weight limits provided in § 46.2-1127 by up to an additional 2,000 pounds, provided that such weight is on the power unit. However, the gross weight of such vehicle shall not exceed 82,000 pounds. 2014, c. 64; 2017, c. 554; 2021, Sp. Sess. I, c. 133.

Va. Code § 46.2-1143

§ 46.2-1143. Overweight permits for coal haulers; trucks hauling gravel, sand, asphalt, crushed stone, or liquids produced from gas or oil wells in certain counties; penalties.A. The Commissioner upon written application by the owner or operator of vehicles used exclusively for hauling coal or coal byproducts from a mine or other place of production to a preparation plant, electricity-generation facility, loading dock, or railroad shall issue, without a fee, a permit authorizing those vehicles to operate with gross weights in excess of those established in § 46.2-1126 on the conditions set forth in this section. B. Vehicles with three axles may have a maximum gross weight, when loaded, of no more than 60,000 pounds, a single axle weight of not more than 24,000 pounds and a tandem axle weight of no more than 45,000 pounds. Vehicles with four axles may have a maximum gross weight, when loaded, of no more than 70,000 pounds, a single axle weight of no more than 24,000 pounds, and a tri-axle weight of no more than 50,000 pounds. Vehicles with five axles having no less than 35 feet of axle space between extreme axles may have a maximum gross weight, when loaded, of no more than 90,000 pounds, a single axle weight of no more than 20,000 pounds, and a tandem axle weight of no more than 40,000 pounds. Vehicles with six axles may have a maximum gross weight, when loaded, of no more than 110,000 pounds, a single axle weight of no more than 24,000 pounds, a tandem axle weight of no more than 44,000 pounds, and a tri-axle weight of no more than 54,500 pounds. C. No load of any vehicle operating under a permit issued according to this section shall rise above the top of the bed of such vehicle, not including extensions of the bed. Three-axle vehicles shall not carry loads in excess of the maximum bed size in cubic feet for such vehicle which shall be computed by a formula of 60,000 pounds minus the weight of the empty truck divided by the average weight of coal. For the purposes of this section, the average weight of coal shall be 52 pounds per cubic foot. Four-axle vehicles shall not carry loads in excess of the maximum bed size for such vehicle which shall be computed by a formula of 70,000 pounds minus the weight of the truck empty divided by the average weight of coal. Five-axle vehicles shall not carry loads in excess of the maximum bed size for such vehicle, which shall be computed by a formula of 90,000 pounds minus the weight of the truck empty divided by the average weight of coal. Six-axle vehicles shall not carry loads in excess of the maximum bed size for such vehicle, which shall be computed by a formula of 110,000 pounds minus the weight of the truck empty divided by the average weight of coal. D. For the purposes of this section, "bed" means that part of the vehicle used to haul coal. Bed size shall be based on its interior dimensions, which may be determined by measuring the exterior of the bed, with volume expressed in cubic feet. In order to ensure compliance with this section by visual inspection, if the actual bed size of the vehicle exceeds the maximum as provided above, the owner or operator shall be required to paint a horizontal line two inches wide on the sides of the outside of the bed of the vehicle, clearly visible to indicate the uppermost limit of the maximum bed size applicable to the vehicle as provided in this section. In addition, one hole two inches high and six inches long on each side of the bed shall be cut in the center of the bed and at the top of the painted line. Any vehicle in violation of this section shall subject the vehicle's owner or operator or both to a penalty of $250 for a first offense, $500 for a second offense within a 12-month period, and $1,000 and revocation of the permit for a third offense within a 12-month period from the first offense. E. If the bed of any vehicle is enlarged beyond the maximum bed size for which its permit was granted, or if the line or holes required are altered so that the vehicle exceeds the bed size for which its permit was granted, the owner, operator, or both shall be subject to a penalty of $1,000 for each offense and revocation of the permit. Upon revocation, a permit shall not be reissued for six months. The penalties provided in this section shall be in lieu of those imposed under § 46.2-1135. F. For any vehicle with a valid permit issued pursuant to the conditions required by this section, when carrying loads which do not rise above the top of the bed or the line indicating the bed's maximum size, if applicable, it shall be, in the absence of proof to the contrary, prima facie evidence that the load is within the applicable weight limits. If any vehicle is stopped by enforcement officials for carrying a load rising above the top of the bed or the line indicating the bed's maximum size, the operator of the vehicle shall be permitted to shift his load within the bed to determine whether the load can be contained in the bed without rising above its top or above the line. G. No such permit shall be valid for the operation of any such vehicle for a distance of more than 85 miles within the Commonwealth of Virginia from the preparation plant, loading dock, or railroad. H. In counties that impose a severance tax on gases as authorized by § 58.1-3712 or a severance license tax on coal producers as authorized by § 58.1-3741, the Commissioner, upon written application by the owner or operator of vehicles used exclusively for hauling gravel, sand, asphalt, or crushed stone no more than 50 miles from origin to destination, shall issue a permit authorizing those vehicles to operate with the weight limits prescribed in subsection B. Nothing contained in this subsection shall authorize any extension of weight limits provided in § 46.2-1127 for operation on interstate highways. Any weight violation hauling sand, gravel, asphalt, or crushed stone under this subsection shall be subject to the penalties authorized by § 46.2-1135. The fee for a permit issued under this subsection shall be $70, to be allocated as follows: (i) $65 to the Highway Maintenance and Operating Fund established pursuant to § 33.2-1530, with a portion equal to the percentage of the Commonwealth's total lane miles represented by the lane miles eligible for maintenance payments pursuant to §§ 33.2-319 and 33.2-366 being redistributed on the basis of lane miles to the applicable localities pursuant to §§ 33.2-319 and 33.2-366, to be used to assist in funding needed highway pavement and bridge maintenance and rehabilitation and (ii) a $5 administrative fee to the Department. I. In counties that impose a severance tax on gases as authorized by § 58.1-3712 or a severance license tax on coal producers as authorized by § 58.1-3741, the weight limits prescribed in subsection B shall also apply to motor vehicles hauling liquids produced from a gas or oil well and water used for drilling and completion of a gas or oil well no more than 50 miles from origin to destination. Nothing contained in this subsection shall authorize any extension of weight limits provided in § 46.2-1127 for operation on interstate highways. Any weight violation involving hauling liquids produced from a gas or oil well and water used for drilling and completion of a gas or oil well under this subsection shall be subject to the penalties authorized by § 46.2-1135. 1973, c. 62, § 46.1-343.3; 1989, c. 727; 1996, cc. 36, 87; 1999, c. 915; 2001, c. 417; 2002, c. 264; 2003, cc. 314, 315; 2005, c. 556; 2007, c. 523; 2008, c. 716; 2009, c. 188; 2010, c. 361; 2011, c. 131; 2012, cc. 443, 569; 2013, cc. 305, 618; 2017, c. 550.

Va. Code § 46.2-1145.1

§ 46.2-1145.1. Overweight permits for certain trucks operated by electric utilities.In addition to other permits provided for in this article, the Commissioner, upon written application by an electric utility as defined in § 56-576, shall issue a permit authorizing the electric utility's operation of vehicles used for the construction, operation, or maintenance of electrical facilities and infrastructure upon the highway at gross weights exceeding those set forth in § 46.2-1126. Permits issued hereunder shall specify that vehicles with two axles may have a maximum gross weight of no more than 48,000 pounds and a single axle weight of not more than 24,000 pounds and that vehicles with three axles may have a maximum gross weight of not more than 60,000 pounds and a single axle weight of not more than 24,000 pounds and a tandem axle weight of not more than 40,000 pounds. The fee for such permit shall be as provided in § 46.2-1140.1. The permit shall not designate the route to be traversed nor contain restrictions or conditions not applicable to other vehicles in their general use of the highways. However, no such permit shall authorize violation of any weight limitation applicable to bridges or culverts, as promulgated and posted in accordance with § 46.2-1130. Nothing contained in this section shall authorize any extension of weight limits provided in § 46.2-1127 for operation on interstate highways. Each vehicle, when loaded according to the provisions of a permit issued under this section, shall be operated at a reduced speed of 10 miles per hour slower than the legal speed limit on any highway with a speed limit above 30 miles per hour. 2024, c. 227.

Va. Code § 46.2-1158

§ 46.2-1158. Frequency of inspection; scope of inspection.Motor vehicles, trailers, and semitrailers required to be inspected pursuant to the provisions of § 46.2-1157 shall be reinspected within 12 months of the month of the first inspection and at least once every 12 months thereafter. Each inspection shall be a complete inspection. A reinspection of a rejected vehicle by the same station during the period of validity of the rejection sticker on such vehicle, however, need only include an inspection of the item or items previously found defective unless there is found an obvious defect that would warrant further rejection of the vehicle. A rejection sticker shall be valid for 15 calendar days beyond the day of issuance, during which time the operator of the vehicle shall not be charged for a violation of vehicle equipment requirements set forth in Article 3 (§ 46.2-1010 et seq.) through Article 9 (§ 46.2-1066 et seq.) for such vehicle. A complete inspection shall be performed on any vehicle bearing an expired rejection sticker. The completion of the conversion process for a converted electric vehicle shall invalidate any inspection of such vehicle conducted in accordance with this section prior to the conversion. Following the initial inspection of a converted electric vehicle, as required under § 46.2-602.3 and the provisions of this chapter, such vehicle shall be reinspected in accordance with this section. 1977, c. 655, § 46.1-315.2; 1978, cc. 302, 748; 1982, c. 646; 1989, c. 727; 2012, c. 177; 2020, cc. 1230, 1275.

Va. Code § 46.2-1179.1

§ 46.2-1179.1. Board to adopt clean alternative fuel fleet standards for motor vehicles; penalty.A. For purposes of this section: "Clean alternative fuel" means any fuel, including methanol, ethanol, other alcohols, reformulated gasoline, diesel, natural gases, liquefied petroleum gas, hydrogen, and electricity or other power source used in a clean fuel vehicle that complies with the standards applicable to such vehicle under the federal Clean Air Act when using such fuel or other power source. In the case of a flexible fuel vehicle or dual fuel vehicle, "clean alternative fuel" means only a fuel for which the vehicle was certified when operating on clean alternative fuel. "Fleet" means any centrally fueled fleet of ten or more motor vehicles owned or operated by a single entity. "Fleet" does not include motor vehicles held for lease or rental to the general public, motor vehicles held for sale by motor vehicle dealers, motor vehicles used for manufacturer product tests, law-enforcement and other emergency vehicles, or nonroad vehicles, including farm and construction vehicles. B. The Board may adopt by regulation motor vehicle clean alternative fuel fleet standards consistent with the provisions of Part C of Title II of the federal Clean Air Act for model years beginning with the model year 1998 or the first succeeding model year for which adoption of such standards is practicable. If adoption and implementation by the Board of an equivalent air pollution reduction program is approved by the federal Environmental Protection Agency, the regulation and program authorized by this section shall not become effective. Such regulations shall contain the minimum phase-in schedule contained in § 246 (b) of Part C of Title II of the Clean Air Act. However, nothing in this section shall preclude affected fleet owners from exceeding the minimum requirements of the federal Clean Air Act. Beginning in 1995 and upon adoption of the standards by the Board, the Board shall require the fleet owned by the federal government to meet the clean alternative fuel fleet standard and phase-in schedule established by the Board. If necessary to meet the Board's standards and phase-in schedule, the Board shall require fleets owned by the federal government to convert a portion of existing fleet vehicles to the use of clean alternative fuels as defined by the federal Clean Air Act. The standards specified in this subsection shall apply only to (i) motor vehicles registered in localities designated by the federal Environmental Protection Agency, pursuant to the federal Clean Air Act, as serious, severe, or extreme air quality nonattainment areas, or as maintenance areas formerly designated serious, severe, or extreme and (ii) motor vehicles not registered in the above-mentioned localities, but having either (a) a base of operations or (b) a majority of their annual travel in one or more of those localities. C. An owner of a covered fleet shall not use any motor vehicle or motor vehicle engine which is manufactured during or after the first model year to which the standards specified in subsection A of this section are applicable, if such vehicle or engine is registered or has its base of operations in the localities specified in subsection B of this section and has not been certified in accordance with regulations promulgated by the Board. The Board may promulgate regulations providing for reasonable exemptions consistent with the provisions of Part C of Title II of the federal Clean Air Act. Motor vehicles exempted from the provisions of this section shall forever be exempt. D. Any person that violates the requirements of this section or any regulation adopted hereunder shall be subject to the penalties in §§ 46.2-1187 and 46.2-1187.2. Each day of violation shall be a separate offense, and each motor vehicle shall be treated separately in assessing violations. E. In order to limit adverse economic and administrative impacts on covered fleets operating both in Virginia and in neighboring states, the Department of Environmental Quality shall, to the maximum extent practicable, coordinate the provisions of its regulations promulgated under this section with neighboring states' statutes and regulations relating to use of clean alternative fuels by motor vehicle fleets. F. The State Corporation Commission, as to matters within its jurisdiction, and the Department of Environmental Quality, as to other matters, may, should they deem such action necessary, promulgate regulations necessary or convenient to ensure the availability of clean alternative fuels to operators of fleets covered by the provisions of this section. The State Air Pollution Control Board may delegate to the Commissioner of Agriculture its authority under the Air Pollution Control Law of Virginia, Chapter 13 (§ 10.1-1300 et seq.) of Title 10.1, to implement and enforce any provisions of its regulations covering the availability of clean alternative fuels. Upon receiving such delegation, the authority to implement and enforce the regulations under the Air Pollution Control Law of Virginia shall be vested solely in the Commissioner, notwithstanding any provision of law contained in Title 10.1, except as provided in this section. The State Air Pollution Control Board, in delegating its authority under this section, may make the delegation subject to any conditions it deems appropriate to ensure effective implementation of the regulations according to the policies of the State Air Pollution Control Board. 1993, cc. 234, 571; 1995, c. 141; 1998, cc. 401, 421.

Va. Code § 46.2-1219.3

§ 46.2-1219.3. Parking of vehicles in parking spaces reserved for charging electric vehicles; civil penalties.A. It shall constitute a traffic infraction for any person to park a vehicle that (i) is not a plug-in electric motor vehicle, as defined in § 56-1, or (ii) is a plug-in electric motor vehicle, as defined in § 56-1, that is not in the process of charging in a parking space adjacent to an electric vehicle charging station that is clearly marked as reserved for charging plug-in electric motor vehicles. A violation of this subsection is subject to a civil penalty of not more than $25. B. No civil penalty shall be imposed pursuant to the provisions of this section or any local ordinance adopted pursuant to this section unless the parking space reserved for charging plug-in electric motor vehicles has a sign that includes the following language: "PENALTY, UP TO $25." Such language may be placed on a separate sign and attached below any sign indicating that the space is reserved for charging plug-in electric motor vehicles. In the case of a local ordinance adopted pursuant to subsection C, the sign shall indicate the amount of the civil penalty if such ordinance imposes a civil penalty. C. The governing body of any county, city, or town may adopt an ordinance not inconsistent with the provisions of this section. The civil penalty for violating any such ordinance shall not exceed the civil penalties provided in subsection A. D. In the prosecution of an offense established under this section, prima facie evidence that the vehicle described in the summons issued pursuant to this section was parked in violation of this section, together with proof that the defendant was at the time of such violation the owner, lessee, or renter of the vehicle, shall constitute in evidence a rebuttable presumption that such owner, lessee, or renter of the vehicle was the person who committed the violation. A violation of this section may be charged on the uniform traffic summons form. 2022, c. 758.

Va. Code § 46.2-1315

§ 46.2-1315. Powers of localities to regulate use of motorized skateboards or scooters, bicycles, or electric power-assisted bicycles for hire.A. Any county, city, town, or political subdivision may (i) by ordinance regulate or (ii) by any governing body action or administrative action establish a demonstration project or pilot program regulating the operation of motorized skateboards or scooters, bicycles, or electric power-assisted bicycles for hire, provided that such regulation or other governing body or administrative action is consistent with this title. Such ordinance or other governing body or administrative action may require persons offering motorized skateboards or scooters, bicycles, or electric power-assisted bicycles for hire to be licensed, provided that on or after October 1, 2020, in the absence of any licensing ordinance, regulation, or other action, a person may offer motorized skateboards or scooters, bicycles, or electric power-assisted bicycles for hire. B. The provisions of this section shall not be construed to limit the authority of any locality (i) as authorized by any other provision of law or (ii) to first enact, revise, or amend any ordinance or action created pursuant to subsection A prior to or subsequent to a person offering motorized skateboards or scooters, bicycles, or electric power-assisted bicycles for hire in the locality. C. Any person who offers motorized skateboards or scooters, bicycles, or electric power-assisted bicycles for hire in any locality that has not enacted any licensing ordinance, regulation, or other action regulating such business on or after January 1, 2020, and prior to March 27, 2020, may continue to operate in such locality and shall be subject to any subsequent regulations. 2019, c. 780; 2020, c. 478. Chapter 14. Ridesharing.

Va. Code § 46.2-1500

§ 46.2-1500. Definitions.As used in this chapter, unless the context requires a different meaning: "Affiliate" means any entity in which a manufacturer, factory branch, distributor, or distributor branch has voting control or owns at least 51 percent of the ownership equity, or any entity in which another entity has voting control or owns at least 51 percent of the ownership equity and also has voting control and owns at least 51 percent of the ownership of a manufacturer, factory branch, distributor, or distributor branch. An entity that provides vehicle purchase or lease financing that uses the name of the manufacturer or distributor, or the name of any line make of the manufacturer or distributor, in the name of the entity under which it transacts business with a consumer, other than in the name of an individual product offered by the entity, shall be considered an "affiliate." "Board" means the Motor Vehicle Dealer Board. "Camping trailer" means a recreational vehicle constructed with collapsible partial side walls that fold for towing by a consumer-owned tow vehicle and unfold at the campsite to provide temporary living quarters for recreational, camping, or travel use. "Certificate of origin" means the document provided by the manufacturer of a new motor vehicle or new trailer, or its distributor, which is the only valid indication of ownership between the manufacturer, its distributor, its franchised motor vehicle dealers, and the original purchaser not for resale. "Dealer-operator" means the individual who works at the established place of business of a dealer and who is responsible for and in charge of day-to-day operations of that place of business. "Demonstrator" means a new motor vehicle having a gross vehicle weight rating of less than 16,000 pounds that (i) has more than 750 miles accumulated on its odometer that has been driven by dealer personnel or by prospective purchasers during the course of selling, displaying, demonstrating, showing, or exhibiting it and (ii) may be sold as a new motor vehicle, provided the dealer complies with the provisions of subsection D of § 46.2-1530. "Distributor" means a person who is licensed by the Department under this chapter and who sells or distributes new motor vehicles or new trailers pursuant to a written agreement with the manufacturer to franchised motor vehicle dealers in the Commonwealth. "Distributor branch" means a branch office licensed by the Department under this chapter and maintained by a distributor for the sale of motor vehicles to motor vehicle dealers or for directing or supervising, in whole or in part, its representatives in the Commonwealth. "Distributor representative" means a person who is licensed by the Department under this chapter and employed by a distributor or by a distributor branch, for the purpose of making or promoting the sale of motor vehicles or for supervising or contacting its dealers, prospective dealers, or representatives in the Commonwealth. "Factory branch" means a branch office maintained by a person for the sale of motor vehicles to distributors or for the sale of motor vehicles to motor vehicle dealers, or for directing or supervising, in whole or in part, its representatives in the Commonwealth. "Factory representative" means a person who is licensed by the Department under this chapter and employed by a person who manufactures or assembles motor vehicles or by a factory branch for the purpose of making or promoting the sale of its motor vehicles or for supervising or contacting its dealers, prospective dealers, or representatives in the Commonwealth. "Factory repurchase motor vehicle" means a motor vehicle sold, leased, rented, consigned, or otherwise transferred to a person under an agreement that the motor vehicle will be resold or otherwise retransferred only to the manufacturer or distributor of the motor vehicle, and which is reacquired by the manufacturer or distributor, or its agents. "Family member" means a person who either (i) is the spouse, child, grandchild, spouse of a child, spouse of a grandchild, brother, sister, or parent of the dealer or owner or (ii) has been employed continuously by the dealer for at least five years. "Franchise" means a written contract or agreement between two or more persons whereby one person, the franchisee, is granted the right to engage in the business of offering and selling, offering and delivering pursuant to a lease, servicing, or offering, selling, and servicing new trailers with a gross vehicle weight rating of more than 30,000 pounds or new motor vehicles of a particular line-make or late model or used motor vehicles of a particular line-make manufactured or distributed by the grantor of the right, the franchisor, and where the operation of the franchisee's business is substantially associated with the franchisor's trademark, trade name, advertising, or other commercial symbol designating the franchisor, the motor vehicle or its manufacturer or distributor. "Franchise" includes any severable part or parts of a franchise agreement which separately provides for selling and servicing different line-makes of the franchisor. "Franchised late model or franchised used motor vehicle dealer" means a dealer selling used motor vehicles, including vehicles purchased from the franchisor, under the trademark of a manufacturer or distributor that has a franchise agreement with a manufacturer or distributor. "Franchised motor vehicle dealer" or "franchised dealer" means a dealer in new trailers with a gross vehicle weight rating of more than 30,000 pounds or new motor vehicles that has a franchise agreement with a manufacturer or distributor of new trailers with a gross vehicle weight rating of more than 30,000 pounds or new motor vehicles to sell new trailers with a gross vehicle weight rating of more than 30,000 pounds or new motor vehicles or to sell used motor vehicles under the trademark of a manufacturer or distributor regardless of the age of the motor vehicles. "Fund" means the Motor Vehicle Dealer Board Fund. "Independent motor vehicle dealer" means a dealer in used motor vehicles. "Late model motor vehicle" means a motor vehicle of the current model year and the immediately preceding model year. "Line-make" means the name of the motor vehicle manufacturer or distributor and a brand or name plate marketed by the manufacturer or distributor. The line-make of a motorcycle manufacturer, factory branch, distributor, or distributor branch includes every brand of all-terrain vehicle, autocycle, and off-road motorcycle manufactured or distributed bearing the name of the motorcycle manufacturer or distributer. "Manufactured home dealer" means any person licensed as a manufactured home dealer under Chapter 4.2 (§ 36-85.16 et seq.) of Title 36. "Manufacturer" means a person who is licensed by the Department under this chapter and engaged in the business of constructing or assembling new motor vehicles or new trailers and, in the case of trucks, recreational vehicles, and motor homes, also means a person engaged in the business of manufacturing engines, transmissions, power trains, or rear axles, when such engines, transmissions, power trains, or rear axles are not warranted by the final manufacturer or assembler of the truck, recreational vehicle, or motor home. "Motorcycle" means every motor vehicle designed to travel on not more than three wheels in contact with the ground, except any vehicle within the term "farm tractor" or "moped" as defined in § 46.2-100. Except as otherwise provided, for the purposes of this chapter, all-terrain vehicles, autocycles, and off-road motorcycles are deemed to be motorcycles. "Motor home" means a motorized recreational vehicle designed to provide temporary living quarters for recreational, camping, or travel use that contains at least four of the following permanently installed independent life support systems that meet the National Fire Protection Association standards for recreational vehicles: (i) a cooking facility with an onboard fuel source; (ii) a potable water supply system that includes at least a sink, a faucet, and a water tank with an exterior service supply connection; (iii) a toilet with exterior evacuation; (iv) a gas or electric refrigerator; (v) a heating or air conditioning system with an onboard power or fuel source separate from the vehicle engine; or (vi) a 110-125 volt electric power supply. "Motor vehicle" means the same as provided in § 46.2-100, except, for the purposes of this chapter, "motor vehicle" includes trailers, as defined in this section, and does not include (i) manufactured homes, sales of which are regulated under Chapter 4.2 (§ 36-85.16 et seq.) of Title 36; (ii) nonrepairable vehicles, as defined in § 46.2-1600; (iii) salvage vehicles, as defined in § 46.2-1600; or (iv) mobile cranes that exceed the size or weight limitations as set forth in § 46.2-1105, 46.2-1110, or 46.2-1113 or Article 17 (§ 46.2-1122 et seq.) of Chapter 10. "Motor vehicle dealer" or "dealer" means any person who: 1. For commission, money, or other thing of value, buys for resale, sells, or exchanges, either outright or on conditional sale, lease, chattel mortgage, or other similar transaction or arranges or offers or attempts to solicit or negotiate on behalf of others the sale, purchase, or exchange of, either outright or on conditional sale, lease, chattel mortgage, or other similar transaction, an interest in new motor vehicles, new and used motor vehicles, or used motor vehicles alone, whether or not the motor vehicles are owned by him; or 2. Is wholly or partly engaged in the business of selling new motor vehicles, new and used motor vehicles, or used motor vehicles only, whether or not the motor vehicles are owned by him. Any person who offers to sell, sells, displays, or permits the display for sale, of five or more motor vehicles within any 12 consecutive months is presumed to be a motor vehicle dealer and may rebut the presumption by a preponderance of the evidence. For the purposes of Article 7.2 (§ 46.2-1573.2 et seq.), "dealer" means recreational vehicle dealer. For the purposes of Article 7.3 (§ 46.2-1573.13 et seq.), "dealer" means watercraft trailer dealer and trailer dealer of new trailers with a gross vehicle weight rating of more than 30,000 pounds. For the purposes of Article 7.4 (§ 46.2-1573.25 et seq.), "dealer" means motorcycle dealer. "Motor vehicle dealer" or "dealer" does not include: 1. Receivers, trustees, administrators, executors, guardians, conservators or other persons appointed by or acting under judgment or order of any court or their employees when engaged in the specific performance of their duties as employees. 2. Public officers, their deputies, assistants, or employees, while performing their official duties. 3. Persons other than business entities primarily engaged in the leasing or renting of motor vehicles to others when selling or offering such vehicles for sale at retail, disposing of motor vehicles acquired for their own use and actually so used, when the vehicles have been so acquired and used in good faith and not for the purpose of avoiding the provisions of this chapter. 4. Persons dealing solely in the sale and distribution of fire-fighting vehicles, ambulances, and funeral vehicles, including motor vehicles adapted therefor; however, this exemption shall not exempt any person from the provisions of §§ 46.2-1519, 46.2-1520, and 46.2-1548. 5. Any financial institution chartered or authorized to do business under the laws of the Commonwealth or the United States which may have received title to a motor vehicle in the normal course of its business by reason of a foreclosure, other taking, repossession, or voluntary reconveyance to that institution occurring as a result of any loan secured by a lien on the vehicle. 6. An employee of an organization arranging for the purchase or lease by the organization of vehicles for use in the organization's business. 7. Any person licensed to sell real estate who sells a manufactured home or similar vehicle in conjunction with the sale of the parcel of land on which the manufactured home or similar vehicle is located. 8. Any person who permits the operation of a motor vehicle show or permits the display of motor vehicles for sale by any motor vehicle dealer licensed under this chapter. 9. An insurance company authorized to do business in the Commonwealth that sells or disposes of vehicles under a contract with its insured in the regular course of business. 10. Any publication, broadcast, or other communications media when engaged in the business of advertising, but not otherwise arranging for the sale of vehicles owned by others. 11. Any person dealing solely in the sale or lease of vehicles designed exclusively for off-road use. 12. Any credit union authorized to do business in Virginia, provided the credit union does not receive a commission, money, or other thing of value directly from a motor vehicle dealer. 13. Any person licensed as a manufactured home dealer, broker, manufacturer, or salesperson under Chapter 4.2 (§ 36-85.16 et seq.) of Title 36. 14. The State Department of Social Services or local departments of social services. 15. Any person dealing solely in the sale and distribution of utility or cargo trailers that have unloaded weights of 3,000 pounds or less; however, this exemption shall not exempt any person who deals in stock trailers or watercraft trailers. 16. Any motor vehicle manufacturer or distributor selling a new motor vehicle at wholesale to its franchised dealer or a used motor vehicle to a licensed dealer. For the purposes of Article 7 (§ 46.2-1566 et seq.), "dealer" does not include recreational vehicle dealers, trailer dealers, watercraft trailer dealers, or motorcycle dealers. "Motor vehicle salesperson" or "salesperson" means (i) any person who is hired as an employee by a motor vehicle dealer to sell or exchange motor vehicles and who receives or expects to receive a commission, fee, or any other consideration from the dealer; (ii) any person who supervises salespersons employed by a motor vehicle dealer, whether compensated by salary or by commission; (iii) any person, compensated by salary or commission by a motor vehicle dealer, who negotiates with or induces a customer to enter into a security agreement on behalf of a dealer; or (iv) any person who is licensed as a motor vehicle dealer and who sells or exchanges motor vehicles. For purposes of this section, any person who is an independent contractor as defined by the United States Internal Revenue Code shall be deemed not to be a motor vehicle salesperson. "Motor vehicle show" means a display of motor vehicles to the general public at a location other than a dealer's location licensed under this chapter where the vehicles are not being offered for sale or exchange during or as part of the display. "New motor vehicle" means any vehicle, excluding trailers, that is in the possession of the manufacturer, factory branch, distributor, distributor branch, or motor vehicle dealer and for which an original title has not been issued by the Department or by the issuing agency of any other state and has less than 7,500 miles accumulated on its odometer. "New trailer" means any trailer that (i) has not been previously sold except in good faith for the purpose of resale; (ii) has not been used as a rental, driver education, or demonstration trailer or for the personal or business transportation of the manufacturer, distributor, dealer, or any of its employees; (iii) has not been used except for limited use necessary in moving or road testing the trailer prior to delivery to a customer; (iv) is transferred by a certificate of origin; and (v) has the manufacturer's certification that it conforms to all applicable federal trailer safety and emission standards. Notwithstanding clauses (i) and (iii), a trailer that has been previously sold but not titled shall be deemed a new trailer if it meets the requirements of clauses (ii), (iv), and (v). "Original license" means a motor vehicle dealer license issued to an applicant who has never been licensed as a motor vehicle dealer in Virginia or whose Virginia motor vehicle dealer license has been expired for more than 30 days. "Recreational vehicle" or "RV" means a vehicle that (i) is either self-propelled or towed by a consumer-owned tow vehicle, (ii) is primarily designed to provide temporary living quarters for recreational, camping, or travel use; and (iii) complies with all applicable federal vehicle regulations and does not require a special movement permit to legally use the highways. Recreational vehicle includes motor homes, travel trailers, and camping trailers. "Relevant market area" means as follows: 1. For motor vehicle dealers except motorcycle dealers, in metropolitan localities the relevant market area shall be a circular area around an existing franchised dealer with a population of 250,000, not to exceed a radius of 10 miles, but in no case less than seven miles. 2. For motor vehicle dealers except motorcycle dealers, if the population in a circular area within a radius of 10 miles around an existing franchised dealer is less than 250,000, but the population in an area within a radius of 15 miles around an existing franchised dealer is 150,000 or more, the relevant market area shall be that circular area within the 15-mile radius. 3. For motor vehicle dealers except motorcycle dealers, in all other cases the relevant market area shall be a circular area within a radius of 20 miles around an existing franchised dealer or the area of responsibility defined in the franchise agreement, whichever is greater. In any case where the franchise agreement is silent as to area of responsibility, the relevant market area shall be the greater of a circular area within a radius of 20 miles around an existing franchised dealer or that area in which the franchisor otherwise requires the franchisee to make significant retail sales or sales efforts. 4. For motorcycle dealers, the relevant market area shall be a circular area within a radius of 20 miles if the population within such area around an existing franchised dealer location is one million or more. If the population in a circular area within a 20-mile radius is less than one million, the relevant market area shall be a circular area within a radius of 30 miles. If the population within a 30-mile radius is less than one million, the relevant market area shall be a circular area within a radius of 40 miles. In all cases, the relevant market area shall be the area described above or the area of responsibility defined in the franchise agreement, whichever is greater. In addition, the relevant market area shall include that area in which the franchisor otherwise requires the franchisee to make significant retail sales or sales efforts. Notwithstanding the foregoing provision of this section, in the case of dealers in motor vehicles with gross vehicle weight ratings of 26,000 pounds or greater, excluding recreational vehicles, the relevant market area with respect to the dealer's franchise for all such vehicles shall be a circular area around an existing franchised dealer with a radius of 25 miles, except where the population in such circular area is less than 250,000, in which case the relevant market area shall be a circular area around an existing franchised dealer with a radius of 50 miles, or the area of responsibility defined in the franchise, whichever is greater. In determining population for relevant market areas, the most recent census by the U.S. Bureau of the Census or the most recent population update, either from the National Planning Data Corporation or other similar recognized source, shall be accumulated for all census tracts either wholly or partially within the relevant market area. "Retail installment sale" means every sale of one or more motor vehicles to a buyer for his use and not for resale, in which the price of the vehicle is payable in one or more installments and in which the seller has either retained title to the goods or has taken or retained a security interest in the goods under form of contract designated either as a security agreement, conditional sale, bailment lease, chattel mortgage, or otherwise. "Sale at retail" or "retail sale" means the act or attempted act of selling, bartering, exchanging, or otherwise disposing of a motor vehicle to a buyer for his personal use and not for resale. "Sale at wholesale" or "wholesale" means a sale to motor vehicle dealers or wholesalers other than to consumers; a sale to one who intends to resell. "Semitrailer" means every vehicle of the trailer type so designed and used in conjunction with another motor vehicle that some part of its own weight and that of its own load rests on or is carried by another vehicle. "Tractor truck" means every motor vehicle designed and used primarily for drawing other vehicles and not so constructed as to carry a load other than a part of the load and weight of the vehicle attached thereto. "Trailer" means every vehicle without motive power designed for carrying property or passengers wholly on its own structure and for being drawn by another motor vehicle, including semitrailers but not manufactured homes, watercraft trailers, camping trailers, or travel trailers. "Travel trailer" means a vehicle designed to provide temporary living quarters for recreational, camping, or travel use of such size or weight so as not to require a special highway movement permit when towed by a consumer-owned tow vehicle. "Used motor vehicle" means any vehicle other than a new motor vehicle as defined in this section. "Watercraft trailer" means any new or used trailer specifically designed to carry a watercraft or a motorboat and purchased, sold, or offered for sale by a watercraft dealer licensed under Chapter 8 (§ 29.1-800 et seq.) of Title 29.1. "Watercraft trailer dealer" means any watercraft dealer licensed under Chapter 8 (§ 29.1-800 et seq.) of Title 29.1. "Wholesale auction" means an auction of motor vehicles restricted to sales at wholesale. Code 1950, § 46-503; 1950, p. 1604; 1956, c. 120; 1958, c. 541, § 46.1-516; 1962, c. 368; 1964, c. 375; 1974, c. 189; 1975, c. 304; 1976, c. 362; 1980, c. 161; 1982, c. 394; 1983, c. 234; 1986, c. 630; 1988, c. 865; 1989, cc. 15, 148, 727; 1992, cc. 134, 148, 572; 1993, c. 124; 1994, c. 888; 1995, cc. 767, 816; 1996, c. 1053; 1997, cc. 801, 848; 1999, cc. 77, 910; 2004, cc. 111, 788; 2005, c. 456; 2006, c. 441; 2010, cc. 284, 292, 318, 459; 2014, cc. 53, 75, 256; 2015, cc. 236, 615; 2019, c. 160; 2020, c. 984; 2025, cc. 565, 579.

Va. Code § 46.2-1510

§ 46.2-1510. Dealers required to have established place of business.No license shall be issued to any motor vehicle dealer unless he has an established place of business, owned or leased by him, where a substantial portion of the sales activity of the business is routinely conducted and which: 1. Satisfies all local zoning regulations; 2. Has sales, service, and office space devoted exclusively to the dealership of at least 250 square feet in a permanent, enclosed building not used as a residence; 3. Houses all records the dealer is required to maintain by § 46.2-1529; 4. Is equipped with a desk, chairs, filing space, a working telephone listed in the name of the dealership, working utilities including electricity and provisions for space heating, and an Internet connection and email address; 5. Displays a sign and business hours as required by this chapter; and 6. Has contiguous space designated for the exclusive use of the dealer adequate to permit the display of at least 10 vehicles. Any dealer licensed on or before July 1, 1995, shall be considered in compliance with subdivisions 2 and 6 of this section for that licensee. 1988, c. 865, § 46.1-525.01; 1989, c. 727; 1995, cc. 767, 816; 1998, c. 418; 2011, c. 791; 2015, c. 615.

Va. Code § 46.2-211

§ 46.2-211. Commissioner to advise local commissioners of revenue of situs of certain vehicles.Before issuing any registration or certificate of title for any tractor truck, or any three-axle truck, trailer, or semitrailer with a registered gross weight in excess of 26,000 pounds, the Commissioner shall determine the county, city, or town in which the vehicle is or will be normally garaged or parked, and shall advise each commissioner of the revenue of the situs of such vehicles as may be in his jurisdiction. The provisions of this section shall not apply to motor vehicles and rolling stock of certificated intrastate common carriers, or electric power, gas, pipeline transmission, railroad, telegraph, telephone, and water companies. 1974, c. 47, § 46.1-32.1; 1989, c. 727.

Va. Code § 46.2-602.3

§ 46.2-602.3. Titling and registration of converted electric vehicles.A. Upon receipt of an application and such evidence of ownership as required by the Commissioner pursuant to § 46.2-625, the Department shall issue a certificate of title for a converted electric vehicle. The first certificate of title issued for a converted electric vehicle shall be an original certificate of title, regardless of the submission of a Virginia certificate of title issued for the vehicle prior to conversion. B. 1. No converted electric vehicle shall be registered or operated on the highways of the Commonwealth until the owner submits to the Department a certification by a certified Virginia safety inspector that the conversion to electric propulsion is complete and proof that the vehicle has passed a Virginia safety inspection subsequent to the certification. Such certification shall be on a form approved by the Commissioner and the Superintendent and shall state that the inspector has verified that (i) the internal combustion engine has been removed; (ii) the fuel tank has been removed and not replaced; (iii) a traction battery pack has been installed that is distinct from the vehicle's original auxiliary battery system; and (iv) an electric motor has been installed to drive the wheels of the vehicle. The safety inspector may charge a fee not to exceed $40 to complete a certification pursuant to this subsection, but no such charge shall be mandatory. Any fee charged for such certification shall be in addition to any fee imposed pursuant to § 46.2-1167 for the completion of a Virginia safety inspection. 2. The completion of the certification required by this section shall not impose any liability on the safety inspector for the quality of the conversion process; however, nothing in this section shall be construed so as to relieve the safety inspector of any liability that may be imposed pursuant to Article 21 (§ 46.2-1157 et seq.) of Chapter 10 or under any regulation promulgated pursuant to § 46.2-1165, relating to the safety inspection of the converted electric vehicle. 3. The submission of a certification pursuant to this section shall be sufficient documentation to exempt the converted electric vehicle for which it is submitted from the emissions inspection program required by Article 22 (§ 46.2-1176 et seq.) of Chapter 10. 4. When necessary and upon application, the Department shall issue temporary trip permits in accordance with § 46.2-651 for the purpose of transporting the converted electric vehicle to and from an official Virginia safety inspection station. C. The provisions of this section need only be satisfied once for each converted electric vehicle. 2012, c. 177; 2013, c. 216.

Va. Code § 46.2-625

§ 46.2-625. Specially constructed, reconstructed, replica, converted electric, or foreign vehicles.If a vehicle for which the registration or a certificate of title is applied is (i) a specially constructed, reconstructed, replica, converted electric, or foreign vehicle or (ii) off-road motorcycle converted to on-road use, the fact shall be stated in the application and, in the case of any foreign vehicle registered outside the Commonwealth, the owner shall present to the Department the certificate of title and registration card or other evidence of registration as he may have. The Commissioner may require such other evidence of ownership as he may deem advisable and promulgate regulations establishing what additional evidence of ownership, if any, shall be required for titling and registration of (i) specially constructed, reconstructed, replica, converted electric, or foreign vehicles or (ii) off-road motorcycles converted to on-road use. All titles and registrations for specially constructed, reconstructed, replica, and converted electric vehicles and off-road motorcycles converted to on-road use shall be branded with the words "specially constructed," "reconstructed," "replica," "converted electric," or "off-road motorcycle converted to on-road use," as appropriate. Titles for vehicles that are both converted electric vehicles and reconstructed vehicles shall be branded with the words "reconstructed" and "converted electric." Code 1950, § 46-51; 1958, c. 541, § 46.1-53; 1970, c. 632; 1989, c. 727; 2007, cc. 325, 393; 2012, c. 177; 2015, c. 259.

Va. Code § 46.2-749.3

§ 46.2-749.3. Special license plates for clean special fuel vehicles.A. The owner of any motor vehicle, except a motorcycle, that may utilize clean special fuel may purchase special license plates indicating the motor vehicle utilizes clean special fuels. Upon receipt of an application, the Commissioner shall issue special license plates to the owners of such vehicles. As used in this section, "clean special fuel" means any product or energy source used to propel a highway vehicle, the use of which, compared to conventional gasoline or reformulated gasoline, results in lower emissions of oxides of nitrogen, volatile organic compounds, carbon monoxide or particulates or any combination thereof. The term includes compressed natural gas, liquefied natural gas, liquefied petroleum gas, hydrogen, hythane (a combination of compressed natural gas and hydrogen), and electricity. On and after July 1, 2006, license plates provided for in this section shall be issued with a new design distinctively different from the design of license plates issued to owners of vehicles that qualify for license plates under this section whose applications are received by the Department prior to July 1, 2006, hereinafter referred to as "the FY 2007 design." The distinctively different design shall be developed by the Department in consultation with the Department of State Police. On and after July 1, 2011, license plates provided for in this section shall be issued with a new design distinctively different from the design of license plates issued to owners of vehicles that qualify for license plates under this section whose applications are received by the Department prior to July 1, 2011 (hereinafter referred to as the FY 2012 design). The distinctively different design shall be developed by the Department in consultation with the Department of State Police. Thereafter, only "the FY 2012 design" plate shall be issued to owners of vehicles that qualify for license plates under this section. 1. For the purposes of subdivision A 6 of § 33.2-501, on HOV lanes serving the I-95/395 corridor, only vehicles registered with and displaying special license plates issued under this section prior to July 1, 2006, shall be treated as vehicles displaying special license plates issued under this section. 2. For the purposes of subdivision A 6 of § 33.2-501, on HOV lanes serving the Interstate Route 66 corridor, only vehicles registered with and displaying special license plates issued under this section prior to July 1, 2011, shall be treated as vehicles displaying special license plates issued under this section. 3. The Commissioner of Highways shall provide annually to the Chairmen of the Senate and House of Delegates Committees on Transportation traffic volumes on the HOV facilities that result in a degraded condition as identified in SAFETEA-LU or other applicable federal law and reported to the Federal Highway Administration. This report shall be used by the Chairmen of their respective committees to recommend further restriction on use of HOV facilities by clean special fuel vehicles. 4. The Commissioner of the Department of Motor Vehicles, in consultation with the Motor Vehicle Dealer Board, shall develop procedures to ensure that all potential purchasers of clean special fuel vehicles receive adequate notice of the benefits, risks and timelines required for the issuance of clean special fuel vehicle license plates. B. With the exception of plates issued to government-use vehicles, the annual fee for plates issued pursuant to this section shall be $25 in addition to the prescribed fee for state license plates. For each such $25 fee collected in excess of 1,000 registrations pursuant to this section, $15 shall be paid to the State Treasury and credited to a special nonreverting fund known as the HOV Enforcement Fund, established within the Department of Accounts, for use by the Virginia State Police for enhanced HOV enforcement. The fee for plates issued pursuant to this section to government-use vehicles shall be as prescribed in subsection A of § 46.2-750. 1993, cc. 255, 625; 1995, c. 134; 1999, c. 883; 2000, cc. 729, 758; 2006, cc. 873, 908; 2010, cc. 351, 390; 2012, cc. 681, 743.

Va. Code § 46.2-770

§ 46.2-770. (For contingent expiration, see Acts 2020, cc. 1230 and 1275) Definitions.As used in this chapter, unless the context requires a different meaning: "Alternative fuel vehicle" means a vehicle equipped to be powered by a combustible gas, liquid, or other source of energy that can be used to generate power to operate a highway vehicle and that is neither a motor fuel nor electricity used to recharge an electric motor vehicle or a hybrid electric motor vehicle. "Electric motor vehicle" means a vehicle that uses electricity as its only source of motive power. "Fuel-efficient vehicle" means a vehicle that has a combined fuel economy of 25 miles per gallon or greater. 2020, cc. 1230, 1275.

Va. Code § 46.2-771

§ 46.2-771. (For contingent expiration, see Acts 2020, cc. 1230 and 1275) Purpose.The purpose of this chapter is to ensure more equitable contributions to the Commonwealth Transportation Fund from alternative fuel vehicles, electric motor vehicles, and fuel-efficient vehicles using highways in the Commonwealth. 2020, cc. 1230, 1275.

Va. Code § 46.2-772

§ 46.2-772. (For contingent expiration, see Acts 2020, cc. 1230 and 1275) Highway use fee.A. Except as provided in subsection C, there is hereby imposed an annual highway use fee on any motor vehicle registered in the Commonwealth under § 46.2-694 or 46.2-697 that is an alternative fuel vehicle, an electric motor vehicle, or a fuel-efficient vehicle. The fee shall be collected by the Department at the time of vehicle registration. If the vehicle is registered for a period of other than one year as provided in § 46.2-646, the highway use fee shall be multiplied by the number of years or fraction thereof that the vehicle will be registered. B. 1. For an electric motor vehicle, the highway use fee shall be 85 percent of the amount of taxes paid under subsection A of § 58.1-2217 on fuel used by a vehicle with a combined fuel economy of 23.7 miles per gallon for the average number of miles traveled by a passenger vehicle in the Commonwealth, as determined by the Commissioner. For all other fuel-efficient vehicles, the highway use fee shall be 85 percent of the difference between the tax paid under subsection A of § 58.1-2217 on the fuel used by a vehicle with a combined fuel economy of 23.7 miles per gallon for the average number of miles traveled by a passenger vehicle in the Commonwealth in a year, as determined by the Commissioner, and the tax paid under subsection A of § 58.1-2217 on the fuel used by the vehicle being registered for the average number of miles traveled by a passenger vehicle in the Commonwealth in a year, as determined by the Commissioner. For purposes of this chapter, the Commissioner shall use combined fuel economy as determined by the manufacturer of the vehicle. If the Commissioner is unable to obtain the manufacturer's fuel economy for a vehicle, then the Commissioner shall use the final estimate of average fuel economy, as determined by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, of (i) all trucks having the same model year as the vehicle being registered, if the vehicle has a gross weight between 6,000 pounds and 10,000 pounds, or (ii) all cars having the same model year as the vehicle. If data is not available for the model year of the vehicle being registered, then the Commissioner shall use available data for the model year that is closest to the model year of the vehicle being registered. The Commissioner shall update the fees calculated under this section by July 1 of each year. 2. The Department shall establish and administer a process whereby a vehicle owner may contest the fee assessed pursuant to this section. The Department shall reimburse the vehicle owner for any contested fee or portion thereof incorrectly collected pursuant to this section. C. This section shall not apply to: 1. An autocycle, moped, or motorcycle; 2. A vehicle with a gross weight over 10,000 pounds; 3. A vehicle that is owned by a governmental entity as defined in § 58.1-2201; or 4. A vehicle that is registered under the International Registration Plan. Notwithstanding the provisions of this section, the annual highway use fee for a low-speed vehicle that is registered under Chapter 6 (§ 46.2-600 et seq.) shall be $25. A vehicle shall not be subject to the fee set forth in this section in any year in which such vehicle is registered to participate in the mileage-based user fee program established pursuant to § 46.2-773. D. In any case where an applicant has requested and is eligible for a refund pursuant to § 46.2-688, the Commissioner shall refund to the applicant the cost of the highway use fee, prorated in six-month increments, if such application is made when six or more months remain in the registration period. 2020, cc. 1230, 1275; 2022, c. 446; 2023, cc. 537, 548.

Va. Code § 46.2-800

§ 46.2-800. Riding bicycles, electric personal assistive mobility devices, electric power-assisted bicycles, mopeds, or motorized skateboards or scooters; riding or driving animals.Every person riding a bicycle, electric personal assistive mobility device, electric power-assisted bicycle, moped, motorized skateboard or scooter, or animal or driving an animal on a highway shall be subject to the provisions of this chapter and shall have all of the rights and duties applicable to the driver of a vehicle, unless the context of the provision clearly indicates otherwise. The provisions of subsections A and C of § 46.2-920 applicable to operation of emergency vehicles under emergency conditions shall also apply, mutatis mutandis, to bicycles, electric personal assistive mobility devices, electric power-assisted bicycles, mopeds, and motorized skateboards or scooters operated under similar emergency conditions by law-enforcement officers. Code 1950, § 46-183; 1958, c. 541, § 46.1-171; 1980, c. 456; 1981, c. 585; 1989, c. 727; 1994, c. 176; 2001, c. 834; 2002, c. 254; 2019, c. 780.

Va. Code § 46.2-808

§ 46.2-808. Commonwealth Transportation Board may prohibit certain uses of controlled access highways; penalty.A. The Commonwealth Transportation Board may, when necessary to promote safety, prohibit the use of controlled access highways or any part thereof by any or all of the following: 1. Pedestrians, 2. Persons riding bicycles, electric power-assisted bicycles, electric personal assistive mobility devices, or mopeds, 3. Animal-drawn vehicles, 4. Self-propelled machinery or equipment, and 5. Animals led, ridden or driven on the hoof. B. The termini of any section of controlled access highways, use of which is restricted under the provisions of this section, shall be clearly indicated by a conspicuous marker. C. This section shall not apply to any vehicle or equipment owned or controlled by the Virginia Department of Transportation, while actually engaged in the construction, reconstruction, or maintenance of highways or to any vehicle or equipment for which a permit has been obtained for operation on such highway. Any person violating a restriction or prohibition imposed pursuant to this section shall be guilty of a traffic infraction. 1964, c. 239, § 46.1-171.1; 1966, c. 365; 1981, c. 585; 1983, c. 262; 1989, c. 727; 1991, c. 55; 2004, cc. 947, 973; 2006, cc. 529, 538; 2007, cc. 209, 366.

Va. Code § 46.2-816.1

§ 46.2-816.1. Careless driving and infliction of injury or death on vulnerable road users; penalty.A. As used in this section, "vulnerable road user" means a pedestrian; the operator of or passenger on a bicycle, electric personal assistive mobility device, electric power-assisted bicycle, wheel chair or wheel chair conveyance, skateboard, roller skates, motorized skateboard or scooter, or animal-drawn vehicle or any attached device; or any person riding an animal. B. It is a Class 1 misdemeanor to operate a motor vehicle in a careless or distracted manner such that the careless or distracted operation is the proximate cause of serious bodily injury as defined in § 18.2-51.4 to or the death of a vulnerable road user who is lawfully present on the highway at the time of injury or death. C. A prosecution or proceeding under § 46.2-852 is a bar to a prosecution or proceeding under this section for the same act, and a prosecution or proceeding under this section is a bar to a prosecution or proceeding under § 46.2-852 for the same act. 2020, c. 1259; 2022, cc. 506, 507.

Va. Code § 46.2-839

§ 46.2-839. Passing bicycle, electric personal assistive mobility device, electric power-assisted bicycle, moped, animal, or animal-drawn vehicle.Any driver of any motor vehicle overtaking a bicycle, electric personal assistive mobility device, electric power-assisted bicycle, moped, animal, or animal-drawn vehicle proceeding in the same direction shall pass at a reasonable speed at least three feet to the left of the overtaken bicycle, electric personal assistive mobility device, electric power-assisted bicycle, moped, animal, or animal-drawn vehicle and shall not again proceed to the right side of the highway until safely clear of such overtaken bicycle, electric personal assistive mobility device, electric power-assisted bicycle, moped, animal, or animal-drawn vehicle. If the lane of travel is not wide enough to allow the overtaking motor vehicle to pass in the manner required in this section while in the same lane as the overtaken vehicle, the overtaking vehicle shall change lanes. 1981, c. 585, § 46.1-208.1; 1989, c. 727; 1999, c. 999; 2001, c. 834; 2002, c. 254; 2004, cc. 947, 973; 2014, c. 358; 2021, Sp. Sess. I, c. 462.

Va. Code § 46.2-847

§ 46.2-847. Left turns by bicycles, electric personal assistive mobility devices, electric power-assisted bicycles, and mopeds.A person riding a bicycle, electric personal assistive mobility device, electric power-assisted bicycle, or moped and intending to turn left shall either follow a course described in § 46.2-846 or make the turn as provided in this section. A person riding a bicycle, electric personal assistive mobility device, electric power-assisted bicycle, or moped and intending to turn left shall approach the turn as close as practicable to the right curb or edge of the roadway. After proceeding across the intersecting roadway, the rider shall comply with traffic signs or signals and continue his turn as close as practicable to the right curb or edge of the roadway being entered. Notwithstanding the foregoing provisions of this section, the Commissioner of Highways and local authorities, in their respective jurisdictions, may cause official traffic control devices to be placed at intersections to direct that a specific course be traveled by turning bicycles, electric personal assistive mobility devices, electric power-assisted bicycles, and mopeds. When such devices are so placed, no person shall turn a bicycle, electric personal assistive mobility device, electric power-assisted bicycle, or moped other than as directed by such devices. 1981, c. 585, § 46.1-215.1; 1989, c. 727; 2001, c. 834; 2002, c. 254; 2013, cc. 585, 646. Article 6. Signals by Drivers.

Va. Code § 46.2-849

§ 46.2-849. How signals given.A. Signals required by § 46.2-848 shall be given by means of the hand and arm or by some mechanical or electrical device approved by the Superintendent, in the manner specified in this section. Whenever the signal is given by means of the hand and arm, the driver shall indicate his intention to start, stop, turn, or partly turn by extending the hand and arm beyond the left side of the vehicle in the manner following: 1. For left turn or to pull to the left, the arm shall be extended in a horizontal position straight from and level with the shoulder; 2. For right turn or to pull to the right, the arm shall be extended upward; 3. For slowing down or stopping, the arm shall be extended downward. B. Wherever the lawful speed is more than 35 miles per hour, such signals shall be given continuously for a distance of at least 100 feet, and in all other cases at least 50 feet, before slowing down, stopping, turning, or partly turning. C. A person riding a bicycle, electric personal assistive mobility device, electric power-assisted bicycle, moped, or motorized skateboard or scooter shall signal his intention to stop or turn. Such signals, however, need not be given continuously if both hands are needed in the control or operation of the bicycle, electric personal assistive mobility device, electric power-assisted bicycle, moped, or motorized skateboard or scooter. D. Notwithstanding the foregoing provisions of this section, a person operating a bicycle, electric personal assistive mobility device, electric power-assisted bicycle, moped, or motorized skateboard or scooter may signal a right turn or pull to the right by extending the right hand and arm in a horizontal position straight from and level with the shoulder beyond the right side of the bicycle, electric personal assistive mobility device, electric power-assisted bicycle, moped, or motorized skateboard or scooter and may signal slowing down or stopping by extending the right arm downward. Code 1950, § 46-234; 1954, c. 15; 1958, c. 541, § 46.1-217; 1981, c. 585; 1989, c. 727; 2001, c. 834; 2002, c. 254; 2004, cc. 947, 973; 2019, c. 780.

Va. Code § 46.2-856

§ 46.2-856. Passing two vehicles abreast.A person shall be guilty of reckless driving who passes or attempts to pass two other vehicles abreast, moving in the same direction, except on highways having separate roadways of three or more lanes for each direction of travel, or on designated one-way streets or highways. This section shall not apply, however, to a motor vehicle passing two other vehicles when one or both of such other vehicles is a bicycle, electric personal assistive mobility device, electric power-assisted bicycle, or moped; nor shall this section apply to a bicycle, electric personal assistive mobility device, electric power-assisted bicycle, or moped passing two other vehicles. Code 1950, §§ 46-209, 46-209.1; 1950, p. 880; 1952, c. 671; 1954, cc. 225, 401, 458; 1958, c. 541, § 46.1-190; 1960, c. 510; 1964, c. 266; 1966, c. 694; 1968, c. 575; 1970, c. 521; 1974, cc. 222, 455; 1975, c. 633; 1978, c. 27; 1979, c. 86; 1981, cc. 333, 585; 1985, c. 148; 1989, c. 727; 2001, c. 834; 2002, c. 254.

Va. Code § 46.2-857

§ 46.2-857. Driving two abreast in a single lane.A person shall be guilty of reckless driving who drives any motor vehicle so as to be abreast of another vehicle in a lane designed for one vehicle, or drives any motor vehicle so as to travel abreast of any other vehicle traveling in a lane designed for one vehicle. Nothing in this section shall be construed to prohibit two two-wheeled motorcycles from traveling abreast while traveling in a lane designated for one vehicle. In addition, this section shall not apply to (i) any validly authorized parade, motorcade, or motorcycle escort; (ii) a motor vehicle traveling in the same lane of traffic as a bicycle, electric personal assistive mobility device, electric power-assisted bicycle, or moped; nor shall it apply to (iii) any vehicle when lawfully overtaking and passing one or more vehicles traveling in the same direction in a separate lane. Code 1950, §§ 46-209, 46-209.1; 1950, p. 880; 1952, c. 671; 1954, cc. 225, 401, 458; 1958, c. 541, § 46.1-190; 1960, c. 510; 1964, c. 266; 1966, c. 694; 1968, c. 575; 1970, c. 521; 1974, cc. 222, 455; 1975, c. 633; 1978, c. 27; 1979, c. 86; 1981, cc. 333, 585; 1985, c. 148; 1989, c. 727; 2001, c. 834; 2002, c. 254; 2010, cc. 52, 110; 2012, c. 7.

Va. Code § 46.2-883

§ 46.2-883. Signs indicating legal rate of speed and measurement of speed by radar.Signs to indicate the legal rate of speed and that the speed of motor vehicles may be measured by radar or other electrical devices shall be placed at or near the State boundary on those interstate and primary highways which connect the Commonwealth to other jurisdictions at such locations as the Commissioner of Highways, in his discretion, may select. There shall be a prima facie presumption that such signs were placed at the time of the commission of the offense of exceeding the legal rate of speed, and a certificate by the Commissioner of Highways as to the placing of such signs shall be admissible in evidence to support or rebut the presumption. Such legal rate of speed and notice of measurement of speed by radar or other electrical devices may be posted on different signs and need not be posted on the same sign. 1968, c. 497, § 46.1-198.2; 1989, c. 727. Article 9. Railroad Crossings.

Va. Code § 46.2-885

§ 46.2-885. When vehicles to stop at railroad grade crossings.A. Except in cities or towns, whenever any person driving a vehicle approaches a railroad grade crossing under any of the circumstances stated in this section, the driver of the vehicle shall stop within 50 feet but not less than 15 feet from the nearest rail of such railroad, and shall not proceed until he can do so safely. The foregoing requirements shall apply when: 1. A clearly visible electric or mechanical signal device gives warning of the immediate approach of a train; 2. A crossing gate is lowered or a flagman gives or continues to give a signal of the approach or passage of a train; 3. A train approaching such crossing gives the signals required by § 56-414; 4. An approaching train or any self-propelled machinery or automobile type vehicle traveling on a railroad track is plainly visible and is in hazardous proximity to such crossing, regardless of whether a clearly visible electric or mechanical signal device or flagman gives warning. B. No person shall drive any vehicle through, around, or under any crossing gate or barrier at a railroad crossing while such gate or barrier is closed or is being opened or closed. Code 1950, § 46-254; 1956, c. 164; 1958, c. 541, § 46.1-244; 1989, c. 727; 2012, c. 828.

Va. Code § 46.2-903

§ 46.2-903. Riding or driving vehicles on sidewalks; exceptions.No person shall ride or drive any vehicle on the sidewalks of any county, city, or town of the Commonwealth other than (i) an emergency vehicle, as defined in § 46.2-920; (ii) a vehicle engaged in snow or ice removal and control operations; (iii) a wheel chair or wheel chair conveyance, whether self-propelled or otherwise; (iv) a bicycle; (v) an electric personal assistive mobility device; (vi) an electric power-assisted bicycle; or (vii) unless otherwise prohibited by ordinance, a motorized skateboard or scooter. Nothing in this section shall be construed to prohibit any public entity, in accordance with the federal Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (P.L. 101-336, 104 Stat. 327) and other applicable state and federal laws, from (a) allowing the use of other power-driven mobility devices, as that term is defined in § 10.1-204, by disabled individuals on a sidewalk or (b) requiring a user of an other power-driven mobility device to provide a credible assurance that the mobility device is required because of the person's disability. Code 1950, § 33-283; 1958, c. 541, § 46.1-229; 1964, c. 522; 1973, c. 158; 1974, c. 541; 1975, c. 187; 1978, c. 605; 1981, c. 585; 1989, c. 727; 1994, c. 116; 2001, c. 834; 2002, c. 254; 2019, cc. 182, 780.

Va. Code § 46.2-904

§ 46.2-904. Use of roller skates and skateboards on sidewalks and shared-use paths; operation of bicycles and certain motorized and electric items and devices on sidewalks, crosswalks, and shared-use paths; local ordinances.The governing body of any county, city, or town may by ordinance prohibit the use of roller skates, skateboards, and personal delivery devices, and/or the riding of bicycles, electric personal assistive mobility devices, motorized skateboards or scooters, motor-driven cycles, or electric power-assisted bicycles on designated sidewalks or crosswalks, including those of any church, school, recreational facility, or any business property open to the public where such activity is prohibited. Signs indicating such prohibition shall be posted in general areas where use of roller skates, skateboards, and personal delivery devices, and/or bicycle, electric personal assistive mobility devices, motorized skateboards or scooters, motor-driven cycles, or electric power-assisted bicycle riding is prohibited. A person riding a bicycle, electric personal assistive mobility device, motorized skateboard or scooter, motor-driven cycle, or electric power-assisted bicycle on a sidewalk or shared-use path or across a roadway on a crosswalk shall yield the right-of-way to any pedestrian and shall give an audible signal before overtaking and passing any pedestrian. A personal delivery device operated on a sidewalk or shared-use path or across a roadway on a crosswalk shall yield the right-of-way to, or otherwise not unreasonably interfere with, pedestrians. No person shall ride a bicycle, electric personal assistive mobility device, motorized skateboard or scooter, motor-driven cycle, or electric power-assisted bicycle or operate a personal delivery device on a sidewalk, or across a roadway on a crosswalk, where such use of bicycles, electric personal assistive mobility devices, personal delivery devices, motorized skateboards or scooters, motor-driven cycles, or electric power-assisted bicycles is prohibited by official traffic control devices. No person shall park a bicycle, electric power-assisted bicycle, or motorized skateboard or scooter in a manner that impedes the normal movement of pedestrian or other traffic or where such parking is prohibited by official traffic control devices. A person riding a bicycle, electric personal assistive mobility device, motorized skateboard or scooter, motor-driven cycle, or electric power-assisted bicycle on a sidewalk or shared-use path or across a roadway on a crosswalk shall have all the rights and duties of a pedestrian under the same circumstances. A personal delivery device operated on a sidewalk or shared-use path or across a roadway on a crosswalk shall have all the rights and duties of a pedestrian under the same circumstances. Except as otherwise expressly provided, the governing body of a county, city, or town may not enact or enforce any ordinance or resolution related to (i) the design, manufacture, maintenance, licensing, registration, taxation, assessment or other charges, certification, or insurance of a personal delivery device or (ii) the types of property that may be transported by a personal delivery device. A violation of any ordinance adopted pursuant to this section or any provision of this section shall be punishable by a civil penalty of not more than $50. 1981, c. 585, § 46.1-229.01; 1984, c. 124; 1989, c. 727; 1999, c. 943; 2001, c. 834; 2002, c. 254; 2003, cc. 29, 46; 2006, cc. 529, 538; 2013, c. 783; 2017, cc. 251, 788; 2019, c. 780; 2020, c. 1269.

Va. Code § 46.2-904.1

§ 46.2-904.1. Electric power-assisted bicycles.A. Except as otherwise provided in this section, an electric power-assisted bicycle or an operator of an electric power-assisted bicycle shall be afforded all the rights and privileges, and be subject to all of the duties, of a bicycle or the operator of a bicycle. An electric power-assisted bicycle is a vehicle to the same extent as is a bicycle. B. An electric power-assisted bicycle or person operating an electric power-assisted bicycle is not subject to the provisions of this Code relating to requirements for driver's licenses, registration, certificates of title, financial responsibility, off-highway motorcycles, and license plates. C. 1. On and after January 1, 2021, manufacturers and distributors of electric power-assisted bicycles shall permanently affix a label, in a prominent location, to each electric power-assisted bicycle that they manufacture or distribute. The label shall contain the classification number, top assisted speed, and motor wattage of the electric power-assisted bicycle and shall be printed in Arial font in at least nine-point type. 2. An electric power-assisted bicycle shall comply with equipment and manufacturing requirements for bicycles adopted by the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission, 16 C.F.R. Part 1512. 3. All class three electric power-assisted bicycles shall be equipped with a speedometer that displays the speed the bicycle is traveling in miles per hour. D. No person shall tamper with or modify an electric power-assisted bicycle so as to change the motor-powered speed capability or engagement of an electric power-assisted bicycle, unless the label required by subdivision C 1 is replaced after modification. E. An electric power-assisted bicycle shall operate in a manner such that the electric motor is disengaged or ceases to function when the rider stops pedaling or when the brakes are applied. F. Except as set forth in this subsection, an electric power-assisted bicycle may be ridden in places where bicycles are allowed, including streets, highways, roads, shoulders, bicycle lanes, and bicycle or shared-use paths. 1. Following notice and a public hearing, a locality or state agency having jurisdiction over a bicycle or shared-use path may prohibit the operation of class one or class two electric power-assisted bicycles on such path, if it finds that such a restriction is necessary for public safety or compliance with other laws. 2. A locality or state agency having jurisdiction over a bicycle or shared-use path may prohibit the operation of class three electric power-assisted bicycles on such path. 3. A locality or state agency having jurisdiction over a trail may regulate the use of electric power-assisted bicycles on such trail. For purposes of this subdivision, "trail" means a trail that is specifically designated as nonmotorized and that has a natural surface tread that is made by clearing and grading the native soil with no added surfacing materials. G. Each operator and passenger of a class three electric power-assisted bicycle shall wear a properly fitted and fastened bicycle helmet that meets the current standards provided by either the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission or the American Society for Testing and Materials International. Failure to wear a helmet shall not constitute negligence, be considered in mitigation of damages of whatever nature, be admissible in evidence, or be the subject of comment by counsel in any action for the recovery of damages arising out of the operation, ownership, or maintenance of a class three electric power-assisted bicycle, nor shall anything in this section change any existing law, rule, or procedure pertaining to any civil action, nor shall this section bar any claim that otherwise exists. 2020, cc. 59, 260.

Va. Code § 46.2-905

§ 46.2-905. Riding bicycles, electric personal assistive mobility devices, electric power-assisted bicycles, motorized skateboards or scooters, and mopeds on roadways and bicycle paths.Any person operating a bicycle, electric personal assistive mobility device, electric power-assisted bicycle, motorized skateboard or scooter, or moped on a roadway at less than the normal speed of traffic at the time and place under conditions then existing shall ride as close as safely practicable to the right curb or edge of the roadway, except under any of the following circumstances: 1. When overtaking and passing another vehicle proceeding in the same direction; 2. When preparing for a left turn at an intersection or into a private road or driveway; 3. When reasonably necessary to avoid conditions including, but not limited to, fixed or moving objects, parked or moving vehicles, pedestrians, animals, surface hazards, or substandard width lanes that make it unsafe to continue along the right curb or edge; 4. When avoiding riding in a lane that must turn or diverge to the right; and 5. When riding upon a one-way road or highway, a person may also ride as near the left-hand curb or edge of such roadway as safely practicable. For purposes of this section, a "substandard width lane" is a lane too narrow for a bicycle, electric personal assistive mobility device, electric power-assisted bicycle, motorized skateboard or scooter, or moped and another vehicle to pass safely side by side within the lane. Persons riding bicycles, electric personal assistive mobility devices, electric power-assisted bicycles, or motorized skateboards or scooters on a highway shall not ride more than two abreast. Persons riding two abreast shall not impede the normal and reasonable movement of traffic and shall move into a single-file formation as quickly as is practicable when being overtaken from the rear by a faster-moving vehicle. However, the failure to move into a single-file formation shall not constitute negligence per se in any civil action. This section shall not change any existing law, rule, or procedure pertaining to any such civil action, nor shall this section bar any claim that otherwise exists. Notwithstanding any other provision of law to the contrary, the Department of Conservation and Recreation shall permit the operation of electric personal assistive mobility devices on any bicycle path or trail designated by the Department for such use. 1974, c. 347, § 46.1-229.1; 1980, c. 130; 1981, c. 585; 1989, c. 727; 2001, c. 834; 2002, c. 254; 2003, cc. 29, 46; 2004, cc. 947, 973; 2006, cc. 529, 538; 2007, cc. 209, 366; 2013, c. 783; 2019, c. 780; 2021, Sp. Sess. I, c. 462; 2022, c. 341.

Va. Code § 46.2-906

§ 46.2-906. Carrying articles or passengers on bicycles, electric personal assistive mobility devices, electric power-assisted bicycles, and mopeds.No person operating a bicycle, electric personal assistive mobility device, electric power-assisted bicycle, or moped on a highway shall carry any package, bundle, or article that prevents the driver from keeping at least one hand on the handlebars. No bicycle or moped shall be used to carry more persons at one time than the number of persons for which it was designed or is equipped, except that an adult bicycle rider may carry a child less than six years old if such child is securely attached to the bicycle in a seat or trailer designed for carrying children. 1974, c. 347, § 46.1-229.2; 1981, c. 585; 1989, c. 727; 2001, c. 834; 2002, c. 254; 2003, cc. 29, 46; 2006, cc. 529, 538; 2007, cc. 209, 366.

Va. Code § 46.2-906.1

§ 46.2-906.1. Local ordinances may require riders of bicycles, electric personal assistive mobility devices, and electric power-assisted bicycles to wear helmets.The governing body of any county, city or town may, by ordinance, provide that every person 14 years of age or younger shall wear a protective helmet that at least meets the Consumer Product Safety Commission standard whenever riding or being carried on a bicycle, an electric personal assistive mobility device, a toy vehicle, or an electric power-assisted bicycle on any highway as defined in § 46.2-100, sidewalk, or public bicycle path. Violation of any such ordinance shall be punishable by a fine of $25. However, such fine shall be suspended (i) for first-time violators and (ii) for violators who, subsequent to the violation but prior to imposition of the fine, purchase helmets of the type required by the ordinance. Violation of any such ordinance shall not constitute negligence, or assumption of risk, be considered in mitigation of damages of whatever nature, be admissible in evidence, or be the subject of comment by counsel in any action for the recovery of damages arising out of the operation of any bicycle, electric personal assistive mobility device, toy vehicle, or electric power-assisted bicycle, nor shall anything in this section change any existing law, rule, or procedure pertaining to any civil action. 1993, c. 924; 1994, c. 56; 1995, cc. 42, 671; 2001, c. 834; 2002, c. 254; 2004, cc. 947, 973; 2006, cc. 529, 538; 2007, cc. 209, 366.

Va. Code § 46.2-907

§ 46.2-907. Overtaking and passing vehicles.A person riding a bicycle, electric personal assistive mobility device, electric power-assisted bicycle, motorized skateboard or foot-scooter, or moped may overtake and pass another vehicle on either the left or right side, staying in the same lane as the overtaken vehicle, or changing to a different lane, or riding off the roadway as necessary to pass with safety. A person riding a bicycle, electric personal assistive mobility device, electric power-assisted bicycle, motorized skateboard or foot-scooter, or moped may overtake and pass another vehicle only under conditions that permit the movement to be made with safety. A person riding a bicycle, electric personal assistive mobility device, electric power-assisted bicycle, motorized skateboard or foot-scooter, or moped shall not travel between two lanes of traffic moving in the same direction, except where one lane is a separate turn lane or a mandatory turn lane. Except as otherwise provided in this section, a person riding a bicycle, electric personal assistive mobility device, electric power-assisted bicycle, motorized skateboard or foot-scooter, or moped shall comply with all rules applicable to the driver of a motor vehicle when overtaking and passing. 1981, c. 585, § 46.1-229.2:1; 1989, c. 727; 2001, c. 834; 2002, c. 254; 2006, cc. 529, 538; 2013, c. 783.

Va. Code § 46.2-908

§ 46.2-908. Registration of bicycle, electric personal assistive mobility device, electric personal delivery device, and electric power-assisted bicycle serial numbers.Any person who owns a bicycle, electric personal assistive mobility device, electric personal delivery device, or electric power-assisted bicycle may register its serial number with the local law-enforcement agency of the political subdivision in which such person resides. 1975, c. 171, § 46.1-66.1; 1989, c. 727; 2001, c. 834; 2002, c. 254; 2017, cc. 251, 788.

Va. Code § 46.2-908.1

§ 46.2-908.1. Electric personal assistive mobility devices, electrically powered toy vehicles, electric power-assisted bicycles, and motorized skateboards or scooters.All electric personal assistive mobility devices, electrically powered toy vehicles, and electric power-assisted bicycles shall be equipped with spill-proof, sealed, or gelled electrolyte batteries. No person shall at any time or at any location operate (i) an electric personal assistive mobility device at a speed faster than 25 miles per hour or (ii) a motorized skateboard or scooter at a speed faster than 20 miles per hour. No person shall operate a skateboard or scooter that would otherwise meet the definition of a motorized skateboard or scooter but is capable of speeds greater than 20 miles per hour at a speed greater than 20 miles per hour. No person less than 14 years old shall drive any electric personal assistive mobility device, motorized skateboard or scooter, or class three electric power-assisted bicycle unless under the immediate supervision of a person who is at least 18 years old. An electric personal assistive mobility device may be operated on any highway with a maximum speed limit of 25 miles per hour or less. An electric personal assistive mobility device shall only operate on any highway authorized by this section if a sidewalk is not provided along such highway or if operation of the electric personal assistive mobility device on such sidewalk is prohibited pursuant to § 46.2-904. Nothing in this section shall prohibit the operation of an electric personal assistive mobility device or motorized skateboard or scooter in the crosswalk of any highway where the use of such crosswalk is authorized for pedestrians, bicycles, or electric power-assisted bicycles. Operation of electric personal assistive mobility devices, motorized skateboards or scooters, electrically powered toy vehicles, bicycles, and electric power-assisted bicycles is prohibited on any Interstate Highway System component except as provided by the section. The Commonwealth Transportation Board may authorize the use of bicycles or motorized skateboards or scooters on an Interstate Highway System Component provided the operation is limited to bicycle or pedestrian facilities that are barrier separated from the roadway and automobile traffic and such component meets all applicable safety requirements established by federal and state law. 2001, c. 834; 2002, c. 254; 2006, cc. 529, 538; 2007, cc. 209, 366; 2009, c. 795; 2013, c. 783; 2017, cc. 251, 788; 2019, c. 780; 2020, cc. 59, 260, 1269.

Va. Code § 46.2-932

§ 46.2-932. Playing on highways; use of toy vehicle on highways, persons riding bicycles, electric personal assistive mobility devices, electric power-assisted bicycles, mopeds, etc., not to attach to vehicles; exception.A. No person shall play on a highway, other than on the sidewalks thereof, within a city or town or on any part of a highway outside the limits of a city or town designated by the Commissioner of Highways exclusively for vehicular travel. No person shall use any toy vehicle on the roadway of any highway that (i) has a speed limit greater than 25 miles per hour, (ii) has more than two travel lanes, or (iii) is located outside a residence district as defined in § 46.2-100. The governing bodies of counties, cities, and towns may designate areas on highways under their control where play is permitted and may impose reasonable restrictions on play on such highways. Persons using such devices, except bicycles, electric personal assistive mobility devices, electric power-assisted bicycles, mopeds, and motorcycles, shall keep as near as safely practicable to the far right side or edge of the right traffic lane so that they will be proceeding in the same direction as other traffic. No person riding on any bicycle, electric personal assistive mobility device, electric power-assisted bicycle, moped, roller skates, skateboards or other devices on wheels or runners, shall attach the same or himself to any vehicle on a highway. B. Notwithstanding the provisions of subsection A of this section, the governing body of Arlington County may by ordinance permit the use of devices on wheels or runners on highways under such county's control, subject to such limitations and conditions as the governing body may deem necessary and reasonable. Code 1950, § 46-248; 1958, c. 541, § 46.1-235; 1972, c. 817; 1973, c. 288; 1981, c. 585; 1989, c. 727; 2001, cc. 170, 834; 2002, c. 254; 2004, cc. 947, 973; 2006, cc. 529, 538; 2007, cc. 209, 366, 813.

Va. Code § 47.1-2

§ 47.1-2. Definitions.As used in this title, unless the context demands a different meaning: "Acknowledgment" means a notarial act in which an individual at a single time and place (i) appears in person before the notary and presents a document; (ii) is personally known to the notary or identified by the notary through satisfactory evidence of identity; and (iii) indicates to the notary that the signature on the document was voluntarily affixed by the individual for the purposes stated within the document and, if applicable, that the individual had due authority to sign in a particular representative capacity. "Affirmation" means a notarial act, or part thereof, that is legally equivalent to an oath and in which an individual at a single time and place (i) appears in person before the notary and presents a document; (ii) is personally known to the notary or identified by the notary through satisfactory evidence of identity; and (iii) makes a vow of truthfulness or fidelity on penalty of perjury. "Commissioned notary public" means that the applicant has completed and submitted the registration forms along with the appropriate fee to the Secretary of the Commonwealth and the Secretary of the Commonwealth has determined that the applicant meets the qualifications to be a notary public and issues a notary commission and forwards same to the clerk of the circuit court, pursuant to this chapter. "Copy certification" means a notarial act in which a notary (i) is presented with a document that is not a public record; (ii) copies or supervises the copying of the document using a photographic or electronic copying process; (iii) compares the document to the copy; and (iv) determines that the copy is accurate and complete. "Credential analysis" means a process or service that independently affirms the veracity of a government-issued identity credential by reviewing public or proprietary data sources and meets the standards of the Secretary of the Commonwealth. "Credible witness" means an honest, reliable, and impartial person who personally knows an individual appearing before a notary and takes an oath or affirmation from the notary to confirm that individual's identity. "Document" means information that is inscribed on a tangible medium or that is stored in an electronic or other medium and is retrievable in perceivable form, including a record as defined in the Uniform Electronic Transactions Act (§ 59.1-479 et seq.). "Electronic" means relating to technology having electrical, digital, magnetic, wireless, optical, electromagnetic, or similar capabilities. "Electronic document" means information that is created, generated, sent, communicated, received, or stored by electronic means. "Electronic notarial act" or "electronic notarization" means an official act by a notary under § 47.1-12 or as otherwise authorized by law that involves electronic documents. "Electronic notarial certificate" means the portion of a notarized electronic document that is completed by the notary public, bears the notary public's signature, title, commission expiration date, and other required information concerning the date and place of the electronic notarization, and states the facts attested to or certified by the notary public in a particular notarization. The "electronic notarial certificate" shall indicate whether the notarization was done in person or by remote online notarization. "Electronic notary public" or "electronic notary" means a notary public who has been commissioned by the Secretary of the Commonwealth with the capability of performing electronic notarial acts under § 47.1-7. "Electronic notary seal" or "electronic seal" means information within a notarized electronic document that confirms the notary's name, jurisdiction, and commission expiration date and generally corresponds to data in notary seals used on paper documents. "Electronic signature" means an electronic sound, symbol, or process attached to or logically associated with an electronic document and executed or adopted by a person with the intent to sign the document. "Identity proofing" means a process or service that independently verifies an individual's identity in accordance with § 2.2-436. "Knowledge-based authentication assessment" means an identity assessment formulated from public or private data sources for which the principal has not provided a prior answer that meets the following requirements: 1. The principal shall answer a quiz composed of at least five questions related to the principal's personal history or identity; 2. At least five possible answer choices shall be available for each question; 3. The principal shall pass the quiz if he achieves a score of 80 percent or higher; 4. The principal shall have two minutes to answer the questions on the quiz; 5. If the principal fails to achieve a score of at least 80 percent, the principal may attempt up to two additional quizzes within 48 hours following the first failed quiz; and 6. No more than 60 percent of the questions from the initial quiz can be reused on additional quizzes. "Notarial act" or "notarization" means any official act performed by a notary under § 47.1-12 or 47.1-13 or as otherwise authorized by law. "Notarial certificate" or "certificate" means the part of, or attachment to, a notarized document that is completed by the notary public, bears the notary public's signature, title, commission expiration date, notary registration number, and other required information concerning the date and place of the notarization and states the facts attested to or certified by the notary public in a particular notarization. "Notary public" or "notary" means any person commissioned to perform official acts under the title, and includes an electronic notary except where expressly provided otherwise. "Oath" shall include "affirmation." "Official misconduct" means any violation of this title by a notary, whether committed knowingly, willfully, recklessly or negligently. "Personal knowledge of identity" or "personally knows" means familiarity with an individual resulting from interactions with that individual over a period of time sufficient to dispel any reasonable uncertainty that the individual has the identity claimed. "Principal" means (i) a person whose signature is notarized or (ii) a person, other than a credible witness, taking an oath or affirmation from the notary. "Record of notarial acts" means a device for creating and preserving a chronological record of notarizations performed by a notary. "Remote online notarization" means an electronic notarization under this chapter where the signer is not in the physical presence of the notary. "Satisfactory evidence of identity" means identification of an individual based on (i) examination of one or more of the following unexpired documents bearing a photographic image of the individual's face and signature: a United States Passport Book, a United States Passport Card, a certificate of United States citizenship, a certificate of naturalization, a foreign passport, an alien registration card with photograph, a state issued driver's license or a state issued identification card or a United States military card or (ii) the oath or affirmation of one credible witness unaffected by the document or transaction who is personally known to the notary and who personally knows the individual or of two credible witnesses unaffected by the document or transaction who each personally knows the individual and shows to the notary documentary identification as described in clause (i). In the case of an individual who resides in an assisted living facility, as defined in § 63.2-100, or a nursing home, licensed by the State Department of Health pursuant to Article 1 (§ 32.1-123 et seq.) of Chapter 5 of Title 32.1 or exempt from licensure pursuant to § 32.1-124, an expired United States Passport Book, expired United States Passport Card, expired foreign passport, or expired state issued driver's license or state issued identification card may also be used for identification of such individual, provided that the expiration of such document occurred within five years of the date of use for identification purposes pursuant to this title. In the case of an electronic notarization, "satisfactory evidence of identity" may be based on video and audio conference technology, in accordance with the standards for electronic video and audio communications set out in subdivisions B 1, 2, and 3 of § 19.2-3.1, that permits the notary to communicate with and identify the principal at the time of the notarial act, provided that such identification is confirmed by (a) personal knowledge, (b) an oath or affirmation of a credible witness who personally knows the principal and is either personally known to the notary or is identified pursuant to clause (c), or (c) is identified by at least two of the following: (1) credential analysis of an unexpired government-issued identification bearing a photograph of the principal's face and signature; (2) identity proofing by an antecedent in-person identity proofing process in accordance with the specifications of the Federal Bridge Certification Authority, including any supplements thereto or revisions thereof; (3) another identity proofing method authorized in guidance documents, regulations, or standards adopted pursuant to § 2.2-436; (4) a valid digital certificate accessed by biometric data or by use of an interoperable Personal Identity Verification card that is designed, issued, and managed in accordance with the specifications published by the National Institute of Standards and Technology in Federal Information Processing Standards Publication 201-1, "Personal Identity Verification (PIV) of Federal Employees and Contractors," and supplements thereto or revisions thereof, including the specifications published by the Federal Chief Information Officers Council in "Personal Identity Verification Interoperability for Non-Federal Issuers"; or (5) a knowledge-based authentication assessment. "Seal" means a device for affixing on a paper document an image containing the notary's name and other information related to the notary's commission. "Secretary" means the Secretary of the Commonwealth. "State" includes any state, territory, or possession of the United States. "Verification of fact" means a notarial act in which a notary reviews public or vital records to (i) ascertain or confirm facts regarding a person's identity, identifying attributes, or authorization to access a building, database, document, network, or physical site or (ii) validate an identity credential on which satisfactory evidence of identity may be based. 1980, c. 580; 2007, cc. 269, 590; 2011, cc. 731, 834; 2012, c. 566; 2016, c. 185; 2020, c. 902; 2021, Sp. Sess. I, c. 78; 2024, c. 832. Chapter 2. Appointment.

Va. Code § 5.1-136

§ 5.1-136. Free passes or reduced rates.No air carrier subject to the provisions of this chapter shall, directly or indirectly, issue or give any free ticket, free pass or free transportation for passengers, but nothing in this section shall apply (1) to the carriage, storage or handling of property free or at reduced rates, when such rates have been authorized or prescribed by the Commission for the United States, state or municipal governments, or for charitable purposes or to or from fairs and expositions for exhibition thereat, or (2) to the free carriage of homeless and destitute persons and the necessary agents employed in such transportation, or (3) to mileage, excursion or commutation passenger tickets. Nor shall anything in this section be construed to prohibit any air carrier from giving reduced rates or free passage to ministers of religion, or regular traveling secretaries of the Young Men's Christian Association or Young Women's Christian Association, whose duties require regular travel in supervising and directing Young Men's Christian or Young Women's Christian Association work, secretaries of duly organized religious work, or to indigent persons, or to inmates of the Confederate homes or State homes for disabled soldiers and sailors, or to disabled soldiers and sailors, including those about to enter, and those returning home after discharge; nor from giving free carriage to its own officers, employees, and members of their families, representatives of the press and members of the Department of State Police or to any other person or persons to whom the giving of such free carriage is not otherwise prohibited by the law; nor to prevent the principal officers of any air carrier from exchanging passes or tickets with other air carriers of any air, motor vehicle, steamship, or electric railway companies for their officers, employees and members of their families. Code 1950, § 56-191; 1970, c. 708; 1971, Ex. Sess., c. 17.

Va. Code § 52-20

§ 52-20. Arrests without warrants in certain cases.A. For the purposes of this section, "electronic communication" means the use of technology having electrical, digital, magnetic, wireless, optical, electromagnetic, or similar capabilities to transmit or receive information. B. Members of the State Police force of the Commonwealth, provided such officers are in uniform or displaying a badge of office, may, at the scene of any motor vehicle accident or in the apprehension of any person charged with the theft of any motor vehicle on any of the highways of the Commonwealth, upon reasonable grounds to believe, based upon personal investigation, including information obtained from eyewitnesses, that a crime has been committed by any person then and there present apprehend such person without a warrant of arrest. Such officers may arrest without a warrant persons duly charged with crime in another jurisdiction upon receipt of an electronic communication containing the name or a reasonably accurate description of such person wanted and the crime alleged. 1942, p. 481; Michie Code 1942, § 4827a; 1950, p. 888; 2022, c. 49.

Va. Code § 54.1-1100

§ 54.1-1100. Definitions.As used in this chapter, unless the context requires a different meaning: "Board" means the Board for Contractors. "Class A contractors" perform or manage construction, removal, repair, or improvements when (i) the total value referred to in a single contract or project is $150,000 or more, or (ii) the total value of all such construction, removal, repair, or improvements undertaken by such person within any 12-month period is $1 million or more. "Class B contractors" perform or manage construction, removal, repair, or improvements when (i) the total value referred to in a single contract or project is $30,000 or more, but less than $150,000, or (ii) the total value of all such construction, removal, repair, or improvements undertaken by such person within any 12-month period is $250,000 or more, but less than $1 million. "Class C contractors" perform or manage construction, removal, repair, or improvements when (i) the total value referred to in a single contract or project is over $1,000 but less than $30,000, or (ii) the total value of all such construction, removal, repair, or improvements undertaken by such person within any 12-month period is less than $250,000. The Board shall require a master tradesmen license as a condition of licensure for electrical, plumbing, and heating, ventilation, and air conditioning contractors. "Contractor" means any person, that for a fixed price, commission, fee, or percentage undertakes to bid upon, or accepts, or offers to accept, orders or contracts for performing, managing, or superintending in whole or in part, the construction, removal, repair, or improvement of any building or structure permanently annexed to real property owned, controlled, or leased by him or another person or any other improvements to such real property. For purposes of this chapter, "improvement" shall include (i) remediation, cleanup, or containment of premises to remove contaminants or (ii) site work necessary to make certain real property usable for human occupancy according to the guidelines established pursuant to § 32.1-11.7. "Department" means the Department of Professional and Occupational Regulation. "Designated employee" means the contractor's full-time employee, or a member of the contractor's responsible management, who is at least 18 years of age and who has successfully completed the oral or written examination required by the Board on behalf of the contractor. "Director" means the Director of the Department of Professional and Occupational Regulation. "Fire sprinkler contractor" means a contractor that provides for the installation, repair, alteration, addition, testing, maintenance, inspection, improvement, or removal of sprinkler systems using water as a means of fire suppression when annexed to real property. "Fire sprinkler contracting" does not include the installation, repair, or maintenance of other types of fire suppression systems. "Owner-developer" means any person who, for a third party purchaser, orders or supervises the construction, removal, repair, or improvement of any building or structure permanently annexed to real property owned, controlled, or leased by the owner-developer, or any other improvement to such property and who contracts with a person licensed in accordance with this chapter for the work undertaken. "Person" means any individual, firm, corporation, association, partnership, joint venture, or other legal entity. "Value" means fair market value. When improvements are performed or supervised by a contractor, the contract price shall be prima facie evidence of value. Code 1950, § 54-113; 1954, c. 428; 1970, c. 319; 1972, c. 771; 1977, c. 640; 1978, c. 521; 1980, c. 634; 1984, c. 434; 1987, c. 358; 1988, c. 765; 1990, c. 911; 1992, cc. 330, 713, 715, 812; 1993, cc. 499, 815; 1994, cc. 601, 754; 1995, c. 581; 1997, c. 885; 1998, c. 754; 2005, c. 348; 2010, c. 62; 2016, c. 527; 2019, c. 726; 2025, cc. 127, 133.

Va. Code § 54.1-1102

§ 54.1-1102. Board for Contractors membership; offices; meetings; seal; record.A. The Board for Contractors shall be composed of 16 members as follows: one member shall be a licensed Class A general contractor; the larger part of the business of one member shall be the construction of utilities; the larger part of the business of one member shall be the construction of commercial and industrial buildings; the larger part of the business of one member shall be the construction of single-family residences; the larger part of the business of one member shall be the construction of home improvements; one member shall be a subcontractor as generally regarded in the construction industry; one member shall be in the business of sales of construction materials and supplies; one member shall be a local building official; one member shall be a licensed plumbing contractor; one member shall be a licensed electrical contractor; one member shall be a licensed heating, ventilation and air conditioning contractor; one member shall be a certified elevator mechanic or a licensed elevator contractor; one member shall be a certified water well systems provider; one member shall be a professional engineer licensed in accordance with Chapter 4 (§ 54.1-400 et seq.); and two members shall be nonlegislative citizen members. The terms of the Board members shall be four years. The Board shall meet at least once each year and at such other times as may be deemed necessary. Annually, the Board shall elect from its membership a chairman and a vice-chairman to serve for a one-year term. Nine members of the Board shall constitute a quorum. B. The Board shall promulgate regulations not inconsistent with statute necessary for the licensure of contractors and tradesmen and the certification of backflow prevention device workers, and for the relicensure of contractors and tradesmen and for the recertification of backflow prevention device workers, after license or certificate suspension or revocation. The Board shall include in its regulations a requirement that as a condition for initial licensure as a contractor, the designated employee or a member of the responsible management personnel of the contractor shall have successfully completed a Board-approved basic business course, which shall not exceed eight hours of classroom instruction. In addition, the Board shall (i) require a contractor to appropriately classify all workers as employees or independent contractors, as provided by law and (ii) provide that any contractor who is found to have intentionally misclassified any worker is subject to sanction by the Board. C. The Board may adopt regulations requiring all Class A, B, and C residential contractors, excluding subcontractors to the contracting parties and those who engage in routine maintenance or service contracts, to use legible written contracts including the following terms and conditions: 1. General description of the work to be performed; 2. Fixed price or an estimate of the total cost of the work, the amounts and schedule of progress payments, a listing of specific materials requested by the consumer and the amount of down payment; 3. Estimates of time of commencement and completion of the work; and 4. Contractor's name, address, office telephone number and license or certification number and class. In transactions involving door-to-door solicitations, the Board may require that a statement of protections be provided by the contractor to the homeowner, consumer or buyer, as the case may be. D. The Board shall adopt a seal with the words "Board for Contractors, Commonwealth of Virginia." The Director shall have charge, care and custody of the seal. E. The Director shall maintain a record of the proceedings of the Board. Code 1950, §§ 54-114, 54-115, 54-119, 54-120, 54-121, 54-123, 54-124; 1954, c. 415; 1970, c. 319; 1977, c. 640; 1979, c. 408; 1980, c. 634; 1981, c. 447; 1988, cc. 42, 765; 1991, c. 659; 1994, c. 895; 1995, c. 771; 1996, cc. 380, 934, 1006; 1997, c. 885; 2006, cc. 454, 475; 2009, cc. 184, 586; 2010, c. 83; 2012, c. 522; 2017, c. 579; 2020, c. 685.

Va. Code § 54.1-1106

§ 54.1-1106. Application for Class A license; fees; examination; issuance.A. Any person desiring to be licensed as a Class A contractor shall file with the Department a written application on a form prescribed by the Board. The application shall be accompanied by a fee set by the Board pursuant to § 54.1-201. The application shall contain the name, place of employment, and business address of the proposed designated employee, and information on the knowledge, skills, abilities, and financial position of the applicant. The Board shall determine whether the past performance record of the applicant, including his reputation for paying material bills and carrying out other contractual obligations, satisfies the purposes and intent of this chapter. The Board shall also determine whether the applicant has complied with the laws of the Commonwealth pertaining to the domestication of foreign corporations and all other laws affecting those engaged in the practice of contracting as set forth in this chapter. B. As proof of financial responsibility, the applicant shall demonstrate compliance with the minimum net worth requirement fixed by the Board in regulation by providing either: 1. A financial statement on a form prescribed by the Board, subject to additional verification if the Board determines that sufficient questions or ambiguities exist in the applicant's presentation of financial information; or 2. A balance sheet reviewed by a certified public accountant licensed in accordance with § 54.1-4409.1. C. In lieu of compliance with subsection B, an applicant may demonstrate financial responsibility by electing to obtain and maintain a bond in the amount of $50,000. Proof of current bond shall come from a corporate surety licensed to do business in the Commonwealth and approved by the Attorney General and shall be filed with the Department. D. In addition, if the applicant is a sole proprietor, he shall furnish to the Board his name and address. If the applicant is a member of a partnership, he shall furnish to the Board the names and addresses of all of the general partners of the partnership. If the applicant is a member of an association, he shall furnish to the Board the names and addresses of all of the members of the association. If the applicant is a corporation, it shall furnish to the Board the names and addresses of all officers of the corporation. If the applicant is a joint venture, it shall furnish to the Board the names and addresses of (i) each member of the joint venture and (ii) any sole proprietor, general partner of any partnership, member of any association, or officer of any corporation who is a member of the joint venture. The applicant shall thereafter keep the Board advised of any changes in the above information. E. If the application is satisfactory to the Board, the proposed designated employee shall be required by Board regulations to take an oral or written examination to determine his general knowledge of contracting, including the statutory and regulatory requirements governing contractors in the Commonwealth. If the proposed designated employee successfully completes the examination and the applicant meets or exceeds the other entry criteria established by Board regulations, a Class A contractor license shall be issued to the applicant. The license shall permit the applicant to engage in contracting only so long as the designated employee is in the full-time employment of the contractor or is a member of the contractor's responsible management. No examination shall be required where the licensed Class A contractor changes his form of business entity provided he is in good standing with the Board. In the event the designated employee leaves the full-time employ of the licensed contractor or is no longer a member of the contractor's responsible management, no additional examination shall be required of such designated employee, except in accordance with § 54.1-1110.1, and the contractor shall within 90 days of that departure provide to the Board the name of the new designated employee. F. The Board may grant a Class A license in any of the following classifications: (i) residential building contractor, (ii) commercial building contractor, (iii) highway/heavy contractor, (iv) electrical contractor, (v) plumbing contractor, (vi) heating, ventilation, and air conditioning contractor, (vii) fire sprinkler contractor, and (viii) specialty contractor. 1980, c. 634, § 54-129.1; 1984, c. 45; 1988, c. 765; 1990, c. 911; 1992, c. 713; 1994, c. 601; 1996, c. 707; 1998, c. 754; 1999, c. 393; 2003, c. 892; 2005, c. 348; 2007, c. 804; 2013, c. 116; 2017, c. 572; 2019, c. 726.

Va. Code § 54.1-1108

§ 54.1-1108. Application for Class B license; fees; examination; issuance.A. Any person desiring to be licensed as a Class B contractor shall file with the Department a written application on a form prescribed by the Board. The application shall be accompanied by a fee set by the Board pursuant to § 54.1-201. The application shall contain the name, place of employment, and business address of the proposed designated employee; information on the knowledge, skills, abilities, and financial position of the applicant; and evidence of holding a current local license pursuant to local ordinances adopted pursuant to § 54.1-1117. The Board shall determine whether the past performance record of the applicant, including his reputation for paying material bills and carrying out other contractual obligations, satisfies the purpose and intent of this chapter. The Board shall also determine whether the applicant has complied with the laws of the Commonwealth pertaining to the domestication of foreign corporations and all other laws affecting those engaged in the practice of contracting as set forth in this chapter. B. As proof of financial responsibility, the applicant shall demonstrate compliance with the minimum net worth requirement fixed by the Board in regulation by providing either: 1. A financial statement on a form prescribed by the Board, subject to additional verification if the Board determines that sufficient questions or ambiguities exist in the applicant's presentation of financial information; or 2. A balance sheet reviewed by a certified public accountant licensed in accordance with § 54.1-4409.1. C. In lieu of compliance with subsection B, an applicant may demonstrate financial responsibility by electing to obtain and maintain a bond in the amount of $50,000. Proof of current bond shall come from a corporate surety licensed to do business in the Commonwealth and approved by the Attorney General and shall be filed with the Department. D. In addition, if the applicant is a sole proprietor, he shall furnish to the Board his name and address. If the applicant is a member of a partnership, he shall furnish to the Board the names and addresses of all of the general partners of that partnership. If the applicant is a member of an association, he shall furnish to the Board the names and addresses of all of the members of the association. If the applicant is a corporation, it shall furnish to the Board the name and address of all officers of the corporation. If the applicant is a joint venture, it shall furnish to the Board the names and addresses of (i) each member of the joint venture and (ii) any sole proprietor, general partner of any partnership, member of any association, or officer of any corporation who is a member of the joint venture. The applicant shall thereafter keep the Board advised of any changes in the above information. E. If the application is satisfactory to the Board, the proposed designated employee shall be required by Board regulations to take an oral or written examination to determine his general knowledge of contracting, including the statutory and regulatory requirements governing contractors in the Commonwealth. If the proposed designated employee successfully completes the examination and the applicant meets or exceeds the other entry criteria established by Board regulations, a Class B contractor license shall be issued to the applicant. The license shall permit the applicant to engage in contracting only so long as the designated employee is in the full-time employment of the contractor and only in the counties, cities, and towns where such person has complied with all local licensing requirements and for the type of work to be performed. No examination shall be required where the licensed Class B contractor changes his form of business entity provided he is in good standing with the Board. In the event the designated employee leaves the full-time employ of the licensed contractor, no additional examination shall be required of such designated employee, except in accordance with § 54.1-1110.1, and the contractor shall within 90 days of that departure provide to the Board the name of the new designated employee. F. The Board may grant a Class B license in any of the following classifications: (i) residential building contractor, (ii) commercial building contractor, (iii) highway/heavy contractor, (iv) electrical contractor, (v) plumbing contractor, (vi) HVAC contractor, (vii) fire sprinkler contractor, and (viii) specialty contractor. 1980, c. 634, § 54-129.3; 1987, c. 110; 1988, c. 765; 1990, c. 911; 1994, c. 601; 1996, c. 707; 2003, c. 892; 2013, c. 116; 2017, c. 572; 2019, c. 726.

Va. Code § 54.1-1108.2

§ 54.1-1108.2. Application for Class C license; fees; issuance.A. Any person desiring to be licensed as a Class C contractor shall file with the Department a written application on a form prescribed by the Board. The application shall be accompanied by a fee set by the Board pursuant to § 54.1-201. The application shall contain information concerning the name, location, nature, and operation of the business, and information demonstrating that the applicant possesses the character and minimum skills to properly engage in the occupation of contracting. B. The Board may grant a Class C license in any of the following classifications: (i) residential building contractor, (ii) commercial building contractor, (iii) highway/heavy contractor, (iv) electrical contractor, (v) plumbing contractor, (vi) heating, ventilation, and air conditioning contractor, (vii) fire sprinkler contractor, and (viii) specialty contractor. 1995, c. 771; 1997, c. 885; 1998, c. 754; 2003, c. 892; 2013, c. 116; 2019, c. 726.

Va. Code § 54.1-1128

§ 54.1-1128. Definitions."Backflow prevention device worker" means any individual who engages in, or offers to engage in, the maintenance, repair, testing, or periodic inspection of cross connection control devices, including but not limited to reduced pressure principle backflow preventors, double check-valve assemblies, double-detector check-valve assemblies, pressure type vacuum breaker assemblies, and other such devices designed, installed, and maintained in such a manner so as to prevent the contamination of the potable water supply by the introduction of nonpotable liquids, solids, or gases, thus ensuring that the potable water supply remains unaltered and free from impurities, odor, discoloration, bacteria, and other contaminants which would make the potable water supply unfit or unsafe for consumption and use. "Board" means the Board for Contractors. "Liquefied petroleum gas fitter" means any individual who engages in, or offers to engage in, work for the general public for compensation in work that includes the installation, repair, improvement, alterations or removal of piping, liquefied petroleum gas tanks and appliances (excluding hot water heaters, boilers and central heating systems which require a heating, ventilation and air conditioning or plumbing certification) annexed to real property. "Natural gas fitter provider" means any individual who engages in or offers to engage in work for the general public for compensation in the incidental repair, testing, or removal of natural gas piping or fitting annexed to real property, excluding new installation of gas piping for hot water heaters, boilers, central heating systems, or other natural gas equipment which requires heating, ventilation and air conditioning or plumbing certification. "Tradesman" means any individual who engages in, or offers to engage in, work for the general public for compensation in the trades of electrical, plumbing and heating, ventilation and air conditioning. "Water well systems provider" means any individual who is certified by the Board in accordance with this article and who is engaged in drilling, installation, maintenance, or repair of water wells, water well pumps, ground source heat exchangers, and other equipment associated with the construction, removal, or repair of water wells, water well systems, and ground source heat pump exchangers to the point of connection to the ground source heat pump. 1994, c. 895; 1996, cc. 934, 1006; 1997, c. 403; 1999, c. 343; 2005, c. 792; 2011, cc. 743, 744.

Va. Code § 54.1-2900

§ 54.1-2900. Definitions.As used in this chapter, unless the context requires a different meaning: "Acupuncturist" means an individual approved by the Board to practice acupuncture. This is limited to "licensed acupuncturist" which means an individual other than a doctor of medicine, osteopathy, chiropractic or podiatry who has successfully completed the requirements for licensure established by the Board (approved titles are limited to: Licensed Acupuncturist, Lic.Ac., and L.Ac.). "Advanced practice registered nurse" means a certified nurse midwife, certified registered nurse anesthetist, clinical nurse specialist, or nurse practitioner who is jointly licensed by the Boards of Medicine and Nursing pursuant to § 54.1-2957, has completed an advanced graduate-level education program in a specialty category of nursing, and has passed a national certifying examination for that specialty. "Auricular acupuncture" means the subcutaneous insertion of sterile, disposable acupuncture needles in predetermined, bilateral locations in the outer ear. "Birth control" means contraceptive methods that are approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. "Birth control" shall not be considered abortion for the purposes of Title 18.2. "Board" means the Board of Medicine. "Certified nurse midwife" means an advanced practice registered nurse who is certified in the specialty of nurse midwifery and who is jointly licensed by the Boards of Medicine and Nursing as an advanced practice registered nurse pursuant to § 54.1-2957. "Certified registered nurse anesthetist" means an advanced practice registered nurse who is certified in the specialty of nurse anesthesia, who is jointly licensed by the Boards of Medicine and Nursing as an advanced practice registered nurse pursuant to § 54.1-2957, and who practices under the supervision of a doctor of medicine, osteopathy, podiatry, or dentistry but is not subject to the practice agreement requirement described in § 54.1-2957. "Clinical nurse specialist" means an advanced practice registered nurse who is certified in the specialty of clinical nurse specialist and who is jointly licensed by the Boards of Medicine and Nursing as an advanced practice registered nurse pursuant to § 54.1-2957. "Collaboration" means the communication and decision-making process among health care providers who are members of a patient care team related to the treatment of a patient that includes the degree of cooperation necessary to provide treatment and care of the patient and includes (i) communication of data and information about the treatment and care of a patient, including the exchange of clinical observations and assessments, and (ii) development of an appropriate plan of care, including decisions regarding the health care provided, accessing and assessment of appropriate additional resources or expertise, and arrangement of appropriate referrals, testing, or studies. "Consultation" means communicating data and information, exchanging clinical observations and assessments, accessing and assessing additional resources and expertise, problem-solving, and arranging for referrals, testing, or studies. "Genetic counselor" means a person licensed by the Board to engage in the practice of genetic counseling. "Healing arts" means the arts and sciences dealing with the prevention, diagnosis, treatment and cure or alleviation of human physical or mental ailments, conditions, diseases, pain or infirmities. "Licensed certified midwife" means a person who is licensed as a certified midwife by the Boards of Medicine and Nursing. "Medical malpractice judgment" means any final order of any court entering judgment against a licensee of the Board that arises out of any tort action or breach of contract action for personal injuries or wrongful death, based on health care or professional services rendered, or that should have been rendered, by a health care provider, to a patient. "Medical malpractice settlement" means any written agreement and release entered into by or on behalf of a licensee of the Board in response to a written claim for money damages that arises out of any personal injuries or wrongful death, based on health care or professional services rendered, or that should have been rendered, by a health care provider, to a patient. "Nurse practitioner" means an advanced practice registered nurse, other than an advanced practice registered nurse licensed by the Boards of Medicine and Nursing in the category of certified nurse midwife, certified registered nurse anesthetist, or clinical nurse specialist, who is jointly licensed by the Boards of Medicine and Nursing pursuant to § 54.1-2957. "Occupational therapy assistant" means an individual who has met the requirements of the Board for licensure and who works under the supervision of a licensed occupational therapist to assist in the practice of occupational therapy. "Patient care team" means a multidisciplinary team of health care providers actively functioning as a unit with the management and leadership of one or more patient care team physicians for the purpose of providing and delivering health care to a patient or group of patients. "Patient care team physician" means a physician who is actively licensed to practice medicine in the Commonwealth, who regularly practices medicine in the Commonwealth, and who provides management and leadership in the care of patients as part of a patient care team. "Patient care team podiatrist" means a podiatrist who is actively licensed to practice podiatry in the Commonwealth, who regularly practices podiatry in the Commonwealth, and who provides management and leadership in the care of patients as part of a patient care team. "Physician assistant" means a health care professional who has met the requirements of the Board for licensure as a physician assistant. "Practice of acupuncture" means the stimulation of certain points on or near the surface of the body by the insertion of needles to prevent or modify the perception of pain or to normalize physiological functions, including pain control, for the treatment of certain ailments or conditions of the body and includes the techniques of electroacupuncture, cupping, and moxibustion. The practice of acupuncture does not include the use of physical therapy, chiropractic, or osteopathic manipulative techniques; the use or prescribing of any drugs, medications, serums or vaccines; or the procedure of the five needle auricular acupuncture protocol (5NP) as exempted in § 54.1-2901. "Practice of athletic training" means the prevention, recognition, evaluation, and treatment of injuries or conditions related to athletic or recreational activity that requires physical skill and utilizes strength, power, endurance, speed, flexibility, range of motion or agility or a substantially similar injury or condition resulting from occupational activity immediately upon the onset of such injury or condition; and subsequent treatment and rehabilitation of such injuries or conditions, including in an inpatient or outpatient setting, under the direction of the patient's physician or under the direction of any doctor of medicine, osteopathy, chiropractic, podiatry, or dentistry, while using heat, light, sound, cold, electricity, exercise or mechanical or other devices. "Practice of behavior analysis" means the design, implementation, and evaluation of environmental modifications, using behavioral stimuli and consequences, to produce socially significant improvement in human behavior, including the use of direct observation, measurement, and functional analysis of the relationship between environment and behavior. "Practice of chiropractic" means the adjustment of the 24 movable vertebrae of the spinal column, and assisting nature for the purpose of normalizing the transmission of nerve energy, but does not include the use of surgery, obstetrics, osteopathy, or the administration or prescribing of any drugs, medicines, serums, or vaccines. "Practice of chiropractic" includes (i) requesting, receiving, and reviewing a patient's medical and physical history, including information related to past surgical and nonsurgical treatment of the patient and controlled substances prescribed to the patient, and (ii) documenting in a patient's record information related to the condition and symptoms of the patient, the examination and evaluation of the patient made by the doctor of chiropractic, and treatment provided to the patient by the doctor of chiropractic. "Practice of chiropractic" further includes recommending or directing patients on the use of vitamins, minerals, or food supplements. "Practice of chiropractic" also includes performing the physical examination of an applicant for a commercial driver's license or commercial learner's permit pursuant to § 46.2-341.12 if the practitioner has (a) applied for and received certification as a medical examiner pursuant to 49 C.F.R. Part 390, Subpart D and (b) registered with the National Registry of Certified Medical Examiners. "Practice of genetic counseling" means (i) obtaining and evaluating individual and family medical histories to assess the risk of genetic medical conditions and diseases in a patient, his offspring, and other family members; (ii) discussing the features, history, diagnosis, environmental factors, and risk management of genetic medical conditions and diseases; (iii) ordering genetic laboratory tests and other diagnostic studies necessary for genetic assessment; (iv) integrating the results with personal and family medical history to assess and communicate risk factors for genetic medical conditions and diseases; (v) evaluating the patient's and family's responses to the medical condition or risk of recurrence and providing client-centered counseling and anticipatory guidance; (vi) identifying and utilizing community resources that provide medical, educational, financial, and psychosocial support and advocacy; and (vii) providing written documentation of medical, genetic, and counseling information for families and health care professionals. "Practice of licensed certified midwifery" means the provision of primary health care for preadolescents, adolescents, and adults within the scope of practice of a certified midwife established in accordance with the Standards for the Practice of Midwifery set by the American College of Nurse-Midwives, including (i) providing sexual and reproductive care and care during pregnancy and childbirth, postpartum care, and care for the newborn for up to 28 days following the birth of the child; (ii) prescribing of pharmacological and non-pharmacological therapies within the scope of the practice of midwifery; (iii) consulting or collaborating with or referring patients to such other health care providers as may be appropriate for the care of the patients; and (iv) serving as an educator in the theory and practice of midwifery. "Practice of medicine or osteopathic medicine" means the prevention, diagnosis, and treatment of human physical or mental ailments, conditions, diseases, pain, or infirmities by any means or method. "Practice of occupational therapy" means the therapeutic use of occupations for habilitation and rehabilitation to enhance physical health, mental health, and cognitive functioning and includes the evaluation, analysis, assessment, and delivery of education and training in basic and instrumental activities of daily living; the design, fabrication, and application of orthoses (splints); the design, selection, and use of adaptive equipment and assistive technologies; therapeutic activities to enhance functional performance; vocational evaluation and training; and consultation concerning the adaptation of physical, sensory, and social environments. "Practice of podiatry" means the prevention, diagnosis, treatment, and cure or alleviation of physical conditions, diseases, pain, or infirmities of the human foot and ankle, including the medical, mechanical and surgical treatment of the ailments of the human foot and ankle, but does not include amputation of the foot proximal to the transmetatarsal level through the metatarsal shafts. Amputations proximal to the metatarsal-phalangeal joints may only be performed in a hospital or ambulatory surgery facility accredited by an organization listed in § 54.1-2939. The practice includes the diagnosis and treatment of lower extremity ulcers; however, the treatment of severe lower extremity ulcers proximal to the foot and ankle may only be performed by appropriately trained, credentialed podiatrists in an approved hospital or ambulatory surgery center at which the podiatrist has privileges, as described in § 54.1-2939. The Board of Medicine shall determine whether a specific type of treatment of the foot and ankle is within the scope of practice of podiatry. "Practice of radiologic technology" means the application of ionizing radiation to human beings for diagnostic or therapeutic purposes. "Practice of respiratory care" means the (i) administration of pharmacological, diagnostic, and therapeutic agents related to respiratory care procedures necessary to implement a treatment, disease prevention, pulmonary rehabilitative, or diagnostic regimen prescribed by a practitioner of medicine or osteopathic medicine; (ii) transcription and implementation of the written or verbal orders of a practitioner of medicine or osteopathic medicine pertaining to the practice of respiratory care; (iii) observation and monitoring of signs and symptoms, general behavior, general physical response to respiratory care treatment and diagnostic testing, including determination of whether such signs, symptoms, reactions, behavior or general physical response exhibit abnormal characteristics; and (iv) implementation of respiratory care procedures, based on observed abnormalities, or appropriate reporting, referral, respiratory care protocols or changes in treatment pursuant to the written or verbal orders by a licensed practitioner of medicine or osteopathic medicine or the initiation of emergency procedures, pursuant to the Board's regulations or as otherwise authorized by law. The practice of respiratory care may be performed in any clinic, hospital, skilled nursing facility, private dwelling or other place deemed appropriate by the Board in accordance with the written or verbal order of a practitioner of medicine or osteopathic medicine, and shall be performed under qualified medical direction. "Practice of surgical assisting" means the performance of significant surgical tasks, including manipulation of organs, suturing of tissue, placement of hemostatic agents, injection of local anesthetic, harvesting of veins, implementation of devices, and other duties as directed by a licensed doctor of medicine, osteopathy, or podiatry under the direct supervision of a licensed doctor of medicine, osteopathy, or podiatry. "Qualified medical direction" means, in the context of the practice of respiratory care, having readily accessible to the respiratory therapist a licensed practitioner of medicine or osteopathic medicine who has specialty training or experience in the management of acute and chronic respiratory disorders and who is responsible for the quality, safety, and appropriateness of the respiratory services provided by the respiratory therapist. "Radiologic technologist" means an individual, other than a licensed doctor of medicine, osteopathy, podiatry, or chiropractic or a dentist licensed pursuant to Chapter 27 (§ 54.1-2700 et seq.), who (i) performs, may be called upon to perform, or is licensed to perform a comprehensive scope of diagnostic or therapeutic radiologic procedures employing ionizing radiation and (ii) is delegated or exercises responsibility for the operation of radiation-generating equipment, the shielding of patient and staff from unnecessary radiation, the appropriate exposure of radiographs, the administration of radioactive chemical compounds under the direction of an authorized user as specified by regulations of the Department of Health, or other procedures that contribute to any significant extent to the site or dosage of ionizing radiation to which a patient is exposed. "Radiologic technologist, limited" means an individual, other than a licensed radiologic technologist, dental hygienist, or person who is otherwise authorized by the Board of Dentistry under Chapter 27 (§ 54.1-2700 et seq.) and the regulations pursuant thereto, who performs diagnostic radiographic procedures employing equipment that emits ionizing radiation that is limited to specific areas of the human body. "Radiologist assistant" means an individual who has met the requirements of the Board for licensure as an advanced-level radiologic technologist and who, under the direct supervision of a licensed doctor of medicine or osteopathy specializing in the field of radiology, is authorized to (i) assess and evaluate the physiological and psychological responsiveness of patients undergoing radiologic procedures; (ii) evaluate image quality, make initial observations, and communicate observations to the supervising radiologist; (iii) administer contrast media or other medications prescribed by the supervising radiologist; and (iv) perform, or assist the supervising radiologist to perform, any other procedure consistent with the guidelines adopted by the American College of Radiology, the American Society of Radiologic Technologists, and the American Registry of Radiologic Technologists. "Respiratory care" means the practice of the allied health profession responsible for the direct and indirect services, including inhalation therapy and respiratory therapy, in the treatment, management, diagnostic testing, control, and care of patients with deficiencies and abnormalities associated with the cardiopulmonary system under qualified medical direction. "Surgical assistant" means an individual who has met the requirements of the Board for licensure as a surgical assistant and who works under the direct supervision of a licensed doctor of medicine, osteopathy, or podiatry. Code 1950, § 54-273; 1950, p. 110; 1958, c. 161; 1960, c. 268; 1966, c. 657; 1970, c. 69; 1973, c. 529; 1975, cc. 508, 512; 1977, c. 127; 1980, c. 157; 1986, c. 439; 1987, cc. 522, 543; 1988, cc. 737, 765; 1991, c. 643; 1994, c. 803; 1995, c. 777; 1996, cc. 152, 158, 470, 937, 980; 1998, cc. 319, 557, 593; 1999, cc. 639, 682, 747, 779; 2000, cc. 688, 814; 2001, c. 533; 2004, c. 731; 2007, c. 861; 2008, cc. 64, 89; 2009, cc. 83, 507; 2010, cc. 715, 725; 2011, cc. 121, 187; 2012, cc. 3, 110, 168, 213, 399; 2014, cc. 10, 266; 2015, c. 302; 2016, c. 93; 2017, c. 171; 2019, cc. 92, 137; 2020, cc. 357, 420, 1222; 2021, Sp. Sess. I, cc. 157, 200, 201; 2022, c. 151; 2023, c. 183; 2024, cc. 222, 548; 2025, cc. 184, 197.

Va. Code § 54.1-2915

§ 54.1-2915. Unprofessional conduct; grounds for refusal or disciplinary action.A. The Board may refuse to issue a certificate or license to any applicant; reprimand any person; place any person on probation for such time as it may designate; impose a monetary penalty or terms as it may designate on any person; suspend any license for a stated period of time or indefinitely; or revoke any license for any of the following acts of unprofessional conduct: 1. False statements or representations or fraud or deceit in obtaining admission to the practice, or fraud or deceit in the practice of any branch of the healing arts; 2. Substance abuse rendering him unfit for the performance of his professional obligations and duties; 3. Intentional or negligent conduct in the practice of any branch of the healing arts that causes or is likely to cause injury to a patient or patients; 4. Mental or physical incapacity or incompetence to practice his profession with safety to his patients and the public; 5. Restriction of a license to practice a branch of the healing arts in another state, the District of Columbia, a United States possession or territory, or a foreign jurisdiction, or for an entity of the federal government; 6. Undertaking in any manner or by any means whatsoever to procure or perform or aid or abet in procuring or performing a criminal abortion; 7. Engaging in the practice of any of the healing arts under a false or assumed name, or impersonating another practitioner of a like, similar, or different name; 8. Prescribing or dispensing any controlled substance with intent or knowledge that it will be used otherwise than medicinally, or for accepted therapeutic purposes, or with intent to evade any law with respect to the sale, use, or disposition of such drug; 9. Violating provisions of this chapter on division of fees or practicing any branch of the healing arts in violation of the provisions of this chapter; 10. Knowingly and willfully committing an act that is a felony under the laws of the Commonwealth or the United States, or any act that is a misdemeanor under such laws and involves moral turpitude; 11. Aiding or abetting, having professional connection with, or lending his name to any person known to him to be practicing illegally any of the healing arts; 12. Conducting his practice in a manner contrary to the standards of ethics of his branch of the healing arts; 13. Conducting his practice in such a manner as to be a danger to the health and welfare of his patients or to the public; 14. Inability to practice with reasonable skill or safety because of illness or substance abuse; 15. Publishing in any manner an advertisement relating to his professional practice that contains a claim of superiority or violates Board regulations governing advertising; 16. Performing any act likely to deceive, defraud, or harm the public; 17. Violating any provision of statute or regulation, state or federal, relating to the manufacture, distribution, dispensing, or administration of drugs; 18. Violating or cooperating with others in violating any of the provisions of Chapters 1 (§ 54.1-100 et seq.), 24 (§ 54.1-2400 et seq.) and this chapter or regulations of the Board; 19. Engaging in sexual contact with a patient concurrent with and by virtue of the practitioner and patient relationship or otherwise engaging at any time during the course of the practitioner and patient relationship in conduct of a sexual nature that a reasonable patient would consider lewd and offensive; 20. Conviction in any state, territory, or country of any felony or of any crime involving moral turpitude; 21. Adjudication of legal incompetence or incapacity in any state if such adjudication is in effect and the person has not been declared restored to competence or capacity; 22. Performing the services of a medical examiner as defined in 49 C.F.R. § 390.5 if, at the time such services are performed, the person performing such services is not listed on the National Registry of Certified Medical Examiners as provided in 49 C.F.R. § 390.109 or fails to meet the requirements for continuing to be listed on the National Registry of Certified Medical Examiners as provided in 49 C.F.R. § 390.111; 23. Failing or refusing to complete and file electronically using the Electronic Death Registration System any medical certification in accordance with the requirements of subsection C of § 32.1-263. However, failure to complete and file a medical certification electronically using the Electronic Death Registration System in accordance with the requirements of subsection C of § 32.1-263 shall not constitute unprofessional conduct if such failure was the result of a temporary technological or electrical failure or other temporary extenuating circumstance that prevented the electronic completion and filing of the medical certification using the Electronic Death Registration System; or 24. Engaging in a pattern of violations of § 38.2-3445.01. B. The commission or conviction of an offense in another state, territory, or country, which if committed in Virginia would be a felony, shall be treated as a felony conviction or commission under this section regardless of its designation in the other state, territory, or country. C. The Board shall refuse to issue a certificate or license to any applicant if the candidate or applicant has had his certificate or license to practice a branch of the healing arts revoked or suspended, and has not had his certificate or license to so practice reinstated, in another state, the District of Columbia, a United States possession or territory, or a foreign jurisdiction. Code 1950, §§ 54-316, 54-317; 1954, c. 627; 1958, cc. 161, 461; 1966, cc. 166, 657; 1968, c. 582; 1970, c. 69; 1973, c. 529; 1975, c. 508; 1978, c. 622; 1979, c. 727; 1980, c. 157; 1985, c. 96; 1986, cc. 86, 434; 1988, c. 765; 1993, c. 991; 1997, c. 801; 2003, cc. 753, 762; 2004, c. 64; 2005, c. 163; 2013, c. 144; 2017, c. 171; 2019, cc. 213, 224; 2020, cc. 1080, 1081.

Va. Code § 54.1-3408.02

§ 54.1-3408.02. Transmission of prescriptions.A. Consistent with federal law and in accordance with regulations promulgated by the Board, prescriptions may be transmitted to a pharmacy as an electronic prescription or by facsimile machine and shall be treated as valid original prescriptions. B. Any prescription for a controlled substance that contains an opioid shall be issued as an electronic prescription. C. The requirements of subsection B shall not apply if: 1. The prescriber dispenses the controlled substance that contains an opioid directly to the patient or the patient's agent; 2. The prescription is for an individual who is residing in a hospital, assisted living facility, nursing home, or residential health care facility or is receiving services from a hospice provider or outpatient dialysis facility; 3. The prescriber experiences temporary technological or electrical failure or other temporary extenuating circumstance that prevents the prescription from being transmitted electronically, provided that the prescriber documents the reason for this exception in the patient's medical record; 4. The prescriber issues a prescription to be dispensed by a pharmacy located on federal property, provided that the prescriber documents the reason for this exception in the patient's medical record; 5. The prescription is issued by a licensed veterinarian for the treatment of an animal; 6. The FDA requires the prescription to contain elements that are not able to be included in an electronic prescription; 7. The prescription is for an opioid under a research protocol; 8. The prescription is issued in accordance with an executive order of the Governor of a declared emergency; 9. The prescription cannot be issued electronically in a timely manner and the patient's condition is at risk, provided that the prescriber documents the reason for this exception in the patient's medical record; or 10. The prescriber has been issued a waiver pursuant to subsection D. D. The licensing health regulatory board of a prescriber may grant such prescriber, in accordance with regulations adopted by such board, a waiver of the requirements of subsection B, for a period not to exceed one year, due to demonstrated economic hardship, technological limitations that are not reasonably within the control of the prescriber, or other exceptional circumstances demonstrated by the prescriber. 2000, c. 878; 2017, cc. 115, 429; 2019, c. 664.

Va. Code § 54.1-3473

§ 54.1-3473. Definitions.As used in this chapter, unless the context requires a different meaning: "Board" means the Board of Physical Therapy. "Physical therapist" means any person licensed by the Board to engage in the practice of physical therapy. "Physical therapist assistant" means any person licensed by the Board to assist a physical therapist in the practice of physical therapy. "Practice of physical therapy" means that branch of the healing arts that is concerned with, upon medical referral and direction, the evaluation, testing, treatment, reeducation and rehabilitation by physical, mechanical or electronic measures and procedures of individuals who, because of trauma, disease or birth defect, present physical and emotional disorders. The practice of physical therapy also includes the administration, interpretation, documentation, and evaluation of tests and measurements of bodily functions and structures within the scope of practice of the physical therapist. However, the practice of physical therapy does not include the medical diagnosis of disease or injury, the use of Roentgen rays and radium for diagnostic or therapeutic purposes or the use of electricity for shock therapy and surgical purposes including cauterization. 2000, c. 688; 2001, c. 858.

Va. Code § 54.1-400

§ 54.1-400. Definitions.As used in this chapter unless the context requires a different meaning: "Architect" means a person who, by reason of his knowledge of the mathematical and physical sciences, and the principles of architecture and architectural design, acquired by professional education, practical experience, or both, is qualified to engage in the practice of architecture and whose competence has been attested by the Board through licensure as an architect. The "practice of architecture" means any service wherein the principles and methods of architecture are applied, such as consultation, investigation, evaluation, planning and design, and includes the responsible administration of construction contracts, in connection with any private or public buildings, structures or projects, or the related equipment or accessories. "Board" means the Board for Architects, Professional Engineers, Land Surveyors, Certified Interior Designers and Landscape Architects. "Certified interior designer" means a design professional who meets the criteria of education, experience, and testing in the rendering of interior design services established by the Board through certification as an interior designer. "Improvements to real property" means any valuable addition or amelioration made to land and generally whatever is erected on or affixed to land which is intended to enhance its value, beauty or utility, or adapt it to new or further purposes. Examples of improvements to real property include, but are not limited to, structures, buildings, machinery, equipment, electrical systems, mechanical systems, roads, and water and wastewater treatment and distribution systems. "Interior design" by a certified interior designer means any service rendered wherein the principles and methodology of interior design are applied in connection with the identification, research, and creative solution of problems pertaining to the function and quality of the interior environment. Such services relative to interior spaces shall include the preparation of documents for nonload-bearing interior construction, furnishings, fixtures, and equipment in order to enhance and protect the health, safety, and welfare of the public. "Land surveyor" means a person who, by reason of his knowledge of the several sciences and of the principles of land surveying, and of the planning and design of land developments acquired by practical experience and formal education, is qualified to engage in the practice of land surveying, and whose competence has been attested by the Board through licensure as a land surveyor. The "practice of land surveying" includes surveying of areas for a determination or correction, a description, the establishment or reestablishment of internal and external land boundaries, or the determination of topography, contours or location of physical improvements, and also includes the planning of land and subdivisions thereof. The term "planning of land and subdivisions thereof" shall include, but not be limited to, the preparation of incidental plans and profiles for roads, streets and sidewalks, grading, drainage on the surface, culverts and erosion control measures, with reference to existing state or local standards. "Landscape architect" means a person who, by reason of his special knowledge of natural, physical and mathematical sciences, and the principles and methodology of landscape architecture and landscape architectural design acquired by professional education, practical experience, or both, is qualified to engage in the practice of landscape architecture and whose competence has been attested by the Board through licensure as a landscape architect. The "practice of landscape architecture" by a licensed landscape architect means any service wherein the principles and methodology of landscape architecture are applied in consultation, evaluation, planning (including the preparation and filing of sketches, drawings, plans and specifications) and responsible supervision or administration of contracts relative to projects principally directed at the functional and aesthetic use of land. "Professional engineer" means a person who is qualified to practice engineering by reason of his special knowledge and use of mathematical, physical and engineering sciences and the principles and methods of engineering analysis and design acquired by engineering education and experience, and whose competence has been attested by the Board through licensure as a professional engineer. The "practice of engineering" means any service wherein the principles and methods of engineering are applied to, but are not necessarily limited to, the following areas: consultation, investigation, evaluation, planning and design of public or private utilities, structures, machines, equipment, processes, transportation systems and work systems, including responsible administration of construction contracts. The term "practice of engineering" shall not include the service or maintenance of existing electrical or mechanical systems. "Residential wastewater" means sewage (i) generated by residential or accessory uses, not containing storm water or industrial influent, and having no other toxic, or hazardous constituents not routinely found in residential wastewater flows, or (ii) as certified by a professional engineer. "Responsible charge" means the direct control and supervision of the practice of architecture, professional engineering, landscape architecture, or land surveying. 1970, c. 671, § 54-17.1; 1974, c. 534; 1980, c. 757; 1982, c. 590; 1984, c. 437; 1988, c. 765; 1990, c. 512; 1992, cc. 780, 783; 1998, c. 27; 2008, c. 68; 2009, c. 309.

Va. Code § 54.1-402

§ 54.1-402. Further exemptions from license requirements for architects, professional engineers, and land surveyors.A. No license as an architect or professional engineer shall be required pursuant to § 54.1-406 for persons who prepare plans, specifications, documents and designs for the following, provided any such plans, specifications, documents or designs bear the name and address of the author and his occupation: 1. Single- and two-family homes, townhouses and multifamily dwellings, excluding electrical and mechanical systems, not exceeding three stories; or 2. All farm structures used primarily in the production, handling or storage of agricultural products or implements, including, but not limited to, structures used for the handling, processing, housing or storage of crops, feeds, supplies, equipment, animals or poultry; or 3. Buildings and structures classified with respect to use as business (Use Group B) and mercantile (Use Group M), as provided in the Uniform Statewide Building Code and churches with an occupant load of 100 or less, excluding electrical and mechanical systems, where such building or structure does not exceed 5,000 square feet in total net floor area, or three stories; or 4. Buildings and structures classified with respect to use as factory and industrial (Use Group F) and storage (Use Group S) as provided in the Uniform Statewide Building Code, excluding electrical and mechanical systems, where such building or structure does not exceed 15,000 square feet in total net floor area, or three stories; or 5. Additions, remodeling or interior design without a change in occupancy or occupancy load and without modification to the structural system or a change in access or exit patterns or increase in fire hazard; or 6. Electric installations which comply with all applicable codes and which do not exceed 600 volts and 800 amps, where work is designed and performed under the direct supervision of a person licensed as a master's level electrician or Class A electrical contractor by written examination, and where such installation is not contained in any structure exceeding three stories or located in any of the following categories: a. Use Group A-1 theaters which exceed assembly of 100 persons; b. Use Group A-4 except churches; c. Use Group I, institutional buildings, except day care nurseries and clinics without life-support systems; or 7. Plumbing and mechanical systems using packaged mechanical equipment, such as equipment of catalogued standard design which has been coordinated and tested by the manufacturer, which comply with all applicable codes. These mechanical systems shall not exceed gauge pressures of 125 pounds per square inch, other than refrigeration, or temperatures other than flue gas of 300 degrees F (150 degrees C) where such work is designed and performed under the direct supervision of a person licensed as a master's level plumber, master's level heating, air conditioning and ventilating worker, or Class A contractor in those specialties by written examination. In addition, such installation may not be contained in any structure exceeding three stories or located in any structure which is defined as to its use in any of the following categories: a. Use Group A-1 theaters which exceed assembly of 100 persons; b. Use Group A-4 except churches; c. Use Group I, institutional buildings, except day care nurseries and clinics without life-support systems; or 8. The preparation of shop drawings, field drawings and specifications for components by a contractor who will supervise the installation and where the shop drawings and specifications (i) will be reviewed by the licensed professional engineer or architect responsible for the project or (ii) are otherwise exempted; or 9. Buildings, structures, or electrical and mechanical installations which are not otherwise exempted but which are of standard design, provided they bear the certification of a professional engineer or architect registered or licensed in another state, and provided that the design is adapted for the specific location and for conformity with local codes, ordinances and regulations, and is so certified by a professional engineer or architect licensed in Virginia; or 10. Construction by a state agency or political subdivision not exceeding $75,000 in value keyed to the January 1, 1991, Consumer Price Index (CPI) and not otherwise requiring a licensed architect, engineer, or land surveyor by an adopted code and maintenance by that state agency or political subdivision of water distribution, sewage collection, storm drainage systems, sidewalks, streets, curbs, gutters, culverts, and other facilities normally and customarily constructed and maintained by the public works department of the state agency or political subdivision; or 11. Conventional and alternative onsite sewage systems receiving residential wastewater, under the authority of Chapter 6 of Title 32.1, designed by a licensed onsite soil evaluator, which utilize packaged equipment, such as equipment of catalogued standard design that has been coordinated and tested by the manufacturer, and complies with all applicable codes, provided (i) the flow is less than 1,000 gallons per day; and (ii) if a pump is included, (a) it shall not include multiple downhill runs and must terminate at a positive elevational change; (b) the discharge end is open and not pressurized; (c) the static head does not exceed 50 feet; and (d) the force main length does not exceed 500 feet. B. No person shall be exempt from licensure as an architect or engineer who engages in the preparation of plans, specifications, documents or designs for: 1. Any unique design of structural elements for floors, walls, roofs or foundations; or 2. Any building or structure classified with respect to its use as high hazard (Use Group H). C. Persons utilizing photogrammetric methods or similar remote sensing technology shall not be required to be licensed as a land surveyor pursuant to subsection B of § 54.1-404 or 54.1-406 to: (i) determine topography or contours, or to depict physical improvements, provided such maps or other documents shall not be used for the design, modification, or construction of improvements to real property or for flood plain determination, or (ii) graphically show existing property lines and boundaries on maps or other documents provided such depicted property lines and boundaries shall only be used for general information. Any determination of topography or contours, or depiction of physical improvements, utilizing photogrammetric methods or similar remote sensing technology by persons not licensed as a land surveyor pursuant to § 54.1-406 shall not show any property monumentation or property metes and bounds, nor provide any measurement showing the relationship of any physical improvements to any property line or boundary. Any person not licensed pursuant to subsection B of § 54.1-404 or 54.1-406 preparing documentation pursuant to subsection C of § 54.1-402 shall note the following on such documentation: "Any determination of topography or contours, or any depiction of physical improvements, property lines or boundaries is for general information only and shall not be used for the design, modification, or construction of improvements to real property or for flood plain determination." D. Terms used in this section, and not otherwise defined in this chapter, shall have the meanings provided in the Uniform Statewide Building Code in effect on July 1, 1982, including any subsequent amendments. 1982, c. 590, § 54-37.1; 1988, cc. 294, 765; 1992, cc. 780, 783; 2005, cc. 359, 440; 2008, c. 68.

Va. Code § 54.1-408

§ 54.1-408. Practice of land surveying; subdivisions.In addition to the work defined in § 54.1-400, a land surveyor may, for subdivisions, site plans and plans of development only, prepare plats, plans and profiles for roads, storm drainage systems, sanitary sewer extensions, and water line extensions, and may perform other engineering incidental to such work, but excluding the design of pressure hydraulic, structural, mechanical, and electrical systems. The work included in this section shall involve the use and application of standards prescribed by local or state authorities. The land surveyor shall pass an examination given by the Board in addition to that required for the licensing of land surveyors as defined in § 54.1-400. Any land surveyor previously licensed pursuant to subdivision (3) (b) of former § 54-17.1 may continue to do the work herein described without further examination. Except as provided, nothing contained herein or in the definition of "practice of land surveying" in § 54.1-400 shall be construed to include engineering design and the preparation of plans and specifications for construction. 1970, c. 671, § 54-17.1; 1974, c. 534; 1980, c. 757; 1982, c. 590; 1984, c. 437; 1988, c. 765.

Va. Code § 54.1-500

§ 54.1-500. Definitions.As used in this chapter, unless the context requires a different meaning: "Accredited asbestos training program" means a training program that has been approved by the Board to provide training for individuals to engage in asbestos abatement, conduct asbestos inspections, prepare management plans, prepare project designs or act as project monitors. "Accredited lead training program" means a training program that has been approved by the Board to provide training for individuals to engage in lead-based paint activities. "Asbestos" means the asbestiform varieties of actinolite, amosite, anthophyllite, chrysotile, crocidolite, and tremolite. "Asbestos analytical laboratory license" means an authorization issued by the Board to perform phase contrast, polarized light, or transmission electron microscopy on material known or suspected to contain asbestos. "Asbestos contractor's license" means an authorization issued by the Board permitting a person to enter into contracts to perform an asbestos abatement project. "Asbestos-containing materials" or "ACM" means any material or product which contains more than 1.0 percent asbestos or such other percentage as established by EPA final rule. "Asbestos inspector's license" means an authorization issued by the Board permitting a person to perform on-site investigations to identify, classify, record, sample, test and prioritize by exposure potential asbestos-containing materials. "Asbestos management plan" means a program designed to control or abate any potential risk to human health from asbestos. "Asbestos management planner's license" means an authorization issued by the Board permitting a person to develop or alter an asbestos management plan. "Asbestos project" or "asbestos abatement project" means an activity involving job set-up for containment, removal, encapsulation, enclosure, encasement, renovation, repair, construction or alteration of an asbestos-containing material. An asbestos project or asbestos abatement project shall not include nonfriable asbestos-containing roofing, flooring and siding materials which when installed, encapsulated or removed do not become friable. "Asbestos project designer's license" means an authorization issued by the Board permitting a person to design an asbestos abatement project. "Asbestos project monitor's license" means an authorization issued by the Board permitting a person to monitor an asbestos project, subject to Department regulations. "Asbestos supervisor" means any person so designated by an asbestos contractor who provides on-site supervision and direction to the workers engaged in asbestos projects. "Asbestos worker's license" means an authorization issued by the Board permitting an individual to work on an asbestos project. "Board" means the Virginia Board for Asbestos, Lead, and Home Inspectors. "Friable" means that the material when dry may be crumbled, pulverized, or reduced to powder by hand pressure and includes previously nonfriable material after such previously nonfriable material becomes damaged to the extent that when dry it may be crumbled, pulverized, or reduced to powder by hand pressure. "Home inspection" means any inspection of a residential building for compensation conducted by a licensed home inspector. A home inspection shall include a written evaluation of the readily accessible components of a residential building, including heating, cooling, plumbing, and electrical systems; structural components; foundation; roof; masonry structure; exterior and interior components; and other related residential housing components. A home inspection may be limited in scope as provided in a home inspection contract, provided that such contract is not inconsistent with the provisions of this chapter or the regulations of the Board. For purposes of this chapter, residential building energy analysis alone, as defined in § 54.1-1144, shall not be considered a home inspection. "Home inspector" means a person who meets the criteria of education, experience, and testing required by this chapter and regulations of the Board and who has been licensed by the Board to perform home inspections. "Lead abatement" means any measure or set of measures designed to permanently eliminate lead-based paint hazards, including lead-contaminated dust or soil. "Lead-based paint" means paint or other surface coatings that contain lead equal to or in excess of 1.0 milligrams per square centimeter or more than 0.5 percent by weight. "Lead-based paint activity" means lead inspection, lead risk assessment, lead project design and abatement of lead-based paint and lead-based paint hazards, including lead-contaminated dust and lead-contaminated soil. "Lead-contaminated soil" means bare soil that contains lead at or in excess of levels identified by the Environmental Protection Agency. "Lead contractor" means a person who has met the Board's requirements and has been issued a license by the Board to enter into contracts to perform lead abatements. "Lead inspection" means a surface-by-surface investigation to determine the presence of lead-based paint and the provisions of a report explaining the results of the investigation. "Lead inspector" means an individual who has been licensed by the Board to conduct lead inspections and abatement clearance testing. "Lead project design" means any descriptive form written as instructions or drafted as a plan describing the construction or setting up of a lead abatement project area and the work practices to be utilized during the lead abatement project. "Lead project designer" means an individual who has been licensed by the Board to prepare lead project designs. "Lead risk assessment" means (i) an on-site investigation to determine the existence, nature, severity and location of lead-based paint hazards and (ii) the provision of a report by the individual or the firm conducting the risk assessment, explaining the results of the investigation and options for reducing lead-based paint hazards. "Lead risk assessor" means an individual who has been licensed by the Board to conduct lead inspections, lead risk assessments and abatement clearance testing. "Lead supervisor" means an individual who has been licensed by the Board to supervise lead abatements. "Lead worker" or "lead abatement worker" means an individual who has been licensed by the Board to perform lead abatement. "Person" means a corporation, partnership, sole proprietorship, firm, enterprise, franchise, association or any other individual or entity. "Principal instructor" means the individual who has the primary responsibility for organizing and teaching an accredited asbestos training program, an accredited lead training program, or any combination thereof. "Residential building" means, for the purposes of home inspection, a structure consisting of one to four dwelling units used or occupied, or intended to be used or occupied, for residential purposes. "Training manager" means the individual responsible for administering a training program and monitoring the performance of instructors for an accredited asbestos training or accredited lead training program. 1987, c. 579, § 54-145.4; 1988, cc. 765, 802; 1989, c. 397; 1990, cc. 49, 73, 823; 1992, c. 152; 1993, cc. 499, 660; 1994, cc. 185, 911; 1996, cc. 76, 176, 180, 846; 1997, c. 885; 1998, c. 739; 2001, c. 723; 2009, cc. 358, 819; 2012, cc. 803, 835; 2016, cc. 161, 436, 527; 2024, cc. 93, 94.

Va. Code § 54.1-517.2

§ 54.1-517.2:1. Home inspection; required statement related to the presence of yellow shaded corrugated stainless steel tubing.A. As used in this section: "Bonding" means connecting metallic systems to establish electrical continuity and conductivity. "Corrugated stainless steel tubing" or "CSST" means a flexible stainless steel pipe used to supply natural gas or propane in residential, commercial, and industrial structures. "Grounding" means connecting to the ground or to a conductive body that extends to ground connection. B. If a home inspector observes the presence of any shade of yellow corrugated stainless steel tubing during a home inspection in a home that was built prior to the adoption of the 2006 Virginia Construction Code, effective May 1, 2008, he shall include that observation in the report along with the following statement: "Manufacturers believe that this product is safer if properly bonded and grounded as required by the manufacturer's installation instructions. Proper bonding and grounding of the product should be determined by a contractor licensed to perform the work in the Commonwealth of Virginia." 2017, c. 805. Article 3. Mold Inspectors and Remediators. §§ 54.1-517.3 through 54.1-517.5. Repealed.Repealed by Acts 2012, cc. 803 and 835, cl. 56. Chapter 5.1. Athlete Agents [Repealed]. §§ 54.1-518 through 54.1-525. Repealed.Repealed by Acts 1992, c. 282. Chapter 5.2. Athlete Agents.

Va. Code § 54.1-700

§ 54.1-700. Definitions.As used in this chapter, unless the context requires a different meaning: "Barber" means any person who shaves, shapes or trims the beard; cuts, singes, or dyes the hair or applies lotions thereto; applies, treats or massages the face, neck or scalp with oils, creams, lotions, cosmetics, antiseptics, powders, clays or other preparations in connection with shaving, cutting or trimming the hair or beard, and practices barbering for compensation and when such services are not performed for the treatment of disease. "Barbering" means any one or any combination of the following acts, when done on the human body for compensation and not for the treatment of disease, shaving, shaping and trimming the beard; cutting, singeing, or dyeing the hair or applying lotions thereto; applications, treatment or massages of the face, neck or scalp with oils, creams, lotions, cosmetics, antiseptics, powders, clays, or other preparations in connection with shaving, cutting or trimming the hair or a beard. The term "barbering" shall not apply to the acts described hereinabove when performed by any person in his home if such service is not offered to the public. "Barber instructor" means any person who has been certified by the Board as having completed an approved curriculum and who meets the competency standards of the Board as an instructor of barbering. "Barbershop" means any establishment or place of business within which the practice of barbering is engaged in or carried on by one or more barbers. "Board" means the Board for Barbers and Cosmetology. "Body-piercer" means any person who for remuneration penetrates the skin of a person to make a hole, mark, or scar, generally permanent in nature. "Body-piercing" means the act of penetrating the skin of a person to make a hole, mark, or scar, generally permanent in nature. "Body-piercing salon" means any place in which a fee is charged for the act of penetrating the skin of a person to make a hole, mark, or scar, generally permanent in nature. "Body-piercing school" means a place or establishment licensed by the Board to accept and train students in body-piercing. "Cosmetologist" means any person who administers hair removal treatments; administers basic facial treatments to enhance or improve the appearance and care of the skin using lotions, oils, cleansers, or other preparations by manual practices only; manicures or pedicures the nails of any person; arranges, dresses, curls, waves, cuts, shapes, singes, waxes, tweezes, trims, bleaches, colors, relaxes, straightens, or performs similar work, upon human hair, or a wig or hairpiece, by any means, including hands or mechanical or electrical apparatus or appliances unless such acts as adjusting, combing, or brushing prestyled wigs or hairpieces do not alter the prestyled nature of the wig or hairpiece, and practices cosmetology for compensation. The term "cosmetologist" does not include hair braiding upon human hair or a wig or hairpiece. "Cosmetology" includes the following practices: administering hair removal treatments; administering basic cleansing facial treatments to enhance or improve the appearance and care of the skin, which only includes a cleanse, tone, and application of a mask or moisturizer; manicuring or pedicuring the nails of any person; arranging, dressing, curling, waving, cutting, shaping, singeing, waxing, tweezing, trimming, bleaching, coloring, relaxing, straightening, or similar work, upon human hair, or a wig or hairpiece, by any means, including hands or mechanical or electrical apparatus or appliances, but shall not include hair braiding upon human hair, or a wig or hairpiece, or such acts as adjusting, combing, or brushing prestyled wigs or hairpieces when such acts do not alter the prestyled nature of the wig or hairpiece. "Cosmetology instructor" means a person who has been certified by the Board as having completed an approved curriculum and who meets the competency standards of the Board as an instructor of cosmetology. "Cosmetology salon" means any commercial establishment, residence, vehicle or other establishment, place or event wherein cosmetology is offered or practiced on a regular basis for compensation and may include the training of apprentices under regulations of the Board. "Ear-piercer" means any person who for remuneration penetrates the ear of a person to make a hole, mark, or scar, generally permanent in nature. "Ear-piercing" means the act of penetrating the ear of a person to make a hole, mark, or scar, generally permanent in nature. "Ear-piercing salon" means any place in which a fee is charged for the act of penetrating the ear by the aid of needles or any other instrument designed to touch or puncture the skin. "Ear-piercing school" means a place or establishment licensed by the Board to accept and train students in ear-piercing. "Esthetician" means a person who engages in the practice of esthetics for compensation. "Esthetics" includes the following practices of administering cosmetic treatments to enhance or improve the appearance of the skin: cleansing, toning, performing effleurage or other related movements, stimulating, exfoliating, or performing any other similar procedure on the skin of the human body or scalp by means of cosmetic preparations, treatments, or any nonlaser device, whether by electrical, mechanical, or manual means, for care of the skin; applying make-up or eyelashes to any person, tinting or perming eyelashes and eyebrows, and lightening hair on the body except the scalp; and removing unwanted hair from the body of any person by the use of any nonlaser device, by tweezing, or by use of chemical or mechanical means. However, "esthetics" is not a healing art and shall not include any practice, activity, or treatment that constitutes the practice of medicine, osteopathic medicine, or chiropractic. The terms "healing arts,""practice of medicine,""practice of osteopathic medicine," and "practice of chiropractic" shall mean the same as those terms are defined in § 54.1-2900. "Esthetics instructor" means a licensed esthetician who has been certified by the Board as having completed an approved curriculum and who meets the competency standards of the Board as an instructor of esthetics. "Esthetics spa" means any commercial establishment, residence, vehicle, or other establishment, place, or event wherein esthetics is offered or practiced on a regular basis for compensation under regulations of the Board. "Master barber" means a licensed barber who, in addition to the practice of barbering, performs waving, shaping, bleaching, relaxing, or straightening upon human hair; performs similar work on a wig or hairpiece; or performs waxing limited to the scalp. "Master esthetician" means a licensed esthetician who, in addition to the practice of esthetics, offers to the public for compensation, without the use of laser technology, lymphatic drainage, chemical exfoliation, or microdermabrasion, and who has met such additional requirements as determined by the Board to practice lymphatic drainage, chemical exfoliation with products other than Schedules II through VI controlled substances as defined in the Drug Control Act (§ 54.1-3400 et seq.), and microdermabrasion of the epidermis. "Nail care" means manicuring or pedicuring natural nails or performing artificial nail services. "Nail salon" means any commercial establishment, residence, vehicle or other establishment, place or event wherein nail care is offered or practiced on a regular basis for compensation and may include the training of apprentices under regulations of the Board. "Nail school" means a place or establishment licensed by the board to accept and train students in nail care. "Nail technician" means any person who for compensation manicures or pedicures natural nails, or who performs artificial nail services for compensation, or any combination thereof. "Nail technician instructor" means a licensed nail technician who has been certified by the Board as having completed an approved curriculum and who meets the competency standards of the Board as an instructor of nail care. "Physical (wax) depilatory" means the wax depilatory product or substance used to remove superfluous hair. "School of cosmetology" means a place or establishment licensed by the Board to accept and train students and which offers a cosmetology curriculum approved by the Board. "School of esthetics" means a place or establishment licensed by the Board to accept and train students and which offers an esthetics curriculum approved by the Board. "Tattoo parlor" means any place in which tattooing is offered or practiced. "Tattoo school" means a place or establishment licensed by the Board to accept and train students in tattooing. "Tattooer" means any person who for remuneration practices tattooing. "Tattooing" means the placing of designs, letters, scrolls, figures, symbols or any other marks upon or under the skin of any person with ink or any other substance, resulting in the permanent coloration of the skin, including permanent make-up or permanent jewelry, by the aid of needles or any other instrument designed to touch or puncture the skin. "Wax technician" means any person licensed by the Board who removes hair from the hair follicle using a physical (wax) depilatory or by tweezing. "Wax technician instructor" means a licensed wax technician who has been certified by the Board as having completed an approved curriculum and who meets the competency standards of the Board as an instructor of waxing. "Waxing" means the temporary removal of superfluous hair from the hair follicle on any area of the human body through the use of a physical (wax) depilatory or by tweezing. "Waxing salon" means any commercial establishment, residence, vehicle or other establishment, place or event wherein waxing is offered or practiced on a regular basis for compensation and may include the training of apprentices under regulations of the Board. "Waxing school" means a place or establishment licensed by the Board to accept and train students in waxing. 1962, c. 639, § 1, § 54-83.2; 1966, c. 610; 1973, c. 86; 1974, c. 534; 1988, c. 765; 2000, c. 726; 2002, cc. 797, 869; 2003, c. 600; 2005, c. 829; 2012, cc. 803, 835; 2017, c. 390; 2018, cc. 219, 231, 237, 404; 2025, cc. 102, 308, 322.

Va. Code § 55.1-1200

§ 55.1-1200. Definitions.As used in this chapter, unless the context requires a different meaning: "Action" means any recoupment, counterclaim, setoff, or other civil action and any other proceeding in which rights are determined, including actions for possession, rent, unlawful detainer, unlawful entry, and distress for rent. "Application deposit" means any refundable deposit of money, however denominated, including all money intended to be used as a security deposit under a rental agreement, or property, that is paid by a tenant to a landlord for the purpose of being considered as a tenant for a dwelling unit. "Application fee" means any nonrefundable fee that is paid by a tenant to a landlord or managing agent for the purpose of being considered as a tenant for a dwelling unit. "Assignment" means the transfer by any tenant of all interests created by a rental agreement. "Authorized occupant" means a person entitled to occupy a dwelling unit with the consent of the landlord, but who has not signed the rental agreement and therefore does not have the financial obligations as a tenant under the rental agreement. "Building or housing code" means any law, ordinance, or governmental regulation concerning fitness for habitation or the construction, maintenance, operation, occupancy, use, or appearance of any structure or that part of a structure that is used as a home, residence, or sleeping place by one person who maintains a household or by two or more persons who maintain a common household. "Commencement date of rental agreement" means the date upon which the tenant is entitled to occupy the dwelling unit as a tenant. "Community land trust" means a community housing development organization whose board of directors is composed of tenants, corporate members who are not tenants, and any other category of persons specified in the bylaws of the organization and that: 1. Is not sponsored by a for-profit organization; 2. Acquires parcels of land, held in perpetuity, primarily for conveyance under long-term ground leases; 3. Transfers ownership of any structural improvements located on such leased parcels to the tenant; and 4. Retains a preemptive option to purchase any such structural improvement at a price determined by formula that is designed to ensure that the improvement remains affordable to low-income and moderate-income families in perpetuity. "Damage insurance" means a bond or commercial insurance coverage as specified in the rental agreement to secure the performance by the tenant of the terms and conditions of the rental agreement and to replace all or part of a security deposit. "Dwelling unit" means a structure or part of a structure that is used as a home or residence by one or more persons who maintain a household, including a manufactured home, as defined in § 55.1-1300. "Effective date of rental agreement" means the date on which the rental agreement is signed by the landlord and the tenant obligating each party to the terms and conditions of the rental agreement. "Essential service" includes heat, running water, hot water, electricity, and gas. "Facility" means something that is built, constructed, installed, or established to perform some particular function. "Good faith" means honesty in fact in the conduct of the transaction concerned. "Guest or invitee" means a person, other than the tenant or an authorized occupant, who has the permission of the tenant to visit but not to occupy the premises. "Interior of the dwelling unit" means the inside of the dwelling unit, consisting of interior walls, floor, and ceiling, that enclose the dwelling unit as conditioned space from the outside air. "Landlord" means the owner, lessor, or sublessor of the dwelling unit or the building of which such dwelling unit is a part. "Landlord" also includes a managing agent of the premises who fails to disclose the name of such owner, lessor, or sublessor. Such managing agent shall be subject to the provisions of § 16.1-88.03. "Landlord" does not include a community land trust. "Managing agent" means the person authorized by the landlord to act as the property manager on behalf of the landlord pursuant to the written property management agreement. "Mold remediation in accordance with professional standards" means mold remediation of that portion of the dwelling unit or premises affected by mold, or any personal property of the tenant affected by mold, performed consistent with guidance documents published by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, or the American Conference of Governmental Industrial Hygienists (Bioaerosols: Assessment and Control); Standard and Reference Guides of the Institute of Inspection, Cleaning and Restoration Certification (IICRC) for Professional Water Damage Restoration and Professional Mold Remediation; or any protocol for mold remediation prepared by an industrial hygienist consistent with such guidance documents. "Multifamily dwelling unit" means more than one single-family dwelling unit located in a building. However, nothing in this definition shall be construed to apply to any nonresidential space in such building. "Natural person," wherever the chapter refers to an owner as a "natural person," includes co-owners who are natural persons, either as tenants in common, joint tenants, tenants in partnership, tenants by the entirety, trustees or beneficiaries of a trust, general partnerships, limited liability partnerships, registered limited liability partnerships or limited liability companies, or any other lawful combination of natural persons permitted by law. "Notice" means notice given in writing by either regular mail or hand delivery, with the sender retaining sufficient proof of having given such notice in the form of a certificate of service confirming such mailing prepared by the sender. However, a person shall be deemed to have notice of a fact if he has actual knowledge of it, he has received a verbal notice of it, or, from all of the facts and circumstances known to him at the time in question, he has reason to know it exists. A person "notifies" or "gives" a notice or notification to another by taking steps reasonably calculated to inform another person, whether or not the other person actually comes to know of it. If notice is given that is not in writing, the person giving the notice has the burden of proof to show that the notice was given to the recipient of the notice. "Organization" means a corporation, government, governmental subdivision or agency, business trust, estate, trust, partnership, or association; two or more persons having a joint or common interest; any combination thereof; and any other legal or commercial entity. "Owner" means one or more persons or entities, jointly or severally, including a mortgagee in possession, in whom is vested: 1. All or part of the legal title to the property; or 2. All or part of the beneficial ownership and a right to present use and enjoyment of the premises. "Person" means any individual, group of individuals, corporation, partnership, business trust, association, or other legal entity, or any combination thereof. "Premises" means a dwelling unit and the structure of which it is a part, facilities and appurtenances contained therein, and grounds, areas, and facilities held out for the use of tenants generally or whose use is promised to the tenant. "Processing fee for payment of rent with bad check" means the processing fee specified in the rental agreement, not to exceed $50, assessed by a landlord against a tenant for payment of rent with a check drawn by the tenant on which payment has been refused by the payor bank because the drawer had no account or insufficient funds. "Readily accessible" means areas within the interior of the dwelling unit available for observation at the time of the move-in inspection that do not require removal of materials, personal property, equipment, or similar items. "Rent" means all money, other than a security deposit, owed or paid to the landlord under the rental agreement, including prepaid rent paid more than one month in advance of the rent due date. "Rental agreement" or "lease agreement" means all rental agreements, written or oral, and valid rules and regulations adopted under § 55.1-1228 embodying the terms and conditions concerning the use and occupancy of a dwelling unit and premises. "Rental application" means the written application or similar document used by a landlord to determine if a prospective tenant is qualified to become a tenant of a dwelling unit. "Renter's insurance" means insurance coverage specified in the rental agreement that is a combination multi-peril policy containing fire, miscellaneous property, and personal liability coverage insuring personal property located in dwelling units not occupied by the owner. "Residential tenancy" means a tenancy that is based on a rental agreement between a landlord and a tenant for a dwelling unit. "Roomer" means a person occupying a dwelling unit that lacks a major bathroom or kitchen facility, in a structure where one or more major facilities are used in common by occupants of the dwelling unit and other dwelling units. "Major facility" in the case of a bathroom means a toilet and either a bath or shower and in the case of a kitchen means a refrigerator, stove, or sink. "Security deposit" means any refundable deposit of money that is furnished by a tenant to a landlord to secure the performance of the terms and conditions of a rental agreement, as a security for damages to the leased premises, or as a pet deposit. However, such money shall be deemed an application deposit until the commencement date of the rental agreement. "Security deposit" does not include a damage insurance policy or renter's insurance policy, as those terms are defined in § 55.1-1206, purchased by a landlord to provide coverage for a tenant. "Single-family residence" means a structure, other than a multifamily residential structure, maintained and used as a single dwelling unit, condominium unit, or any other dwelling unit that has direct access to a street or thoroughfare and does not share heating facilities, hot water equipment, or any other essential facility or essential service with any other dwelling unit. "Sublease" means the transfer by any tenant of any but not all interests created by a rental agreement. "Tenant" means a person entitled only under the terms of a rental agreement to occupy a dwelling unit to the exclusion of others and includes a roomer. "Tenant" does not include (i) an authorized occupant, (ii) a guest or invitee, or (iii) any person who guarantees or cosigns the payment of the financial obligations of a rental agreement but has no right to occupy a dwelling unit. "Tenant records" means all information, including financial, maintenance, and other records about a tenant or prospective tenant, whether such information is in written or electronic form or any other medium. "Utility" means electricity, natural gas, or water and sewer provided by a public service corporation or such other person providing utility services as permitted under § 56-1.2. If the rental agreement so provides, a landlord may use submetering equipment or energy allocation equipment as defined in § 56-245.2 or a ratio utility billing system as defined in § 55.1-1212. "Visible evidence of mold" means the existence of mold in the dwelling unit that is visible to the naked eye by the landlord or tenant in areas within the interior of the dwelling unit readily accessible at the time of the move-in inspection. "Written notice" means notice given in accordance with § 55.1-1202, including any representation of words, letters, symbols, numbers, or figures, whether (i) printed in or inscribed on a tangible medium or (ii) stored in an electronic form or any other medium, retrievable in a perceivable form, and regardless of whether an electronic signature authorized by the Uniform Electronic Transactions Act (§ 59.1-479 et seq.) is affixed. 1974, c. 680, § 55-248.4; 1977, c. 427; 1987, c. 428; 1990, c. 55; 1991, c. 205; 1999, cc. 77, 258, 359, 390; 2000, cc. 760, 816; 2002, c. 531; 2003, cc. 355, 425, 855; 2004, c. 123; 2007, c. 634; 2008, cc. 489, 640; 2010, cc. 180, 550, § 55-221.1; 2012, c. 788; 2013, c. 563; 2014, c. 651; 2015, c. 596; 2016, c. 744; 2017, c. 730; 2019, cc. 5, 45, 477; 2021, Sp. Sess. I, c. 427; 2025, c. 28.

Va. Code § 55.1-1212

§ 55.1-1212. Energy submetering, energy allocation equipment, sewer and water submetering equipment, and ratio utility billing systems; local government fees.A. As used in this section: "Energy allocation equipment" means the same as that term is defined in § 56-245.2. "Energy submetering equipment" has the same meaning ascribed to "submetering equipment" in § 56-245.2. "Local government fees" means any local government charges or fees assessed against a residential building, including charges or fees for stormwater, recycling, trash collection, elevator testing, fire or life safety testing, or residential rental inspection programs. "Ratio utility billing system" means a program that utilizes a mathematical formula for allocating, among the tenants in a residential building, the actual or anticipated water, sewer, electrical, oil, or natural gas billings billed to the residential building owner from a third-party provider of the utility service. Permitted allocation methods may include formulas based on square footage, occupancy, number of bedrooms, or some other specific method agreed to by the residential building owner and the tenant in the rental agreement or lease. "Residential building" means all of the individual units served through the same utility-owned meter within a residential building that is defined in § 56-245.2 as an apartment building or house or all of the individual dwelling units served through the same utility-owned meter within a manufactured home park as defined in § 55.1-1300. "Water and sewer submetering equipment" means equipment used to measure actual water or sewer usage in any residential building when such equipment is not owned or controlled by the utility or other provider of water or sewer service that provides service to the residential building. B. Energy submetering equipment, energy allocation equipment, water and sewer submetering equipment, or a ratio utility billing system may be used in a residential building if clearly stated in the rental agreement or lease for the residential building. All energy submetering equipment and energy allocation equipment shall meet the requirements and standards established and enforced by the State Corporation Commission pursuant to § 56-245.3. C. If energy submetering equipment, energy allocation equipment, or water and sewer submetering equipment is used in any residential building, the owner, manager, or operator of such residential building shall bill the tenant for electricity, oil, natural gas, or water and sewer for the same billing period as the utility serving the residential building, unless the rental agreement or lease expressly provides otherwise. The owner, manager, or operator of such residential building may charge and collect from the tenant additional service charges, including monthly billing fees, account set-up fees, or account move-out fees, to cover the actual costs of administrative expenses and billing charged to the residential building owner, manager, or operator by a third-party provider of such services, provided that such charges are agreed to by the residential building owner and the tenant in the rental agreement or lease. The residential building owner may require the tenant to pay a late charge of up to $5 if the tenant fails to make payment when due, which shall not be less than 15 days following the date of mailing or delivery of the bill sent pursuant to this section. D. If a ratio utility billing system is used in any residential building, in lieu of increasing the rent, the owner, manager, or operator of such residential building may employ such a program that utilizes a mathematical formula for allocating, among the tenants in a residential building, the actual or anticipated water, sewer, electrical, oil, or natural gas billings billed to the residential building owner from a third-party provider of the utility service. The owner, manager, or operator of the residential building may charge and collect from the tenant additional service charges, including monthly billing fees, account set-up fees, or account move-out fees, to cover the actual costs of administrative expenses and billings charged to the residential building owner, manager, or operator by a third-party provider of such services, provided that such charges are agreed to by the residential building owner and the tenant in the rental agreement or lease. The residential building owner may require the tenant to pay a late charge of up to $5 if the tenant fails to make payment when due, which shall not be less than 15 days following the date of mailing or delivery of the bill sent pursuant to this section. The late charge shall be deemed rent (i) as defined in § 55.1-1200 if a ratio utility billing system is used in a residential multifamily dwelling unit subject to this chapter or (ii) as defined in § 55.1-1300 if a ratio utility billing system is used in a manufactured home park subject to the Manufactured Home Lot Rental Act (§ 55.1-1300 et seq.). E. Energy allocation equipment shall be tested periodically by the owner, manager, or operator of the residential building. Upon the request by a tenant, the owner shall test the energy allocation equipment without charge. The test conducted without charge to the tenant shall not be conducted more frequently than once in a 24-month period for the same tenant. The tenant or his designated representative may be present during the testing of the energy allocation equipment. A written report of the results of the test shall be made to the tenant within 10 working days after the completion of the test. F. The owner of any residential building shall maintain adequate records regarding energy submetering equipment, energy allocation equipment, water and sewer submetering equipment, or a ratio utility billing system. A tenant may inspect and copy the records for the leased premises during reasonable business hours at a convenient location within or serving the residential building. The owner of the residential building may impose and collect a reasonable charge for copying documents, reflecting the actual costs of materials and labor for copying, prior to providing copies of the records to the tenant. G. Notwithstanding any enforcement action undertaken by the State Corporation Commission pursuant to its authority under § 56-245.3, tenants and owners shall retain any private right of action resulting from any breach of the rental agreement or lease terms required by this section or § 56-245.3, if applicable, to the same extent as such actions may be maintained for breach of other terms of the rental agreement or lease under this chapter, if applicable. The use of energy submetering equipment, energy allocation equipment, water and sewer submetering equipment, or a ratio utility billing system is not within the jurisdiction of the Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services under Chapter 56 (§ 3.2-5600 et seq.) of Title 3.2. H. In lieu of increasing the rent, the owner, manager, or operator of a residential building may employ a program that utilizes a mathematical formula for allocating the actual or anticipated local government fees billed to the residential building owner among the tenants in such residential building if clearly stated in the rental agreement or lease. Permitted allocation methods may include formulas based upon square footage, occupancy, number of bedrooms, or some other specific method agreed to by the residential building owner and the tenant in the rental agreement or lease. Such owner, manager, or operator of a residential building may also charge and collect from each tenant additional service charges, including monthly billing fees, account set-up fees, or account move-out fees, to cover the actual costs of administrative expenses for administration of such a program. If the building is residential and is subject to (i) this chapter, such local government fees and administrative expenses shall be deemed to be rent as defined in § 55.1-1200 or (ii) the Manufactured Home Lot Rental Act (§ 55.1-1300 et seq.), such local government fees and administrative expenses shall be deemed to be rent as defined in § 55.1-1300. I. Nothing in this section shall be construed to prohibit an owner, manager, or operator of a residential building from including water, sewer, electrical, natural gas, oil, or other utilities in the amount of rent as specified in the rental agreement or lease. 1992, c. 766, § 55-226.2; 2003, c. 355; 2005, c. 278; 2010, c. 550; 2012, c. 338; 2014, c. 501; 2015, c. 596; 2017, c. 730; 2019, c. 712.

Va. Code § 55.1-1220

§ 55.1-1220. Landlord to maintain fit premises.A. The landlord shall: 1. Comply with the requirements of applicable building and housing codes materially affecting health and safety; 2. Make all repairs and do whatever is necessary to put and keep the premises in a fit and habitable condition; 3. Keep all common areas shared by two or more dwelling units of a multifamily premises in a clean and structurally safe condition; 4. Maintain in good and safe working order and condition all electrical, plumbing, sanitary, heating, ventilating, air-conditioning, and other facilities and appliances, including elevators, supplied or required to be supplied by him; 5. Maintain the premises in such a condition as to prevent the accumulation of moisture and the growth of mold and promptly respond to any notices from a tenant as provided in subdivision A 10 of § 55.1-1227. Where there is visible evidence of mold, the landlord shall promptly remediate the mold conditions in accordance with the requirements of subsection E of § 8.01-226.12 and reinspect the dwelling unit to confirm that there is no longer visible evidence of mold in the dwelling unit. The landlord shall provide a tenant with a copy of a summary of information related to mold remediation occurring during that tenancy and, upon request of the tenant, make available the full package of such information and reports not protected by attorney-client privilege. Once the mold has been remediated in accordance with professional standards, the landlord shall not be required to make disclosures of a past incidence of mold to subsequent tenants; 6. Provide and maintain appropriate receptacles and conveniences for the collection, storage, and removal of ashes, garbage, rubbish, and other waste incidental to the occupancy of dwelling units and arrange for the removal of same; 7. Supply running water and reasonable amounts of hot water at all times and reasonable air conditioning if provided and heat in season except where the dwelling unit is so constructed that heat, air conditioning, or hot water is generated by an installation within the exclusive control of the tenant or supplied by a direct public utility connection; and 8. Provide a certificate to the tenant stating that all smoke alarms are present, have been inspected, and are in good working order no more than once every 12 months. The landlord, his employee, or an independent contractor may perform the inspection to determine that the smoke alarm is in good working order. B. The landlord shall perform the duties imposed by subsection A in accordance with law; however, the landlord shall only be liable for the tenant's actual damages proximately caused by the landlord's failure to exercise ordinary care. C. If the duty imposed by subdivision A 1 is greater than any duty imposed by any other subdivision of that subsection, the landlord's duty shall be determined by reference to subdivision A 1. D. The landlord and tenant may agree in writing that the tenant perform the landlord's duties specified in subdivisions A 3, 6, and 7 and also specified repairs, maintenance tasks, alterations, and remodeling, but only if the transaction is entered into in good faith and not for the purpose of evading the obligations of the landlord and if the agreement does not diminish or affect the obligation of the landlord to other tenants in the premises. 1974, c. 680, § 55-248.13; 1987, cc. 361, 636; 2000, c. 760; 2004, c. 226; 2007, c. 634; 2008, cc. 489, 640; 2009, c. 663; 2014, c. 632; 2015, c. 274; 2017, c. 730; 2018, cc. 41, 81; 2019, c. 712.

Va. Code § 55.1-1227

§ 55.1-1227. Tenant to maintain dwelling unit.A. In addition to the provisions of the rental agreement, the tenant shall: 1. Comply with all obligations primarily imposed upon tenants by applicable provisions of building and housing codes materially affecting health and safety; 2. Keep that part of the dwelling unit and the part of the premises that he occupies and uses as clean and safe as the condition of the premises permit; 3. Keep that part of the dwelling unit and the part of the premises that he occupies free from insects and pests, as those terms are defined in § 3.2-3900, and promptly notify the landlord of the existence of any insects or pests; 4. Remove from his dwelling unit all ashes, garbage, rubbish, and other waste in a clean and safe manner and in the appropriate receptacles provided by the landlord; 5. Keep all plumbing fixtures in the dwelling unit or used by the tenant as clean as their condition permits; 6. Use in a reasonable manner all utilities and all electrical, plumbing, sanitary, heating, ventilating, air-conditioning, and other facilities and appliances, including an elevator in a multifamily premises, and keep all utility services paid for by the tenant to the utility service provider or its agent on at all times during the term of the rental agreement; 7. Not deliberately or negligently destroy, deface, damage, impair, or remove any part of the premises or permit any person, whether known by the tenant or not, to do so; 8. Not remove or tamper with a properly functioning smoke alarm installed by the landlord, including removing any working batteries, so as to render the alarm inoperative. The tenant shall maintain the smoke alarm in accordance with the uniform set of standards for maintenance of smoke alarms established in the Statewide Fire Prevention Code (§ 27-94 et seq.) and subdivision C 6 of § 36-105, Part III of the Uniform Statewide Building Code (§ 36-97 et seq.); 9. Not remove or tamper with a properly functioning carbon monoxide alarm installed by the landlord, including the removal of any working batteries, so as to render the carbon monoxide alarm inoperative. The tenant shall maintain the carbon monoxide alarm in accordance with the uniform set of standards for maintenance of carbon monoxide alarms established in the Statewide Fire Prevention Code (§ 27-94 et seq.) and subdivision C 6 of § 36-105, Part III of the Uniform Statewide Building Code (§ 36-97 et seq.); 10. Use reasonable efforts to maintain the dwelling unit and any other part of the premises that he occupies in such a condition as to prevent accumulation of moisture and the growth of mold and promptly notify the landlord of any moisture accumulation that occurs or of any visible evidence of mold discovered by the tenant; 11. Not paint or disturb painted surfaces or make alterations in the dwelling unit without the prior written approval of the landlord, provided that (i) the dwelling unit was constructed prior to 1978 and therefore requires the landlord to provide the tenant with lead-based paint disclosures and (ii) the landlord has provided the tenant with such disclosures and the rental agreement provides that the tenant is required to obtain the landlord's prior written approval before painting, disturbing painted surfaces, or making alterations in the dwelling unit; 12. Be responsible for his conduct and the conduct of other persons, whether known by the tenant or not, who are on the premises with his consent, to ensure that his neighbors' peaceful enjoyment of the premises will not be disturbed; 13. Abide by all reasonable rules and regulations imposed by the landlord; 14. Be financially responsible for the added cost of treatment or extermination due to the tenant's unreasonable delay in reporting the existence of any insects or pests and be financially responsible for the cost of treatment or extermination due to the tenant's fault in failing to prevent infestation of any insects or pests in the area occupied; and 15. Use reasonable care to prevent any dog or other animal in possession of the tenant, authorized occupants, or guests or invitees from causing personal injuries to a third party in the dwelling unit or on the premises, or property damage to the dwelling unit or the premises. B. If the duty imposed by subdivision A 1 is greater than any duty imposed by any other subdivision of that subsection, the tenant's duty shall be determined by reference to subdivision A 1. 1974, c. 680, § 55-248.16; 1987, c. 428; 1999, c. 80; 2000, c. 760; 2003, c. 355; 2004, c. 226; 2008, cc. 489, 617, 640; 2009, c. 663; 2011, c. 766; 2014, c. 632; 2016, c. 744; 2017, cc. 262, 730; 2018, cc. 41, 81, 221; 2019, c. 712.

Va. Code § 55.1-1234.1

§ 55.1-1234.1. Uninhabitable dwelling unit.A. If, at the beginning of the tenancy, a condition exists in a rental dwelling unit that constitutes a fire hazard or serious threat to the life, health, or safety of tenants or occupants of the premises, including an infestation of rodents or a lack of heat, hot or cold running water, electricity, or adequate sewage disposal facilities, the tenant shall be entitled to terminate the rental agreement and receive a full refund of all deposits and rent paid to the landlord, so long as the tenant provides the landlord with written notice of his intent to terminate the rental agreement within seven days of the date on which possession of the dwelling unit was to have transferred to the tenant. Unless the landlord asserts, pursuant to subsection B, that the tenant's termination of the rental agreement is unjustified, the landlord shall refund all deposits and rent paid by the tenant to the tenant on or before the fifteenth business day following the day on which (i) the termination notice is delivered to the landlord or (ii) the tenant vacates the dwelling unit, whichever occurs later. B. If a tenant terminates a rental agreement pursuant to subsection A and the landlord asserts that the tenant is unjustified in his termination of the rental agreement, the landlord shall provide written notice to the tenant of his refusal to accept the tenant's termination notice, along with the reasons for such refusal, within 15 business days following the date on which such termination notice is delivered to the landlord. C. A tenant who has not taken possession or who has vacated the dwelling unit may file an action in a court of competent jurisdiction to contest the landlord's refusal to accept the termination notice, if applicable, and for the return of any deposits and rent paid to the landlord. In any such action, the prevailing party shall be entitled to recover reasonable attorney fees. 2023, c. 435.

Va. Code § 55.1-1241

§ 55.1-1241. Landlord's noncompliance as defense to action for possession for nonpayment of rent.A. In an action for possession based upon nonpayment of rent or in an action for rent by a landlord when the tenant is in possession, the tenant may assert as a defense that there exists upon the leased premises a condition that constitutes, or will constitute, a fire hazard or a serious threat to the life, health, or safety of the occupants of the dwelling unit, including (i) a lack of heat, running water, light, electricity, or adequate sewage disposal facilities; (ii) an infestation of rodents; or (iii) a condition that constitutes material noncompliance on the part of the landlord with the rental agreement or provisions of law. The assertion of any defense provided for in this section shall be conditioned upon the following: 1. Prior to the commencement of the action for rent or possession, the landlord or his agent refused or, having a reasonable opportunity to do so, failed to remedy the condition for which he was served a written notice of the condition by the tenant or was notified of such condition by a violation or condemnation notice from an appropriate state or local agency. For the purposes of this subsection, what period of time shall be deemed to be unreasonable delay is left to the discretion of the court, except that there shall be a rebuttable presumption that a period in excess of 30 days from receipt of the notification by the landlord is unreasonable; and 2. The tenant, if in possession, has paid into court the amount of rent found by the court to be due and unpaid, to be held by the court pending the issuance of an order under subsection C. B. It shall be a sufficient answer to such a defense provided for in this section if the landlord establishes that (i) the conditions alleged in the defense do not in fact exist; (ii) such conditions have been removed or remedied; (iii) such conditions have been caused by the tenant, his guest or invitee, members of the family of such tenant, or a guest or invitee of such family member; or (iv) the tenant has unreasonably refused entry to the landlord to the premises for the purposes of correcting such conditions. C. The court shall make findings of fact upon any defense raised under this section or the answer to any defense and shall issue any order as may be required, including any one or more of the following: 1. Reducing rent in such amount as the court determines to be equitable to represent the existence of any condition set forth in subsection A; 2. Terminating the rental agreement or ordering the surrender of the premises to the landlord; or 3. Referring any matter before the court to the proper state or local agency for investigation and report and granting a continuance of the action or complaint pending receipt of such investigation and report. When such a continuance is granted, the tenant shall deposit with the court any rents that will become due during the period of continuance, to be held by the court pending its further order, or, in its discretion, the court may use such funds to (i) pay a mortgage on the property in order to stay a foreclosure, (ii) pay a creditor to prevent or satisfy a bill to enforce a mechanic's or materialman's lien, or (iii) remedy any condition set forth in subsection A that is found by the court to exist. D. If it appears that the tenant has raised a defense under this section in bad faith or has caused the violation or has unreasonably refused entry to the landlord for the purpose of correcting the condition giving rise to the violation, the court may impose upon the tenant the reasonable costs of the landlord, including court costs, the costs of repair where the court finds the tenant has caused the violation, and reasonable attorney fees. E. If the court finds that the tenant has successfully raised a defense under this section and enters judgment for the tenant, the court, in its discretion, may impose upon the landlord the reasonable costs of the tenant, including court costs, and reasonable attorney fees. 1974, c. 680, § 55-248.25; 1982, c. 260; 2000, c. 760; 2019, cc. 324, 712.

Va. Code § 55.1-1244

§ 55.1-1244. Tenant's assertion; rent escrow.A. The tenant may assert that there exists upon the leased premises a condition that constitutes a material noncompliance by the landlord with the rental agreement or with provisions of law or that, if not promptly corrected, will constitute a fire hazard or serious threat to the life, health, or safety of occupants of the premises, including (i) a lack of heat or hot or cold running water, except where the tenant is responsible for payment of the utility charge and where the lack of such heat or hot or cold running water is the direct result of the tenant's failure to pay the utility charge; (ii) a lack of light, electricity, or adequate sewage disposal facilities; (iii) an infestation of rodents; or (iv) the existence of paint containing lead pigment on surfaces within the dwelling, provided that the landlord has notice of such paint. The tenant may file such an assertion in a general district court in which the premises is located by a declaration setting forth such assertion and asking for one or more forms of relief as provided for in subsection D. B. Prior to the granting of any relief, the tenant shall show to the satisfaction of the court that: 1. Prior to the commencement of the action, the landlord or his agent refused or, having a reasonable opportunity to do so, failed to remedy the condition for which he was served a written notice of the condition by the tenant or was notified of such condition by a violation or condemnation notice from an appropriate state or local agency. For the purposes of this subsection, what period of time shall be deemed to be unreasonable delay is left to the discretion of the court, except that there shall be a rebuttable presumption that a period in excess of 30 days from receipt of the notification by the landlord is unreasonable; and 2. The tenant has paid into court the amount of rent called for under the rental agreement, within five days of the date due under the rental agreement, unless or until such amount is modified by subsequent order of the court under this chapter. C. It shall be sufficient answer or rejoinder to an assertion made pursuant to subsection A if the landlord establishes to the satisfaction of the court that (i) the conditions alleged by the tenant do not in fact exist; (ii) such conditions have been removed or remedied; (iii) such conditions have been caused by the tenant, his guest or invitee, members of the family of such tenant, or a guest or invitee of such family member; or (iv) the tenant has unreasonably refused entry to the landlord to the premises for the purpose of correcting such conditions. D. Any court shall make findings of fact on the issues before it and shall issue any order that may be required. Such an order may include any one or more of the following: 1. Terminating the rental agreement upon the request of the tenant or ordering the surrender of the premises to the landlord if the landlord prevails on a request for possession pursuant to an unlawful detainer properly filed with the court; 2. Ordering all moneys already accumulated in escrow disbursed to the landlord or to the tenant in accordance with this chapter; 3. Ordering that the escrow be continued until the conditions causing the complaint are remedied; 4. Ordering that the amount of rent, whether paid into the escrow account or paid to the landlord, be abated as determined by the court in such an amount as may be equitable to represent the existence of any condition found by the court to exist. In all cases where the court deems that the tenant is entitled to relief under this chapter, the burden shall be upon the landlord to show cause why there should not be an abatement of rent; 5. Ordering any amount of moneys accumulated in escrow disbursed to the tenant where the landlord refuses to make repairs after a reasonable time or to the landlord or to a contractor chosen by the landlord in order to make repairs or to otherwise remedy the condition. In either case, the court shall in its order insure that moneys thus disbursed will be in fact used for the purpose of making repairs or effecting a remedy; 6. Referring any matter before the court to the proper state or local agency for investigation and report and granting a continuance of the action or complaint pending receipt of such investigation and report. When such a continuance is granted, the tenant shall deposit with the court, within five days of date due under the rental agreement, subject to any abatement under this section, rents that become due during the period of the continuance, to be held by the court pending its further order; 7. Ordering escrow funds disbursed to pay a mortgage on the property in order to stay a foreclosure; or 8. Ordering escrow funds disbursed to pay a creditor to prevent or satisfy a bill to enforce a mechanic's or materialman's lien. E. Notwithstanding any provision of subsection D, where an escrow account is established by the court and the condition is not fully remedied within six months of the establishment of such account, and the landlord has not made reasonable attempts to remedy the condition, the court shall award all moneys accumulated in escrow to the tenant. In such event, the escrow shall not be terminated, but shall begin upon a new six-month period with the same result if, at the end of the period, the condition has not been remedied. F. The initial hearing on the tenant's assertion filed pursuant to subsection A shall be held within 15 calendar days from the date of service of process on the landlord as authorized by § 55.1-1216, except that the court shall order an earlier hearing where emergency conditions are alleged to exist upon the premises, such as failure of heat in winter, lack of adequate sewage disposal facilities, or any other condition that constitutes an immediate threat to the health or safety of the inhabitants of the leased premises. The court, on motion of either party or on its own motion, may hold hearings subsequent to the initial proceeding in order to further determine the rights and obligations of the parties. Distribution of escrow moneys may only occur by order of the court after a hearing of which both parties are given notice as required by law or upon motion of both the landlord and tenant or upon certification by the appropriate inspector that the work required by the court to be done has been satisfactorily completed. If the tenant proceeds under this subsection, he may not proceed under any other section of this article as to that breach. G. In cases where the court deems that the tenant is entitled to relief under this section and enters judgment for the tenant, the court, in its discretion, may impose upon the landlord the reasonable costs of the tenant, including court costs, and reasonable attorney fees. 1974, c. 680, § 55-248.27; 2000, c. 760; 2001, c. 524; 2016, cc. 384, 459; 2017, c. 730; 2019, cc. 324, 712.

Va. Code § 55.1-1244.1

§ 55.1-1244.1. Tenant's remedy by repair.A. For purposes of this section, "actual costs" means (i) the amount paid on an invoice to a third-party licensed contractor or a licensed pesticide business by a tenant, local government, or nonprofit entity or (ii) the amount donated by a third-party contractor or pesticide business as reflected on such contractor's or pesticide business's invoice. B. If (i) there exists in the dwelling unit a condition that constitutes a material noncompliance by the landlord with the rental agreement or with provisions of law or that, if not promptly corrected, will constitute a fire hazard or serious threat to the life, health, or safety of occupants of the premises, including an infestation of rodents or a lack of heat, hot or cold running water, light, electricity, or adequate sewage disposal facilities, and (ii) the tenant has notified the landlord of the condition in writing, the landlord shall take reasonable steps to make the repair or to remedy such condition within 14 days of receiving notice from the tenant. C. If the landlord does not take reasonable steps to repair or remedy the offending condition within 14 days of receiving a tenant's notice pursuant to subsection B, the tenant may contract with a third-party contractor licensed by the Board for Contractors or, in the case of a rodent infestation, a pesticide business employing commercial applicators or registered technicians who are licensed, certified, and registered with the Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services pursuant to Chapter 39 (§ 3.2-3900 et seq.) of Title 3.2, to repair or remedy the condition specified in the notice. A tenant who contracts with a third-party licensed contractor or pesticide business is entitled to recover the actual costs incurred for the work performed, not exceeding the greater of one month's rent or $1,500. Unless the tenant has been reimbursed by the landlord, the tenant may deduct the actual costs incurred for the work performed pursuant to the contract with the third-party contractor or pesticide business after submitting to the landlord an itemized statement accompanied by receipts for purchased items and third-party contractor or pest control services. D. A local government or nonprofit entity may procure the services of a third-party licensed contractor or pesticide business on behalf of the tenant pursuant to subsection B. Such assistance shall have no effect on the tenant's entitlement under this section to be reimbursed by the landlord or to make a deduction from the periodic rent. E. A tenant may not repair a property condition at the landlord's expense under this section to the extent that (i) the property condition was caused by an act or omission of the tenant, an authorized occupant, or a guest or invitee; (ii) the landlord was unable to remedy the property condition because the landlord was denied access to the dwelling unit; or (iii) the landlord had already remedied the property condition prior to the tenant's contracting with a licensed third-party contractor or pesticide business pursuant to subsection C. 2020, c. 1020. Article 5. Landlord Remedies. This section has more than one version with varying effective dates. To view a complete list of the versions of this section see Table of Contents.

Va. Code § 55.1-1300

§ 55.1-1300. Definitions.As used in this chapter, unless the context requires a different meaning: "Abandoned manufactured home" means a manufactured home occupying a manufactured home lot pursuant to a written agreement under which (i) the tenant has defaulted in rent or (ii) the landlord has the right to terminate the written rental agreement pursuant to § 55.1-1249. "Guest or invitee" means a person, other than the tenant, who has the permission of the tenant to visit but not to occupy the premises. "Landlord" means the manufactured home park owner or the lessor or sublessor of a manufactured home park. "Landlord" also means a manufactured home park operator who fails to disclose the name of such owner, lessor, or sublessor as provided in § 55.1-1216. "Manufactured home" means a structure, transportable in one or more sections, that in the traveling mode is eight body feet or more in width or 40 body feet or more in length, or, when erected on site, is 320 or more square feet, and that is built on a permanent chassis and designed to be used as a dwelling with or without a permanent foundation when connected to the required utilities, and includes the plumbing, heating, air-conditioning, and electrical systems contained in the structure. "Manufactured home lot" means a parcel of land within the boundaries of a manufactured home park provided for the placement of a single manufactured home and the exclusive use of its occupants. "Manufactured home owner" means the owner of a manufactured home. "Manufactured home park" means a parcel of land under single or common ownership upon which five or more manufactured homes are located on a continual, nonrecreational basis together with any structure, equipment, road, or facility intended for use incidental to the occupancy of the manufactured homes. "Manufactured home park" does not include a premises used solely for storage or display of uninhabited manufactured homes or a premises occupied solely by a landowner and members of his family. "Manufactured home park operator" means a person employed or contracted by a manufactured home park owner or landlord to manage a manufactured home park. "Manufactured home park owner" means a person who owns land that accommodates a manufactured home park. "Owner" means one or more persons, jointly or severally, in whom is vested (i) all or part of the legal title to the property or (ii) all or part of the beneficial ownership and right to present use and enjoyment of the premises. "Owner" includes a mortgagee in possession. "Reasonable charges in addition to rent" means any routine maintenance and utility charges for which the tenant is liable under the rental agreement. "Rent" means payments made by the tenant to the landlord for use of a manufactured home lot and other facilities or services provided by the landlord. "Rental agreement" means any agreement, written or oral, and valid rules and regulations adopted in conformance with § 55.1-1228 embodying the terms and conditions concerning the use and occupancy of a manufactured home lot and premises and other facilities or services provided by the landlord. "Secured party" means the same as that term is defined in § 8.9A-102. "Security interest" means the same as that term is defined in § 8.1A-201. "Tenant" means a person entitled as under a rental agreement to occupy a manufactured home lot to the exclusion of others. 1975, c. 535, § 55-248.41; 1983, c. 386; 1991, c. 500; 1992, c. 709; 2018, c. 408; 2019, c. 712.

Va. Code § 55.1-1303

§ 55.1-1303. Landlord's obligations.The landlord shall: 1. Comply with applicable laws governing health, zoning, safety, and other matters pertaining to manufactured home parks; 2. Make all repairs and do whatever is necessary to put and keep the manufactured home park in a fit and habitable condition, including maintaining in a clean and safe condition all facilities and common areas provided by the landlord for use by the tenants of two or more manufactured home lots; 3. Maintain in good and working order and condition all electrical, plumbing, sanitary, heating, ventilating, air conditioning, and other facilities and appliances supplied or required to be supplied by the landlord; 4. Provide and maintain appropriate receptacles as a manufactured home park facility, except when door-to-door garbage and waste pickup is available within the manufactured home park for the collection and storage of garbage and other waste incidental to the occupancy of the manufactured home park, and arrange for the removal of the garbage and other waste; 5. Provide reasonable access to electric, water, and sewage disposal connections for each manufactured home lot. In the event of a planned disruption by the landlord in electric, water, or sewage disposal services, the landlord shall give written notice to tenants no less than 48 hours prior to the planned disruption in service; and 6. Provide a copy of any written rental agreement and the statement of tenant rights and responsibilities to the tenant within one month of the effective date of the written rental agreement. The parties to a written rental agreement shall sign the form developed by the Department of Housing and Community Development and posted on its website pursuant to § 36-139 acknowledging that the tenant has received from the landlord the statement of tenant rights and responsibilities. If a tenant fails to sign the form available pursuant to this subsection, the landlord shall record the date or dates on which he provided the form to the tenant and the fact that the tenant failed to sign such form. Subsequent to the effective date of the tenancy, a landlord may, but shall not be required to, provide a tenant with and allow such tenant an opportunity to sign the form described pursuant to this subsection. The failure of the landlord to deliver such a rental agreement and statement shall not affect the validity of the agreement. However, the landlord shall not file or maintain an action, including any summons for unlawful detainer, against the tenant in a court of law for any alleged lease violation until he has provided the tenant with the statement of tenant rights and responsibilities. 1975, c. 535, § 55-248.43; 1992, c. 709; 2001, c. 44; 2019, c. 712; 2021, Sp. Sess. I, cc. 91, 92; 2023, c. 450.

Va. Code § 55.1-1307

§ 55.1-1307. Charge for utility service.Notwithstanding the provisions of § 56-245.3, a landlord who purchases from a publicly regulated utility any electricity, gas, or other utility service, including water and sewer services, for resale or pass-through to a tenant may not charge for the resale or pass-through of such service an amount that exceeds the amount permitted under the provisions of § 55.1-1212. 1992, c. 709, § 55-248.45:1; 2006, c. 303; 2019, c. 712.

Va. Code § 55.1-1404

§ 55.1-1404. Energy submetering, energy allocation equipment, sewer and water submetering equipment, ratio utility billings systems; local government fees.A. As used in this section: "Building" means all of the individual units served through the same utility-owned meter within a building that is used as a nonresidential tenancy, including a building used as an office building or shopping center as those terms are defined in § 56-245.2. "Campground" means the same as that term is defined in § 35.1-1. "Campsite" means the same as that term is defined in § 35.1-1. "Energy allocation equipment" means the same as that term is defined in § 56-245.2. "Energy submetering equipment" has the same meaning ascribed to "submetering equipment" in § 56-245.2. "Local government fees" means any local government charges or fees assessed against a building or campground, including stormwater, recycling, trash collection, elevator testing, or fire or life safety testing. "Ratio utility billing system" means a program that utilizes a mathematical formula for allocating, among the tenants in a building or campground, the actual or anticipated water, sewer, electrical, oil, or natural gas billings billed to the building or campground owner from a third-party provider of the utility service. Permitted allocation methods may include formulas based on square footage, occupancy, number of bedrooms, or some other specific method agreed to by the building or campground owner and the tenant in the rental agreement or lease. "Water and sewer submetering equipment" means equipment used to measure actual water or sewer usage in any nonresidential rental unit, as defined in § 56-245.2, when such equipment is not owned or controlled by the utility or other provider of water or sewer service that provides service to the building in which the nonresidential rental unit is located or campground where the campsite is located. B. Energy submetering equipment, energy allocation equipment, water and sewer submetering equipment, or a ratio utility billing system may be used in a building or campground if clearly stated in the rental agreement or lease for the leased premises. All energy submetering equipment and energy allocation equipment shall meet the requirements and standards established and enforced by the State Corporation Commission pursuant to § 56-245.3. C. If energy submetering equipment, water and sewer submetering equipment, or energy allocation equipment is used in any building or campground, the owner, manager, or operator of the building or campground shall bill the tenant for electricity, oil, natural gas, or water and sewer for the same billing period as the utility serving the building or campground, unless the rental agreement or lease expressly provides otherwise. The owner, manager, or operator of the building or campground may charge and collect from the tenant additional service charges, including monthly billing fees, account set-up fees, or account move-out fees, to cover the actual costs of administrative expenses and billing charged to the building or campground owner, manager, or operator by a third-party provider of such services, provided that such charges are agreed to by the building or campground owner and the tenant in the rental agreement or lease. The building or campground owner may require the tenant to pay a late charge of up to $5 if the tenant fails to make payment when due, which shall not be less than 15 days following the date of mailing or delivery of the bill sent pursuant to this section. D. If a ratio utility billing system is used in any building or campground, in lieu of increasing the rent, the owner, manager, or operator of the building or campground may employ such a program that utilizes a mathematical formula for allocating, among the tenants in a building or campground, the actual or anticipated water, sewer, electrical, oil, or natural gas billings billed to the building or campground owner from a third-party provider of the utility service. The owner, manager, or operator of the building or campground may charge and collect from the tenant additional service charges, including monthly billing fees, account set-up fees, or account move-out fees, to cover the actual costs of administrative expenses and billings charged to the building or campground owner, manager, or operator by a third-party provider of such services, provided that such charges are agreed to by the building or campground owner and the tenant in the rental agreement or lease. The building or campground owner may require the tenant to pay a late charge of up to $5 if the tenant fails to make payment when due, which shall not be less than 15 days following the date of mailing or delivery of the bill sent pursuant to this section. E. Energy allocation equipment shall be tested periodically by the owner, manager, or operator of the building or campground. Upon the request by a tenant, the owner shall test the energy allocation equipment without charge. The test conducted without charge to the tenant shall not be conducted more frequently than once in a 24-month period for the same tenant. The tenant or his designated representative may be present during the testing of the energy allocation equipment. A written report of the results of the test shall be made to the tenant within 10 working days after the completion of the test. F. The owner of any building or campground shall maintain adequate records regarding energy submetering equipment, water and sewer submetering equipment, energy allocation equipment, or a ratio utility billing system. A tenant may inspect and copy the records for the leased premises during reasonable business hours at a convenient location within the building or campground. The owner of the building or campground may impose and collect a reasonable charge for copying documents, reflecting the actual costs of materials and labor for copying, prior to providing copies of the records to the tenant. G. Notwithstanding any enforcement action undertaken by the State Corporation Commission pursuant to its authority under § 56-245.3, tenants and owners shall retain any private right of action resulting from any breach of the rental agreement or lease terms required by this section or § 56-245.3, if applicable, to the same extent as such actions may be maintained for breach of other terms of the rental agreement or lease under this chapter, if applicable. The use of energy submetering equipment, water and sewer submetering equipment, energy allocation equipment, or a ratio utility billing system is not within the jurisdiction of the Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services under Chapter 56 (§ 3.2-5600 et seq.) of Title 3.2. H. In lieu of increasing the rent, the owner, manager, or operator of a building or campground may employ a program that utilizes a mathematical formula for allocating the actual or anticipated local government fees billed to the building or campground owner among the tenants in such building or campground if clearly stated in the rental agreement or lease for the leased premises. Permitted allocation methods may include formulas based upon square footage, occupancy, number of bedrooms, or some other specific method agreed to by the building or campground owner and the tenant in the rental agreement or lease. Such owner, manager, or operator of a building or campground may also charge and collect from each tenant additional service charges, including monthly billing fees, account set-up fees, or account move-out fees, to cover the actual costs of administrative expenses for administration of such a program. I. Nothing in this section shall be construed to prohibit an owner, manager, or operator of a building or campground from including water, sewer, electrical, natural gas, oil, or other utilities in the amount of rent as specified in the rental agreement or lease. 1992, c. 766, § 55-226.2; 2003, c. 355; 2005, c. 278; 2010, c. 550; 2012, c. 338; 2014, c. 501; 2015, c. 596; 2017, c. 730; 2019, c. 712.

Va. Code § 55.1-1823.1

§ 55.1-1823.1. Electric vehicle charging stations permitted.A. Except to the extent that the declaration or other recorded governing document provides otherwise, no association shall prohibit any lot owner from installing an electric vehicle charging station for the lot owner's personal use on property owned by the lot owner. An association may establish reasonable restrictions concerning the number, size, place, and manner of placement or installation of such electric vehicle charging station on the exterior of property owned by the lot owner. B. An association may prohibit or restrict the installation of electric vehicle charging stations on the common area within the development served by the association and may establish reasonable restrictions as to the number, size, place, and manner of placement or installation of electric vehicle charging stations on the common area. C. Any lot owner installing an electric vehicle charging station shall indemnify and hold the association harmless from all liability, including reasonable attorney fees incurred by the association resulting from a claim, arising out of the installation, maintenance, operation, or use of such electric charging station. An association may require the lot owner to obtain and maintain insurance covering claims and defenses of claims related to the installation, maintenance, operation, or use of the electric vehicle charging station and require the association to be included as a named insured on such policy. 2020, c. 1012.

Va. Code § 55.1-1912

§ 55.1-1912. Construction of condominium instruments.Except to the extent otherwise provided by the condominium instruments: 1. The terms defined in § 55.1-1900 shall be deemed to have the meanings therein specified wherever they appear in the condominium instruments unless the context requires a different meaning. 2. To the extent that walls, floors, or ceilings are designated as the boundaries of the units or of any specified units, all lath, wallboard, plasterboard, plaster, paneling, tiles, wallpaper, paint, and finished flooring and any other materials constituting any part of the finished surfaces of such walls, floors, or ceilings are part of such units, while all other portions of such walls, floors, or ceilings are a part of the common elements. 3. If any chutes, flues, ducts, conduits, wires, bearing walls, bearing columns, or other apparatus lies partially within and partially outside of the designated boundaries of a unit, any portions serving only that unit are a part of that unit, while any portions serving more than one unit or any portion of the common elements are a part of the common elements. 4. Subject to the provisions of subdivision 3, all space, interior partitions, and other fixtures and improvements within the boundaries of a unit are a part of that unit. 5. Any shutters, awnings, doors, windows, window boxes, doorsteps, porches, balconies, patios, or other apparatus designed to serve a single unit, but located outside the boundaries of such unit, are limited common elements appertaining to that unit exclusively, except that if a single unit's electrical master switch is located outside the designated boundaries of the unit, the switch and its cover are a part of the common elements. 1974, c. 416, § 55-79.50; 1982, cc. 206, 545; 2019, c. 712.

Va. Code § 55.1-1962.1

§ 55.1-1962.1. Electric vehicle charging stations permitted.A. Except to the extent that the condominium instruments provide otherwise, no unit owners' association shall prohibit any unit owner from installing an electric vehicle charging station for the unit owner's personal use within the boundaries of a unit or limited common element parking space appurtenant to the unit owned by the unit owner. B. Notwithstanding any other provision of this chapter or the condominium instruments, the unit owners' association may prohibit a unit owner from installing an electric vehicle charging station if installation of the electric vehicle charging station is not technically feasible or reasonably practicable due to safety risks, structural issues, or engineering conditions. C. The unit owners' association may require as a condition of approving installation of an electric vehicle charging station that the unit owner: 1. Provide detailed plans and drawings for installation of an electric vehicle charging station prepared by a licensed and registered electrical contractor or engineer familiar with the installation and core requirements of an electric vehicle charging station. 2. Comply with applicable building codes or recognized safety standards. 3. Comply with reasonable architectural standards adopted by the unit owners' association that govern the dimensions, placement, or external appearance of the electric vehicle charging station. 4. Pay the costs of installation, maintenance, operation, and use of the electric vehicle charging station. 5. Indemnify and hold the unit owners' association harmless from any claim made by a contractor or supplier pursuant to Title 43. 6. Pay the cost of removal of the electric vehicle charging station and restoration of the area if the unit owner decides there is no longer a need for the electric vehicle charging station. 7. Separately meter, at the unit owner's sole expense, the utilities associated with such electric vehicle charging station and pay the cost of electricity and other associated utilities. 8. Engage the services of a licensed electrician or engineer familiar with the installation and core requirements of an electric vehicle charging station to install the electric vehicle charging station. 9. Obtain and maintain insurance covering claims and defenses of claims related to the installation, maintenance, operation, and use of the electric vehicle charging station and provide a certificate of insurance naming the unit owners' association as an additional insured on the unit owner's insurance policy for any claim related to the installation, maintenance, operation, or use of the electric vehicle charging station within 14 days after receiving the unit owners' association's approval to install such charging station. 10. Reimburse the unit owners' association for any increase in common expenses specifically attributable to the electric vehicle charging station installation, including the actual cost of any increased insurance premium amount, within 14 days' notice from the unit owners' association. D. The conditions imposed pursuant to this section on unit owners for installation of an electric vehicle charging station shall run with title to the unit to which the limited common element parking space is appurtenant. E. Any unit owner installing an electric vehicle charging station in a unit or on a limited common element parking space appurtenant to the unit owned by the unit owner shall indemnify and hold the unit owners' association harmless from all liability, including reasonable attorney fees incurred by the association resulting from a claim, arising out of the installation, maintenance, operation, or use of such electric charging station. A unit owners' association may require the unit owner to obtain and maintain insurance covering claims and defenses of claims related to the installation, maintenance, operation, or use of the electric vehicle charging station and require the unit owners' association to be included as a named insured on such policy. 2020, c. 1012.

Va. Code § 55.1-2121

§ 55.1-2121. Alterations of units.Subject to the provisions of the declaration and other provisions of law, a proprietary lessee: 1. May make any improvements or alterations to his unit that do not impair the structural integrity or the electrical or mechanical systems of any portion of the cooperative; 2. Shall not change the appearance of the common elements, or the exterior appearance of a unit or any other portion of the cooperative, other than the interior of the unit, without permission of the association; 3. After acquiring a cooperative interest of which an adjoining unit or an adjoining part of an adjoining unit is a part, may remove or alter any intervening partition or create apertures therein, even if the partition in whole or in part is a common element, if those acts do not impair the structural integrity or electrical or mechanical systems of any portion of the cooperative. Removal of partitions or creation of apertures under this subdivision is not an alteration of boundaries. 1982, c. 277, § 55-447; 2019, c. 712.

Va. Code § 55.1-2139.1

§ 55.1-2139.1. Electric vehicle charging stations permitted.A. Except to the extent that the declaration provides otherwise, no association shall prohibit any proprietary lessee from installing an electric vehicle charging station for the proprietary lessee's personal use within the boundaries of a unit or limited common element parking space appurtenant to the unit owned by the proprietary lessee. B. Notwithstanding any other provision of this chapter or the declaration, the association may prohibit a proprietary lessee from installing an electric vehicle charging station if installation of the electric vehicle charging station is not technically feasible or practicable due to safety risks, structural issues, or engineering conditions. C. The association may require as a condition of approving installation of an electric vehicle charging station that the proprietary lessee: 1. Provide detailed plans and drawings for installation of an electric vehicle charging station prepared by a licensed and registered electrical contractor or engineer familiar with the installation and core requirements of an electric vehicle charging station. 2. Comply with applicable building codes or recognized safety standards. 3. Comply with reasonable architectural standards adopted by the association that govern the dimensions, placement, or external appearance of the electric vehicle charging station. 4. Pay the costs of installation, maintenance, operation, and use of the electric vehicle charging station. 5. Indemnify and hold the association harmless from any claim made by a contractor or supplier pursuant to Title 43. 6. Pay the cost of removal of the electric vehicle charging station if the proprietary lessee decides there is no longer a need for the electric vehicle charging station. 7. Separately meter, at the proprietary lessee's sole expense, the utilities associated with such electric vehicle charging station and pay the cost of electricity and other associated utilities. 8. Engage the services of a licensed electrician or engineer familiar with the installation and core requirements of an electric vehicle charging station to install the electric vehicle charging station. 9. Obtain and maintain insurance covering claims and defenses of claims related to the installation, maintenance, operation, and use of the electric vehicle charging station and provide a certificate of insurance naming the association as an additional insured on the proprietary lessee's insurance policy for any claim related to the installation, maintenance, operation, or use of the electric vehicle charging station within 14 days after receiving the association's approval to install such charging station. 10. Reimburse the association for any increase in common expenses specifically attributable to the electric vehicle charging station installation, including the actual cost of any increased insurance premium amount, within 14 days' notice from the association. D. The conditions imposed pursuant to this section on a proprietary lessee for installation of an electric vehicle charging station shall run with title to the unit to which the limited common element parking space is appurtenant. E. Any proprietary lessee installing an electric vehicle charging station in a unit or on a limited common element parking space appurtenant to the unit owned by the proprietary lessee shall indemnify and hold the association harmless from all liability, including reasonable attorney fees incurred by the association resulting from a claim, arising out of the installation, maintenance, operation, or use of such electric charging station. An association may require the proprietary lessee to obtain and maintain insurance covering claims and defenses of claims related to the installation, maintenance, operation, or use of the electric vehicle charging station and require the association to be included as a named insured on such policy. 2020, c. 1012.

Va. Code § 55.1-2158

§ 55.1-2158. Public offering statement; cooperatives containing conversion building.A. In addition to the information required by § 55.1-2155, the public offering statement of a cooperative containing any conversion building shall contain: 1. A statement by the declarant, based on a report prepared by an independent, registered architect or engineer, describing the present condition of all structural components and mechanical and electrical installations material to the use and enjoyment of the building; 2. A statement by the declarant of the expected useful life of each item reported on in subdivision 1, or a statement that no representations are made in that regard; and 3. A list of any outstanding notices of uncured violations of building code or other municipal regulations, together with the estimated cost of curing those violations. B. This section applies only to buildings containing units that may be occupied for residential use. 1982, c. 277, § 55-481; 2019, c. 712.

Va. Code § 55.1-2217

§ 55.1-2217. Public offering statement.A. Prior to the execution of a contract for the purchase of a time-share, the developer shall prepare and distribute to each prospective purchaser a copy of the current public offering statement regarding the time-share program. The public offering statement shall (i) fully and accurately disclose the material characteristics of the time-share program registered under this chapter and such time-share offered and (ii) make known to each prospective purchaser all material circumstances affecting such time-share program. A developer need not make joint disclosures concerning two or more time-share projects owned by the developer or any related entity unless such projects are included in the same time-share program and marketed jointly at any of the time-share projects. The proposed public offering statement shall be filed with the Board and shall be in a form prescribed by its regulations. The public offering statement may limit the information provided for the specific time-share project to which the developer's registration relates. The public offering statement shall include the following only to the extent that a given disclosure is applicable: 1. The name and principal address of the developer, including: a. The name, principal occupation, and address of every director, partner, limited liability company manager, or trustee of the developer; b. The name and address of each person owning or controlling an interest of 20 percent or more in each time-share project included in the registration; c. The particulars of any indictment, conviction, judgment, or order of any court or administrative agency against the developer or managing entity for violation of a federal, state, local, or foreign country law or regulation in connection with activities relating to time-share sales, land sales, land investments, security sales, construction or sale of homes or improvements, or any similar or related activity; d. The nature of each unsatisfied judgment, if any, against the developer or the managing entity, the status of each pending action involving the sale or management of real estate to which the developer, the managing entity, or any general partner, executive officer, director, limited liability company manager, or majority stockholder thereof is a defending party, and the status of each pending action, if any, of significance to any time-share project included in the registration; and e. The name and address of the developer's agent for service of any notice permitted by this chapter. 2. A general description of the time-share projects included in the time-share program. The description shall include the address of each time-share project, the units, and common elements for each project promised available to purchasers, including the developer's estimated schedule of commencement and completion of all promised and incomplete time-share units and common elements. 3. As to all time-shares offered by the developer: a. The form of time-share ownership offered in the time-share program; b. The types, duration, and number of units and time-shares in the time-share program; c. Identification of time-share units that are subject to the time-share program; d. The estimated number of time-share units that may become subject to the time-share program; e. Provisions, if any, that have been made for public utilities in the time-share project including water, electricity, telephone, and sewerage facilities; f. A statement to the effect of whether or not the developer has reserved the right to add to or delete from the time-share program a time-share project or any incidental benefit; g. A statement of whether the developer will offer any alternative purchase; and h. If the developer utilizes the possibility of reverter, a statement to that effect referring the purchaser to the reverter deed for an explanation of such possibility of reverter. 4. In a time-share estate program, a copy of the annual report or budget required by § 55.1-2213, which copy may take the form of an exhibit to the public offering statement. In the case where multiple time-share projects are included in the time-share program, the copy or exhibit may be in summary form. 5. In a time-share use program where the developer's net worth is no more than $250,000, a current audited balance sheet and, where the developer's net worth exceeds such amount, a statement by such developer that its equity in the time-share program exceeds that amount. 6. Any initial or special fee due from the purchaser at settlement together with a description of the purpose and method of calculating the fee. 7. A description of any liens, defects, or encumbrances affecting the time-share project and in particular the time-share offered to the purchaser. 8. A general description of any financing offered by or available through the developer. 9. A statement that the purchaser has a nonwaivable right of cancellation, referring such purchaser to that portion of the contract in which such right may be found. 10. If the time-share interest in a condominium unit may be conveyed before that condominium unit is certified as substantially complete in accordance with § 55.1-1920, a statement of the developer's obligation to complete the condominium unit. Such statement shall include the approximate date by which the condominium unit shall be completed, together with the form and amount of the bond filed in accordance with subsection B of § 55.1-1921. 11. Any restraints on alienation of any number or portion of any time-shares. 12. A description of the insurance coverage provided for the benefit of time-share owners. 13. The extent to which financial arrangements, if any, have been provided for completion of any incomplete but promised time-share unit or common element being then offered for sale, including a statement of the developer's obligation to complete the promised units and common elements that the time-share project comprises that have not begun or that have begun but have not yet been completed. 14. The extent to which a time-share unit may become subject to a tax or other lien arising out of claims against other owners of the same unit. 15. The name and address of the managing entity for each project in the time-share program. 16. Copies of the time-share instrument and the association's articles of incorporation and bylaws, each of which may be a supplement to the public offering statement. 17. Any services that the developer provides or expense it pays and that it expects may become at any subsequent time a time-share expense of the owners, and the projected time-share expense liability attributable to each of those services or expenses for each time-share. 18. A description of the terms of the deposit escrow requirements, including a statement that deposits may be removed from escrow at the termination of the cancellation period. 19. A description of the facilities, if any, provided by the developer to the association in a time-share estate project for the management of the project. 20. Any other information required by the Board to assure full and fair meaningful disclosure to prospective purchasers. B. If any prospective purchaser is offered the opportunity to subscribe to or participate in any exchange program, the public offering statement shall include, as an exhibit or supplement, the disclosure document prepared by the exchange company in accordance with § 55.1-2219 and a brief narrative description of the exchange program, which shall include the following: 1. A statement of whether membership or participation in the program is voluntary or mandatory; 2. The name and address of the exchange company together with the names of its top three officers and directors; 3. A statement of whether the exchange company or any of its top three officers, directors, or holders of a 10 percent or greater interest in the exchange company has any interest in the developer, the managing entity, or the time-share program; 4. A statement that the purchaser's contract with the exchange company is a contract separate and distinct from the purchaser's contract with the developer; and 5. A brief narrative description of the procedure by which exchanges are conducted. C. The public offering statement of a conversion time-share project shall also include the following, which may take the form of an exhibit to the public offering statement: 1. A specific statement of the amount of any initial or special fee, if any, due from the purchaser of a time-share on or before settlement of the purchase contract and the basis of such fee occasioned by the fact that the project is a conversion time-share project; 2. Information on the actual expenditures, if available, made on all repairs, maintenance, operation, or upkeep of any building in the time-share project within the last three years. This information shall be set forth in a tabular manner within the proposed budget of the project. If any such building has not been occupied for a period of three years, the information shall be set forth for the period during which such building was occupied; 3. A description of any provisions made in the budget for reserves for capital expenditures and an explanation of the basis for such reserves occasioned by the fact that the project is a conversion time-share project, or, if no provision is made for such reserves, a statement to that effect; and 4. A statement of the present condition of all structural components and major utility installations in the building, which statement shall include the approximate dates of construction, installations, and major repairs as well as the expected useful life of each such item, together with the estimated cost, in current dollars, of replacing each such component. D. In the case of a conversion time-share project, the developer shall give at least 90 days' notice to each of the tenants of any building that the developer intends to submit to the provisions of this chapter. During the first 60 days of such 90-day period, each of these tenants shall have the exclusive right to contract for the purchase of a time-share from the unit he occupies, but only if such unit is to be retained in the conversion time-share project without substantial alteration in its physical layout. Such notice shall be hand delivered or sent by first-class mail, return receipt requested, and shall inform the tenants of the developer's intent to create a conversion time-share project. Such notice may also constitute the notice to terminate the tenancy as provided for in § 55.1-1410, except that, despite the provisions of § 55.1-1410, a tenancy from month to month may only be terminated upon 120 days' notice as set forth in this subsection when such termination is in regard to the creation of a conversion time-share project. If, however, a tenant so notified remains in possession of the unit he occupies after the expiration of the 120-day period with the permission of the developer, in order to then terminate the tenancy, such developer shall give the tenant a further notice as provided in § 55.1-1410. The developer of a conversion time-share project shall, in addition to the requirements of § 55.1-2239, include with the application for registration a copy of the notice required by this subsection and a certified statement that such notice that fully complies with the provisions of this subsection shall be, at the time of the registration, mailed or delivered to each of the tenants in any building for which registration is sought. E. The developer shall amend the public offering statement to reflect any material change in the time-share program. If the developer has reserved in the time-share instrument the right to add to or delete incidental benefits, the addition or deletion of such benefits shall not constitute a material change. Prior to distribution, the developer shall file with the Board the public offering statement amended to reflect any material change. F. The Board may at any time require a developer to alter or supplement the form or substance of the public offering statement to assure full and fair disclosure to prospective purchasers. A developer may prepare and distribute a public offering statement for each time-share program offered or one public offering statement for all time-share programs offered. G. The developer shall amend the public offering statement to reflect any addition of a time-share project to, or removal of a time-share project from, the existing time-share program. H. In the case of a time-share project located outside the Commonwealth, similar disclosure statements required by other situs laws governing time-sharing may be accepted by the Board as alternative disclosure statements to satisfy the requirements of this section. I. The public offering statement may be in any format, including any electronic format, provided that the prospective buyer has available for review, along with ample time for any questions and answers, a copy of the public offering statement prior to his execution of a contract. 1981, c. 462, § 55-374; 1983, c. 59; 1984, c. 455; 1985, c. 517; 1986, c. 359; 1989, c. 637; 1994, c. 580; 1998, c. 460; 1999, c. 560; 2001, c. 543; 2004, c. 143; 2006, c. 653; 2007, c. 267; 2014, cc. 39, 716; 2019, c. 712; 2020, c. 1011; 2023, cc. 52, 53.

Va. Code § 55.1-2500

§ 55.1-2500. Definitions.As used in this chapter, unless the context requires a different meaning: "Act" means the Virginia Disposition of Unclaimed Property Act (§ 55.1-2500 et seq.). "Administrator" means the State Treasurer or his designee. "Apparent owner" means the person whose name appears on the records of the holder as the person entitled to property held, issued, or owing by the holder. "Banking organization" means any bank, trust company, savings bank (industrial bank, land bank, safe deposit company), or private banker or any other organization defined by law as a bank or banking organization. "Business association" means any corporation, joint-stock company, investment company, business trust, partnership, limited liability company, cooperative, or association for business purposes of two or more individuals, whether or not for profit, including a banking organization, financial organization, insurance company, or utility. "Credit balance" means an item of intangible property resulting from or attributable to the sale of goods or services, including an overpayment, credit memo, refund, discount, rebate, unidentified remittance, or deposit. "Domicile" means (i) the state of incorporation, in the case of a corporation incorporated under the laws of a state; (ii) the state of organization, in the case of an unincorporated business association formed under the laws of a state; (iii) the state of the principal place of business, in the case of a nonnatural person not incorporated or formed under the laws of a state; and (iv) the state of principal residency, in the case of a natural person. "Due diligence" includes the mailing of a letter by first-class mail to the last known address of the owner as indicated on the records of the holder. "Financial organization" means any savings and loan association (cooperative bank), building and loan association, or credit union. "Gift certificate" means a certificate, electronic card, or other medium that evidences the giving of consideration in exchange for the right to redeem the certificate, electronic card, or other medium for goods, food, services, credit, or money of an equal value. "Holder" means a person, wherever organized or domiciled, that is (i) in possession of property belonging to another; (ii) a trustee, in the case of a trust; or (iii) indebted to another on an obligation. "Insurance company" means an association, corporation, or fraternal or mutual benefit organization, whether or not for profit, that is engaged in providing insurance coverage, including accident, burial, casualty, contract performance, credit life, dental, fidelity, fire, health, hospitalization, illness, life (including endowments and annuities), malpractice, marine, mortgage, surety, and wage protection insurance. "Intangible property" includes (i) moneys, checks, drafts, deposits, interest, and dividend income; (ii) credits, customer overpayments, gift certificates, security deposits, refunds, unpaid wages, and unidentified remittances; (iii) stocks and other intangible ownership interests in business associations; (iv) moneys deposited to redeem stocks, bonds, coupons, and other securities or to make distributions; (v) amounts due and payable under the terms of insurance policies; and (vi) amounts distributable from a trust or custodial fund established under a plan to provide any health, welfare, pension, vacation, severance, retirement, death, stock purchase, profit sharing, employee savings, supplemental unemployment insurance, or similar benefit. "Last known address" means a description of the location of the apparent owner sufficient to identify the state of residence of the apparent owner for the purpose of the delivery of mail. "Owner" means (i) a depositor, in the case of a deposit; (ii) a beneficiary, in the case of a trust, other than a deposit in trust; (iii) a creditor, claimant, or payee, in the case of other intangible property; or (iv) a person having a legal or equitable interest in property subject to this chapter or his legal representative. "Payable" means the earliest date upon which the owner of property could become entitled to the payments, possession, delivery, or distribution of such property from a holder. "Person" means an individual; a business association; a government or governmental subdivision or agency, public corporation, or public authority; an estate; a trust; two or more persons having a joint or common interest; or any other legal or commercial entity. "Promotional incentive" means a coupon, rebate, or other promotional device offered to induce a consumer to purchase goods, food, or services and for which (i) no direct consideration is given by the consumer or (ii) the consideration given is less than the value of the goods, food, or services to be received. "State," when applied to a part of the United States, includes any state, district, commonwealth, territory, and insular possession and any other area subject to the legislative authority of the United States. "Unclaimed property" means property for which the owner, as shown by the records of the holder of his property, has ceased, failed, or neglected, within the times provided in this chapter, to make presentment and demand for payment and satisfaction or to do any other act in relation to or concerning such property. As used in this definition, "act" excludes any act of a holder of unclaimed property not done at the express request or authorization of the owner. "Utility" means a person that owns or operates, for public use, any plant, equipment, property, franchise, or license for the transmission of communications or the production, storage, transmission, sale, delivery, or furnishing of electricity, water, steam, or gas. 1960, c. 330, § 55-210.2; 1981, c. 47; 1982, c. 331; 1983, c. 190; 1984, c. 121; 1988, c. 378; 2000, cc. 733, 745; 2019, c. 712.

Va. Code § 55.1-2703

§ 55.1-2703. Right of property to be proved.In any action relating to the ownership of any property described in § 55.1-2700, the person, other than the owner of such land, claiming to be the owner of the property must prove his ownership in order to sustain his claim. Code 1919, § 3572; Code 1950, § 55-210; 2019, c. 712. Chapter 28. Trespasses; Fences. Article 1. Electric Fences.

Va. Code § 55.1-2801

§ 55.1-2801. Unlawful to sell, distribute, construct, install, maintain, or use certain electric fences upon agricultural land.A. It is unlawful for any person to sell, distribute, construct, install, maintain, or use upon any land used for agricultural purposes or, for any person exercising supervision or control over any such land, to permit any other person to construct, install, maintain, or use any electric fence energized with an electric charge unless the charge is regulated by a controlling device. Except as otherwise provided in this article, such controlling device shall display the approved label of and shall conform to the safety standards promulgated by the Underwriters Laboratories, Inc., in its publication number UL69, dated June 30, 2009, and entitled "Standard for Safety for Electric-Fence Controllers," as the same may from time to time be supplemented, or shall display the approved label of and meet the safety standards promulgated by the International Electrotechnical Commission in its publication IEC 60335-2-76, second edition (BS EN 69335-2-76), as the same may from time to time be supplemented. B. No metallically continuous fence or set of electrically connected fences shall be supplied by more than one controlling device. C. Any controlling device shall be suitably grounded when placed in service. 1982, c. 280, § 55-298.1; 2019, c. 712.

Va. Code § 55.1-2802

§ 55.1-2802. Unlawful to sell other controlling devices unless they meet certain standards.A. A controlling device that does not conform to the requirements of § 55.1-2801 shall not be sold, distributed, constructed, installed, maintained, or used unless it meets the following standards: 1. A peak-discharge-output type controlling device that delivers intermittent current of a value not in excess of four milliampere-seconds for a maximum "on" period of two-tenths second and a minimum "off" period of three-quarters second. The mean value of the peak output from such device shall progressively decrease from four milliampere-seconds at maximum "on" periods of both two-tenths and one-tenth second to three and two-tenths milliampere-seconds at six-hundredths second, one and nine-tenths milliampere-seconds at three-hundredths second, and consequently to shorter "on" periods as output current increases. 2. A sinusoidal-output type controlling device that delivers an intermittent current of a value not in excess of five milliamperes for a maximum "on" period of two-tenths second and a minimum "off" period of nine-tenths second. The effective value of the output from such device may increase as the "on" period decreases, increasing from 40 milliamperes for one-tenth second to 57 milliamperes for five-hundredths second, and 65 milliamperes for twenty-seven thousandths second. 3. Any other type of controlling device that delivers a maximum intermittent current output of a value not in excess of four milliampere-seconds for a maximum "on" period of two-tenths second and a minimum "off" period of nine-tenths second. B. Notwithstanding the provisions of subsection A, no electric fence controlling device shall be sold, distributed, constructed, installed, maintained, or used that will permit for longer than one second an uninterrupted electric current on the fence with an effective value in excess of five milliamperes when the load, including the measuring device, is not less than 450 ohms nor more than 550 ohms. 1982, c. 280, §§ 55-298.2, 55-298.3; 2019, c. 712.

Va. Code § 55.1-305

§ 55.1-305. Enjoyment of easement.Unless otherwise provided for in the terms of an easement, the owner of a dominant estate shall not use an easement in a way that is not reasonably consistent with the uses contemplated by the grant of the easement, and the owner of the servient estate shall not engage in an activity or cause to be present any objects either upon the burdened land or immediately adjacent to such land that unreasonably interferes with the enjoyment of the easement by the owner of the dominant estate. For the purposes of this section, "object" does not include any fence, electric fence, cattle guard, gate, or division fence adjacent to such easement as those terms are defined in §§ 55.1-2800 through 55.1-2826. Any violation of this section may be deemed a private nuisance, provided, however, that the remedy for a violation of this section shall not in any manner impair the right to any other relief that may be applicable at law or in equity. 2003, c. 774, § 55-50.1; 2007, c. 931; 2019, c. 712.

Va. Code § 55.1-306.1

§ 55.1-306.1. Utility easements; expansion of broadband.A. As used in this section, unless the context otherwise requires: "Claim" means, in reference to litigation brought against an indemnified party, any demand, claim, cause or right of action, judgment, settlement, payment, provision of a consent decree or a consent decree, damages, attorneys fees, costs, expenses, and any other losses of any kind whatsoever associated with litigation. "Communications provider" means a broadband or other communications service provider, including a public utility as defined in § 56-265.1, a cable operator as defined in § 15.2-2108.1:1, a local exchange carrier, competitive or incumbent, or a subsidiary or affiliate of any such entity. "Easement" means an existing or future occupied electric distribution or communications easement with right of apportionment, including a prescriptive easement, except that "easement" does not include (i) easements that contain electric substations or other installations or facilities of a nonlinear character and (ii) electric transmission easements. "Enterprise data center operations" has the same meaning as provided in § 58.1-422.2. "Evidence of creditworthiness" means commercially reasonable assurance, in a form satisfactory to the incumbent utility, that the communications provider will be able to meet its obligations to indemnify as required by this section. Demonstrating that the communications provider has met the eligibility requirements for the Virginia Telecommunications Initiative (VATI), without regard to receipt of a VATI grant, pursuant to regulations or guidelines adopted by the Department of Housing and Community Development, shall be presumptive evidence of creditworthiness. "Incumbent utility" means the entity that is the owner of the easement. "Indemnified parties" means an incumbent utility, or any subsidiary or affiliate of any such entity, and the employees, attorneys, officers, agents, directors, representatives, or contractors of any such entity. "Occupancy license agreement" means an uncompensated agreement between an incumbent utility and a communications provider, for use when the communications provider wishes to occupy an easement underground, that includes evidence of creditworthiness, nondiscriminatory provisions based on safety, reliability, and generally applicable engineering principles. "Prescriptive easement" means an easement in favor of an incumbent utility or communications provider that is deemed to exist, without any requirement of adverse possession, claim of right, or exclusivity, when physical evidence, records of the incumbent utility, public records, or other evidence indicates that it has existed on the servient estate for a continuous period of 20 years or more, without intervening litigation during such period by any party with a title interest seeking the removal of utility facilities or reformation of the easement. The size of such easement shall be deemed to be the greater of the actual occupancy of the easement in the incumbent utility's usual course of business or 7.5 feet on each side of the installed facilities' center-line. "Public utility" has the same meaning as provided in § 56-265.1. "Sensitive site" means an underlying servient estate that is occupied by a railroad or an owner or tenant having operations related to national defense, national security, or law-enforcement purposes. B. It is the policy of the Commonwealth that: 1. Easements for the location and use of electric and communications facilities may be used to provide or expand broadband or other communications services; 2. The use of easements, appurtenant or gross, to provide or expand broadband or other communications services is in the public interest; 3. The installation, replacement, or use of public utility conduit, including the costs of installation, replacement, or use of conduit of a sufficient size to accommodate the installation of infrastructure to provide or expand broadband or other communications services, is in the public interest. 4. The use of easements, appurtenant or gross, to provide or expand broadband or other communications services (i) does not constitute a change in the physical use of the easement, (ii) does not interfere with, impair, or take any vested or other rights of the owner or occupant of the servient estate, (iii) does not place any additional burden on the servient estate other than a de minimis burden, if any; and (iv) has value to the owner or occupant of the servient estate greater than any de minimis impact; 5. The installation and operation of broadband or other communications services within easements, appurtenant or gross, are merely changes in the manner, purpose, or degree of the granted use as appropriate to accommodate a new technology; and 6. The statements in this subsection are intended to provide guidance to courts, agencies, and political subdivisions of the Commonwealth. Nothing in this section shall be deemed to make the use of an easement for broadband or other communications services, whether appurtenant, in gross, common, exclusive, or nonexclusive, a public use for the purposes of § 1-219.1, or other applicable law. C. The installation and operation of broadband or other communications services by an incumbent utility for that utility's own internal use, adjunctive to the operation of the electric system, or for the purposes of electric safety, reliability, energy management, and electric grid modernization, are permitted uses within the scope of every easement. D. Absent any express prohibition on the installation and operation of broadband or other communications services in an easement that is contained in a deed or other instrument by which the easement was granted, the installation and operation of broadband or other communications services within any easement shall be deemed, as a matter of law, to be a permitted use within the scope of every easement for the location and use of electric and communications facilities. E. Subject to compliance with any express prohibitions in a written easement, any incumbent utility or communications provider may use an easement to install, construct, provide, maintain, modify, lease, operate, repair, replace, or remove its communications equipment, system, or facilities, and provide communications services through the same, without such incumbent utility or communications provider paying additional compensation to the owner or occupant of the servient estate or to the incumbent utility, provided that no additional utility poles are installed. F. Nothing in this section shall diminish a landowner's right to contest, in a court of competent jurisdiction, the nature or existence of a prescriptive easement that has been continuously occupied for less than 20 years. G. Any incumbent utility or communications provider may use a prescriptive easement to install, construct, provide, maintain, modify, lease, operate, repair, replace, or remove its communications equipment, system, or facilities, and provide communications services through the same, without such incumbent utility or communications provider paying additional compensation to the owner or occupant of the servient estate or to the incumbent utility, provided that no additional utility poles are installed. H. Any incumbent utility may grant or apportion to any communications provider rights to install, construct, provide, maintain, modify, lease, operate, repair, replace, or remove its communications equipment, system, or facilities, and to provide communications services through the incumbent utility's prescriptive easement, including the right to enter upon such easement without approval of the owner or occupant of the servient estate, such grant and use being in the public interest and within the scope of the property interests acquired by the incumbent utility when the prescriptive easement was established. I. Notwithstanding any other provision of law, in any action for trespass, or any claim sounding in trespass or reasonably related thereto, whatever the theory of recovery, relating to real property that is brought after July 1, 2020, against an incumbent utility or a communications provider, in relation to the existence, installation, construction, maintenance, modification, operation, repair, replacement, or removal of any poles, wires, conduit, or other communications infrastructure, including fiber optic or coaxial cabling or the existence of any easement, appurtenant or gross, including a prescriptive easement, if proven, damages recoverable by any claimant bringing such claim shall be limited to actual damages only, and no consequential, special, or punitive damages shall be awarded. Damages shall be based on any reduction in the value of the land as a result of the existence, installation, construction, maintenance, modification, operation, repair, replacement, or removal of communications facilities, as such tract existed at the time that any alleged trespass began giving rise to such claim under this section. The court shall also consider any positive value that access to broadband or other communications services may add to the property's value when calculating damages. Injunctive relief to require the removal or to enjoin the operation of other communications facilities or infrastructure shall not be available when such line or facilities are placed within an existing electric utility or communications easement, appurtenant or gross, but damages as set forth in this subsection shall be the exclusive remedy. J. Nothing in this section shall be deemed to limit any liability for personal injury or damage to tangible personal property of the landowner or occupant caused directly by the activities of the incumbent utility or communications provider while on or adjacent to the landowner's or occupant's real property. K. Any communications provider making use of an easement pursuant to this section shall: 1. Enter into an agreement with the incumbent utility authorizing it to use an easement; 2. Adhere to such restrictions as the incumbent utility may place on the communications provider, provided that such restrictions are reasonably related to safety, reliability, or generally applicable engineering principles and are applied on a nondiscriminatory basis; 3. For underground facilities, enter into an occupancy license agreement with the incumbent utility; 4. Agree in writing to indemnify, defend, and hold harmless the indemnified parties as against any third party for any claim, including claims of trespass, arising out of its entry onto, use of, or occupancy of such easement and provide evidence of creditworthiness, as the incumbent utility may prescribe, provided that the communications provider is given timely written notice and full cooperation of the indemnified parties in defending or settling any claim, including access to records and personnel to establish the existence of an easement and its history of use by the incumbent utility, and further provided that every communications provider occupying an easement that is the subject of a claim shall be jointly and severally liable to the indemnified parties, with an obligation of equal contribution, for any claim arising out of entry onto, use of, or occupancy of an easement for communications purposes; and 5. For underground facilities, abide by the provisions of the Underground Utility Damage Prevention Act (§ 56-265.14 et seq.). L. A communications provider, making use of an easement pursuant to this section, shall not: 1. Locate a telecommunications tower in such easement; or 2. Install any new underground facilities except pursuant to an occupancy license agreement (i) in an incumbent utility's conduit pursuant to a joint use agreement; (ii) where incumbent utility facilities are permitted underground, using a clean-cutting direct burial technique beneath the surface soil no more than 24 inches in depth and six inches in width; or (iii) riser or drop lines or equipment connection lines, followed in all cases by reasonable restoration of the surface to substantially its prior condition, provided that the landowner shall not, absent an agreement to the contrary, be responsible for relocating or reimbursing the incumbent utility or a communications provider for the cost of relocating any new underground communications facilities installed pursuant to clause (ii) of this subdivision, which relocation and associated costs shall be addressed in the occupancy license agreement. This limitation on reimbursement or payment of relocation costs incurred as a result of development or redevelopment by the landowner shall not apply to any communications facilities in the public rights of way adjacent to or overlying the real property in question. M. As against a communications provider, no incumbent utility shall: 1. Solely by virtue of the provisions of this section, require any additional compensation for use of an easement, unless such compensation is required expressly in a written easement or other agreement; 2. Unreasonably refuse to grant an occupancy license agreement to any communications provider; 3. Include in an occupancy license agreement requirements for title reports, surveys, or engineering drawings; or 4. Use an occupancy license agreement for dilatory purposes or to create a barrier to the deployment of broadband or other communications services. N. Nothing in this section shall apply to those easements located on sensitive sites or housing enterprise data center operations. O. Notwithstanding any provision of this section, a public utility or an incumbent utility may assess fees and charges and impose reasonable conditions on the use of its poles, conduits, facilities, and infrastructure, which, as regarding attachments to utility poles, shall be subject to the provisions of 47 U.S.C. § 224 for investor-owned utilities and to § 56-466.1 for electric cooperatives. The statutes of repose, limitation, and notice-of-claim requirements contained in subsections R, S, and T shall not apply as being between a communications provider and an incumbent utility. P. Nothing in this section shall be construed to inhibit, diminish, or modify the application of the provisions of Chapter 4 (§ 56-76 et seq.) of Title 56 or § 56-231.34:1 or 56-231.50:1, as applicable. Q. The provisions of this section shall be liberally construed. An agreement to indemnify pursuant to this section shall not be void as against public policy. R. Notwithstanding any other provision of law, every action against an incumbent utility, public utility, or communications provider, or a subsidiary or affiliate of any such entity, in relation to the existence, installation, construction, maintenance, modification, operation, repair, replacement, or removal of any poles, wires, or other communications infrastructure, including fiber optic or coaxial cabling, whatever the theory of recovery, shall be brought within 12 months after the cause of action accrues. The cause of action shall be deemed to accrue when overhead broadband or other communications infrastructure is installed or when such underground infrastructure is discovered. S. Notwithstanding any other provision of law, every action against an incumbent utility, public utility, or a communications provider, or a subsidiary or affiliate of any such entity, after actual notice has been given to the landowner or occupant in relation to the existence, installation, construction, maintenance, modification, operation, repair, replacement, or removal of any poles, wires, or other communications infrastructure, including fiber optic or coaxial cabling, overhead or underground, whatever the theory of recovery, shall be brought within six months after the cause of action accrues. The cause of action shall be deemed to accrue when actual notice, including notification of such six-month limitation period, is given to the landowner or occupant by first class mail to the last known mailing address of the landowner or occupant in the incumbent utility's records, or other actual notice. T. Notwithstanding any other provision of law, every claim cognizable against any incumbent utility, public utility, or communications provider for trespass, or any claim sounding in trespass or reasonably related thereto, whatever the theory of recovery, in relation to the overhead or underground existence, installation, construction, maintenance, modification, operation, repair, replacement, or removal of any poles, wires, or other communications infrastructure, including fiber optic or coaxial cabling, shall be forever barred unless the claimant or his agent, attorney, or representative has filed a written statement addressed to the incumbent utility, and, if known, to the communications provider, of the nature of the claim, which includes the time and place at which the claim is alleged to have transpired, within 12 months after such cause of action accrued. The cause of action shall be deemed to accrue when physical overhead broadband or other communications infrastructure is installed, or when the existence of such underground infrastructure is discovered. However, if the claimant was under a disability at the time the cause of action accrued, the tolling provisions of § 8.01-229 shall apply. 2020, cc. 1131, 1132.

Va. Code § 55.1-3201

§ 55.1-3201. Exemptions.This chapter shall not apply to: 1. A home warranty or similar product that covers the cost of maintenance of a major home system, such as plumbing, HVAC, or electrical wiring, for a specific period of time; 2. An insurance contract; 3. An option or right of refusal to purchase residential real property; 4. A declaration created in the formation of a common interest community as defined in § 54.1-2345 or any amendment thereto; 5. A maintenance or repair agreement entered into by a property owners' association in a common interest community; 6. A mortgage loan or commitment to make or receive a mortgage loan; 7. An agreement relating to the sale or rental of personal property; 8. Water, sewer, electrical, telephone, cable, or other regulated utility service providers; 9. A property management agreement by which the owner of the real property contracts with a party to provide management services for the maintenance, ownership, operation, or lease of a residential premises; or 10. A mechanic's lien, as established by § 43-1. 2024, cc. 328, 362.

Va. Code § 55.1-347

§ 55.1-347. Definitions.As used in this article, unless the context requires otherwise: "Day" means calendar day. "Document" means information that is: 1. Inscribed on a tangible medium or that is stored in an electronic or other medium and is retrievable in perceivable form; and 2. Eligible to be recorded in the land records maintained by the clerk. "Electronic," as defined in the Uniform Electronic Transactions Act (§ 59.1-479 et seq.), means relating to technology having electrical, digital, magnetic, wireless, optical, electromagnetic, or similar capabilities. "Person" means an individual, corporation, business trust, estate, trust, partnership, limited liability company, association, joint venture, public corporation, government, or governmental subdivision, agency, or instrumentality or any other legal or commercial entity. "Real property" means real property that is used for residential or nonresidential purposes. "Recording data" means the date, and deed book and page number or instrument number, that indicates where a document is recorded in the land records of the clerk of the circuit court pursuant to Chapter 6 (§ 55.1-600 et seq.). "Secured creditor" means a person that holds or is the beneficiary of a security interest or that is authorized both to receive payments on behalf of a person that holds a security interest in real property and to record a satisfaction of the security instrument upon receiving full performance of the secured obligation. "Secured creditor" does not include a trustee under a security instrument. "Secured creditor" also includes "lender" as used in Chapter 10 (§ 55.1-1000 et seq.) and "lien creditor" and "servicer" as defined in § 55.1-339. "Secured obligation" means an obligation the payment or performance of which is secured by a security interest. "Security instrument" means an agreement, however denominated, that creates or provides for a security interest, whether or not it also creates or provides for a lien on personal property. "Security interest" means an interest in real property created by a security instrument, securing payment, or performance of an obligation and includes a mortgage or deed of trust. "Sign" means, with present intent to authenticate, accept, or adopt a document: 1. To execute or adopt a tangible symbol; or 2. To attach to or logically associate with the document an electronic sound, symbol, or process. "State" means a state of the United States, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, the United States Virgin Islands, or any territory or insular possession subject to the jurisdiction of the United States. "Submit for recording" means to deliver, with required fees and taxes, a document sufficient to be recorded under this article to the office of the clerk of the circuit court pursuant to Chapter 6 (§ 55.1-600 et seq.). 2006, c. 907, § 55-66.9; 2019, c. 712.

Va. Code § 55.1-661

§ 55.1-661. Definitions.As used in this article, unless the context requires a different meaning: "Clerk" means a clerk of the circuit court. "Document" means information that is: 1. Inscribed on a tangible medium or that is stored in an electronic or other medium and is retrievable in perceivable form; and 2. Eligible to be recorded in the land records maintained by the clerk. "Electronic," as defined in Uniform Electronic Transactions Act (§ 59.1-479 et seq.), means relating to technology having electrical, digital, magnetic, wireless, optical, electromagnetic, or similar capabilities. "Electronic document" means a document received by the clerk in electronic form. "Electronic notarization" means an official act by a notary public in accordance with the Virginia Notary Act (§ 47.1-1 et seq.) and § 55.1-618 with respect to an electronic document. "Electronic signature," as defined in the Uniform Electronic Transactions Act (§ 59.1-479 et seq.), means an electronic sound, symbol, or process attached to or logically associated with a record and executed or adopted by a person with the intent to sign the record. "eRecording System" is the automated electronic recording system implemented by the clerk for the recordation of electronic documents among the land records maintained by the clerk. "Filer" means an individual, corporation, business trust, estate, trust, partnership, limited liability company, association, joint venture, public body, public corporation, government, or governmental subdivision, agency, or instrumentality, or any other legal or commercial entity that files an electronic document among the land records maintained by the clerk. "Land records document" means any writing authorized by law to be recorded, whether made on paper or in electronic format, that the clerk records affecting title to real property. 2006, c. 745, § 55-142.10; 2019, c. 712.

Va. Code § 56-1

§ 56-1. Definitions.Whenever used in this title, unless the context requires a different meaning: "Broadband connection," for purposes of this section, means a connection where transmission speeds exceed 200 kilobits per second in at least one direction. "Commission" means the State Corporation Commission. "Corporation" or "company" includes all corporations created by acts of the General Assembly of Virginia, or under the general incorporation laws of this Commonwealth, or doing business therein, and shall exclude all municipal corporations, other political subdivisions, and public institutions owned or controlled by the Commonwealth. "Electric vehicle charging service" means the replenishment of the battery of a plug-in electric motor vehicle, which replenishment occurs by plugging the motor vehicle into an electric power source in order to charge or recharge its battery. "Interexchange telephone service" means telephone service between points in two or more exchanges that is not classified as local exchange telephone service. "Interexchange telephone service" shall not include Voice-over-Internet protocol service for purposes of regulation by the Commission, including the imposition of certification processing fees and other administrative requirements, and the filing or approval of tariffs. Nothing herein shall be construed to either mandate or prohibit the payment of switched network access rates or other intercarrier compensation, if any, related to Voice-over-Internet protocol service. "Local exchange telephone service" means telephone service provided in a geographical area established for the administration of communication services and consists of one or more central offices together with associated facilities which are used in providing local exchange service. Local exchange service, as opposed to interexchange service, consists of telecommunications between points within an exchange or between exchanges which are within an area where customers may call at specified rates and charges. "Local exchange telephone service" shall not include Voice-over-Internet protocol service for purposes of regulation by the Commission, including the imposition of certification processing fees and other administrative requirements, and the filing or approval of tariffs. Nothing herein shall be construed to either mandate or prohibit the payment of switched network access rates or other intercarrier compensation, if any, related to Voice-over-Internet protocol service. "Mail" includes electronic mail and other forms of electronic communication when the customer has requested or authorized electronic bill delivery or other electronic communications. "Municipality" or "municipal corporation" shall include an authority created by a governmental unit exempt from the referendum requirement of § 15.2-5403. "Person" includes individuals, partnerships, limited liability companies, and corporations. "Plug-in electric motor vehicle" means an on-road motor vehicle that draws propulsion using a traction battery that has at least four kilowatt hours of capacity, uses an external source of electric energy to charge or recharge the battery, has a gross vehicle weight of not more than 14,000 pounds, and meets any applicable emissions standards. "Public service corporation" or "public service company" includes gas, pipeline, electric light, heat, power and water supply companies, sewer companies, telephone companies, and all persons authorized to transport passengers or property as a common carrier. "Public service corporation" or "public service company" shall not include (i) a municipal corporation, other political subdivision or public institution owned or controlled by the Commonwealth; however, if such an entity has obtained a certificate to provide services pursuant to § 56-265.4:4, then such entity shall be deemed to be a public service corporation or public service company and subject to the authority of the Commission with respect only to its provision of the services it is authorized to provide pursuant to such certificate; or (ii) any company described in subdivision (b)(10) of § 56-265.1. "Railroad" includes all railroad or railway lines, whether operated by steam, electricity, or other motive power, except when otherwise specifically designated. "Railroad company" includes any company, trustee or other person owning, leasing or operating a railroad. "Rate" means rate charged for any service rendered or to be rendered. "Rate," "charge" and "regulation" include joint rates, joint charges and joint regulations, respectively. "Regulated operating revenue" includes only revenue from services not found to be competitive. "Transportation company" includes any railroad company, any company transporting express by railroad, and any ship or boat company. "Virginia limited liability company" has the same meaning ascribed to "limited liability company" in § 13.1-1002. A foreign limited liability company, as that term is defined in § 13.1-1002, may become a Virginia limited liability company, even though also being a limited liability company organized under laws other than the laws of the Commonwealth, by filing articles of organization that meet the requirements of §§ 13.1-1003 and 13.1-1011 and include (i) the name of the foreign limited liability company immediately prior to the filing of the articles of organization; (ii) the date on which and the jurisdiction in which the foreign limited liability company was first formed, organized, created or otherwise came into being; and (iii) the jurisdiction that constituted the seat, siege social, or principal place of business or central administration of the foreign limited liability company, or any equivalent thereto under applicable law, immediately prior to the filing of the articles of organization. With respect to a foreign limited liability company that is also organized as a Virginia limited liability company, the terms and conditions of its organization as a Virginia limited liability company shall be approved in the manner provided for by the document, instrument, agreement or other writing, as the case may be, governing the internal affairs of the foreign limited liability company in the conduct of its business or by applicable law other than the law of the Commonwealth, as appropriate. "Voice-over-Internet protocol service" or "VoIP service" means any service that: (i) enables real-time, two-way voice communications that originate or terminate from the user's location using Internet protocol or any successor protocol and (ii) uses a broadband connection from the user's location. This definition includes any such service that permits users generally to receive calls that originate on the public switched telephone network and to terminate calls to the public switched telephone network. Code 1919, §§ 3693, 3881; 1971, Ex. Sess., c. 23; 1984, c. 382; 2002, cc. 479, 489; 2004, c. 1028; 2006, cc. 691, 912, 929, 941; 2007, c. 619; 2009, c. 746; 2011, cc. 408, 738, 740; 2016, c. 288.

Va. Code § 56-1.2

§ 56-1.2. Persons, localities, and school boards not designated as public utility, public service corporation, etc.The terms public utility, public service corporation, or public service company, as used in Chapters 1 (§ 56-1 et seq.), 10 (§ 56-232 et seq.), 10.1 (§ 56-265.1 et seq.), and 10.2:1 (§ 56-265.13:1 et seq.) of this title, shall not refer to: 1. Any person who owns or operates property and provides electricity, natural gas, water, or sewer service to residents or tenants on the property, provided that (i) the electricity, natural gas, water, or sewer service provided to the residents or tenants is purchased by the person from a public utility, public service corporation, public service company, or person licensed by the Commission as a competitive provider of energy services, or a county, city or town, or other publicly regulated political subdivision or public body, (ii) the person or his agent charges to the resident or tenant on the property only that portion of the person's utility charges for the electricity, natural gas, water, or sewer service which is attributable to usage by the resident or tenant on the property, and additional service charges permitted by § 55.1-1212 or 55.1-1404, as applicable, and (iii) the person maintains three years' billing records for such charges. 2. Any (i) person who is not a public service corporation and who provides electric vehicle charging service at retail, (ii) school board that operates retail fee-based electric vehicle charging stations on school property pursuant to § 22.1-131, or (iii) locality that operates a retail fee-based electric vehicle charging station on property owned or leased by the locality pursuant to § 15.2-967.2. The ownership or operation of a facility at which electric vehicle charging service is sold, and the selling of electric vehicle charging service from that facility, does not render such person, school board, locality, or board of visitors a public utility, public service corporation, or public service company as used in Chapters 1 (§ 56-1 et seq.), 10 (§ 56-232 et seq.), 10.1 (§ 56-265.1 et seq.), and 10.2:1 (§ 56-265.13:1 et seq.) solely because of that sale, ownership, or operation. 3. Any agency, as defined in § 2.2-128, when operating a retail fee-based electric vehicle charging station pursuant to § 2.2-614.5 on any property or facility the agency controls. The ownership or operation of a facility at which electric vehicle charging service is sold, or the selling of electric vehicle charging service from that facility, does not render the agency a public utility, public service corporation, or public service company as used in Chapters 1 (§ 56-1 et seq.), 10 (§ 56-232 et seq.), 10.1 (§ 56-265.1 et seq.), and 10.2:1 (§ 56-265.13:1 et seq.) solely because of that sale, ownership, or operation. 1993, c. 265; 1999, c. 778; 2000, c. 994; 2003, c. 355; 2011, c. 408; 2017, c. 239; 2018, cc. 295, 446; 2019, c. 248; 2020, c. 490.

Va. Code § 56-16.1

§ 56-16.1. Telephone, telegraph or electric power lines crossing railroads.A. If a telephone, telegraph or electric power company desires to cross the works of a railroad company and the parties thereto cannot agree on the manner of the crossing or the compensation to be paid or the damages, if any, occasioned by such crossing, then either party may proceed under this section in such case. Such party, after complying with the provisions of §§ 56-17 and 56-18, insofar as they are applicable, may apply to the Commission within thirty days after the submission of the plans and specifications required in § 56-18, to inquire into the necessity for such crossing, the propriety of the proposed location, all matters pertaining to its construction and operation, and the crossing fee and damages, if any, to be paid to such railroad. B. Every such application shall, in addition to the plans and specifications required in § 56-18, set forth (i) the means applicant proposes to employ to protect persons and property on the premises of the railroad; (ii) the extent to which applicant will safeguard the railroad from damage or destruction of persons or property resulting from such crossing including a provision to save the railroad harmless from claims arising as a result of such crossing; (iii) the conditions under which usage of the crossing will terminate and all interests revert to the railroad; and (iv) the means which applicant proposes to employ to prevent interference with the unlimited use of the property by the railroad including, but without limitation, the communication and transportation system on the property proposed to be crossed. The Commission may, at its discretion, require the applicant to provide a bond or insurance conditioned to save the railroad harmless from claims arising as a result of such crossing. The Commission may, as provided in § 56-19, employ experts to advise it with reference to such application. C. If the Commission grants such application in whole or in part, the order of the Commission shall grant a license for such crossing upon compliance with the terms of the order, and shall fix a fee for such crossing and determine the damages, if any; in fixing the amount of such fees the Commission shall consider the costs involved to the company to be crossed and the periodic inspection of such works. D. Construction shall not begin until permitted under an order provided for in paragraph C hereof unless the parties agree thereto; provided that the Commission may allow construction to proceed pending the determination of the fee and damages, if any. 1976, c. 328.

Va. Code § 56-16.3

§ 56-16.3. Fiber optic broadband lines crossing railroads.A. For the purposes of this section: "Actual flagging expenses" means expenses directly attributable to the cost of maintaining flaggers at the point of the crossing during the period of time construction is actually occurring. "Actual flagging expenses" shall be considered pass-through expenses and shall not exceed the expense incurred by the railroad company. "Broadband service provider" means (i) an entity that provides broadband service through the utilization of a fiber optic broadband line, coaxial cable, or other wireline system or (ii) a Phase I or Phase II Utility, as those terms are defined in subdivision A 1 of § 56-585.1, or a cooperative, as defined in § 56-231.15, that provides middle-mile infrastructure to Internet service providers. "Direct expenses" includes (i) the cost of inspecting and monitoring the crossing site; (ii) administrative and engineering costs for review of specifications and for entering a crossing on the railroad's books, maps, and property records, and other reasonable administrative and engineering costs incurred as a result of the crossing; (iii) document and preparation fees associated with a crossing and any engineering specifications related to the crossing; and (iv) actual flagging expenses associated with the crossing. "Fiber optic broadband line" means (i) a fiber optic cable consisting of one or more thin flexible fibers with a glass core through which light signals can transmit data as pulses, a coaxial cable, or other wireline system of technology used for broadband distribution or (ii) the middle-mile infrastructure to Internet service providers. "License fee" means the fee to be paid by the broadband service provider to the railroad company for the crossing, including all occupancy or real property rights. "Railroad company" includes any company, trustee, or other person that owns, leases, or operates a railroad or owns or leases the land upon which a railroad is operated, and any company, trustee, or other person to which a railroad company has granted rights to collect or retain all or a portion of any revenue stream owed by a third party for use of or access to such railroad company's facilities or property. B. If a broadband service provider deems it necessary in the construction of its systems to cross the works of a railroad company, including its tracks, bridges, facilities, and all railroad company rights of way or easements, then the broadband service provider shall submit an application for such crossing to the railroad company. C. The procedure for a crossing shall be as follows: 1. The broadband service provider's application shall include (i) the license fee described in subsection G; (ii) engineering design plans, construction plans, bore plans, fraction mitigation plans, dewatering plans, rigging and lifting plans, and any other pertinent plans deemed necessary and prepared by a registered professional engineer; (iii) the location of the crossing, including whether it is located in a public right-of-way; (iv) the proposed date of commencement of work; (v) the anticipated duration of the work in the crossing; (vi) the areas in which the project personnel will work; and (vii) the contact information of the broadband service provider's point of contact. Notice shall also be provided to the electric utility in whose certificated service territory the crossing is proposed to be located. 2. Upon receipt of the broadband service provider's crossing application, the railroad company shall acknowledge receipt of such application. 3. The railroad company shall review the application and may request additional information or clarification from the broadband service provider within 15 days from receipt of the application. If additional information or clarification is requested, the broadband service provider shall respond within 10 days from the receipt of the request. 4. The railroad company shall approve the broadband service provider's crossing application within 35 days after the application is received unless the railroad company petitions the Commission pursuant to subsection H. D. Any proposed crossing shall be (i) located, constructed, and operated so as not to impair, impede, or obstruct, in any material degree, the works and operations of the railroad to be crossed; (ii) supported by permanent and proper structures and fixtures; and (iii) controlled by customary and approved appliances, methods, and regulations to prevent damage to the works of the railroad and ensure the safety of its passengers. E. The railroad company and the broadband service provider shall coordinate to schedule the crossing date, which shall be within 30 days of the approval of the crossing application, or such later date as indicated in the application or mutually agreed upon. F. The broadband service provider shall be responsible for all aspects of the implementation of the physical crossing, including the construction and installation of the fiber optic broadband lines and all related equipment, conduit, wire masts, poles, towers, attachments, and infrastructure. The railroad company shall be responsible for flagging operations and other protective measures that it deems appropriate during the actual construction of fiber optic broadband lines. The broadband service provider shall be responsible for ensuring that the crossing is constructed and operated in accordance with accepted industry standards, including standards established by the National Electrical Safety Code, good utility practice, and industry-standard joint use processes of electric utilities. G. The cost of any such crossing shall be borne by the broadband service provider. A broadband service provider that locates its fiber optic broadband line within a railroad right-of-way shall pay the railroad company for the right to make a crossing of the railroad company's works a license fee of $2,000 for each crossing unless (i) otherwise agreed to by the broadband service provider and the railroad company or (ii) the railroad company has petitioned the Commission as described in subsection H and the Commission has issued a subsequent order so stating. The broadband service provider shall reimburse the railroad company for direct expenses in addition to the license fee. Direct expenses shall not exceed $5,000 unless (a) otherwise agreed to by the broadband service provider and the railroad company or (b) the railroad company petitions the Commission for additional reimbursement and the Commission has issued a subsequent order so stating. The railroad company shall substantiate with documentation and other direct evidence of the direct expenses incurred to qualify for reimbursement. The establishment of a license fee cap by the Commonwealth is an exercise of its stated policy to promote the rapid deployment of broadband throughout the Commonwealth. H. If the railroad company asserts that (i) the license fee is not adequate compensation for the proposed crossing, (ii) the proposed crossing will cause undue hardship on the railroad company, or (iii) the proposed crossing will create the imminent likelihood of danger to public health or safety, then the railroad company may petition the Commission for relief and provide simultaneous notice to the broadband service provider within 35 days from the date of the broadband service provider's application. The Commission may make any necessary findings of fact and determinations related to the adequacy of compensation, the existence of undue hardship on the railroad company, or the imminent likelihood of danger to public health or safety, as well as any relief to be granted, including any amount to which the railroad company is entitled in excess of the license fee prescribed in subsection G. If the railroad company asserts only that the license fee is not adequate compensation for the specified crossing, then the issue of compensation may be considered by the Commission after the commencement or completion of the work. The broadband service provider may petition the Commission for relief if the railroad company does not comply with this section or has otherwise wrongfully rejected or delayed its application. The Commission may, in its discretion, employ expert engineers, to be paid equally by both companies, to advise the Commission or a representative of the Commission in (a) examining the location, plans, specifications, and descriptions of appliances and the methods proposed to be employed; (b) hearing any objections and considering any modifications that the railroad company desires to offer; and (c) within such time as the Commission may determine, rejecting, approving, or modifying such plans and specifications. The Commission shall adjudicate any petition by the railroad company or broadband service provider and issue a final order within 90 days of the petition's initial filing. The Commission shall have sole jurisdiction to hear and resolve claims between railroad companies and broadband service providers concerning crossings and this section. I. Notwithstanding the provisions of subsection G, if the broadband service provider submits an application to the railroad company to cross a section of track that has been legally abandoned pursuant to an order of a federal or state agency having jurisdiction over the track and is not being used for railroad service, then the license fee shall not exceed $1,000. J. The Commonwealth shall grant a right-of-way to any broadband service provider seeking to use the right-of-way for broadband deployment to the extent that the Commonwealth owns any interest in any real property crossed by a railroad or manages any real property not owned by the Commonwealth that is crossed by a railroad. K. Notwithstanding the provisions of subsection G, in no case shall a broadband service provider be required to pay a license fee for the right to make a crossing of the railroad company's works within a public right-of-way. L. The broadband service provider shall maintain a commercial general liability insurance policy or railroad protective liability insurance policy that (i) does not exclude work within 50 feet of a railroad right-of-way, (ii) includes the railroad company as an additional insured, and (iii) remains in effect during the period of time construction is actually occurring. M. The provisions of this section shall apply notwithstanding any contrary or other provision of law. N. The provisions of this section shall be liberally construed and shall be construed in favor of broadband expansion. 2023, cc. 713, 714.

Va. Code § 56-17

§ 56-17. Right of one public service corporation to cross the works of another; cost.If any public service corporation deems it necessary in the construction of its works to cross the works of any other public service corporation, or if any renewable generator as defined in § 56-614 deems it necessary to cross the works of a public service corporation in the construction of distribution facilities that are required to (i) connect a renewable energy facility that generates electricity to the electric distribution grid, (ii) distribute steam generated at a renewable energy facility, or (iii) distribute landfill gas, it may do so; provided such crossing shall be so located, constructed, and operated as not to impair, impede, or obstruct, in any material degree, the works and operations of the railroad, canal, turnpike, or other works to be crossed; and provided such crossing shall be supported by such permanent and proper structures and fixtures, and shall be controlled by such customary and approved appliances, methods, and regulations as will best secure the safe passage and transportation of persons and property along such crossing, and will not be injurious to the works of the company to be crossed. The cost of such crossings, their appliances and apparatus, and of the repair and operation of the same, shall be borne by the party desiring to make the crossing. Code 1919, § 3884; 2009, c. 807.

Va. Code § 56-231.15

§ 56-231.15. Definitions.The following terms, whenever used or referred to in this article, shall have the following meanings, unless a different meaning clearly appears from the context: "Acquire" means and includes construct, or acquire by purchase, lease, devise, gift or the exercise of the power of eminent domain, or by other mode of acquisition. "Affiliate" means a separate affiliated or subsidiary corporation or other separate legal entity. "Board" means the board of directors of a cooperative formed under or subject to this article. "Commission" means the State Corporation Commission of Virginia. "Cooperative" means a utility consumer services cooperative formed under or subject to this article or a distribution cooperative formed under the former Distribution Cooperatives Act (§ 56-209 et seq.). "Energy" means and includes any and all forms of energy no matter how or where generated or produced. "Federal agency" means and includes the United States of America, the President of the United States of America, the Tennessee Valley Authority, the Federal Administrator of the Rural Utility Service, the Southeastern Power Administration, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, the Securities and Exchange Commission, the Federal Communications Commission and any and all other authorities, agencies, and instrumentalities of the United States of America, heretofore or hereafter created. "HVACR" means heating, ventilation, air conditioning and refrigeration. "Improve" means and includes construct, reconstruct, replace, extend, enlarge, alter, better or repair. "Law" means any act or statute, general, special or local, of this Commonwealth. "Member" means and includes each natural person signing the articles of incorporation of a cooperative and each person admitted to membership therein pursuant to law or its bylaws. "Municipality" means any city or incorporated town of the Commonwealth. "Obligations" means and includes bonds, interim certificates or receipts, notes, debentures, and all other evidences of indebtedness either issued by, or the payment of which is assumed or contractually undertaken by, a cooperative. "Patronage capital" includes all amounts received by a cooperative from sales of electric power or electric distribution services, or both, to members in excess of the cooperative's cost of furnishing electric power or distribution services, or both, to members and such other margins as determined by the board of directors. "Person" means and includes natural persons, firms, associations, cooperatives, corporations, limited liability companies, business trusts, partnerships, limited liability partnerships and bodies politic. "Propane or fuel oil equipment" means equipment and related systems to store or use propane or fuel oil products. "Regulated utility services" means utility services that are subject to regulation as to rates or service by the Commission. "System" means and includes any plant, works, system, facilities, equipment or properties, or any part or parts thereof, together with all appurtenances thereto, used or useful in connection with the generation, production, transmission or distribution of energy or in connection with other utility services. "Traditional cooperative activity" means any business, service or activity in which cooperatives in Virginia have traditionally engaged and that is incidental to and substantially related to the electric utility business conducted by a cooperative on or before July 1, 1999, provided that traditional cooperative activity does not include any program to (i) buy or maintain an inventory of HVACR equipment or household appliances; (ii) install or service any such equipment or household appliances for customers, unless such service is not provided by the cooperative but by a third party individual, firm or corporation licensed to perform such service; (iii) sell HVACR equipment or household appliances to customers metered and billed on residential rates; (iv) sell HVACR equipment to customers other than those metered and billed on residential rates except where such sale is an incidental part of providing other energy services or providing other traditional cooperative activities; (v) sell or distribute propane or fuel oil; sell, install or service propane or fuel oil equipment; or maintain or buy an inventory of propane or fuel oil equipment for resale; or (vi) serve as a coordinator of nonelectric energy services or provide engineering consulting services except when such energy or engineering services are an incidental part of a marketing effort to provide other energy or engineering services or as a part of providing services that are other traditional cooperative activities. "Utility services" means any products, services and equipment related to energy, telecommunications, water and sewerage. 1999, c. 874; 2000, cc. 944, 964, 989, 999.

Va. Code § 56-231.16

§ 56-231.16. Organization; purpose.A. Any number of natural persons not less than five may, by executing, filing and recording articles of incorporation as hereinafter set forth, form a cooperative, either with or without capital stock, not organized for pecuniary profit, for the principal purpose of making energy, energy services, and other utility services available at the lowest cost consistent with sound economy and prudent management of the business of such cooperative and such other purposes as its membership shall approve: (i) provided, however, that within its certificated service territory, no such cooperative shall, prior to July 1, 2000, undertake or initiate any new program (a) to buy or maintain an inventory of HVACR equipment or household appliances, (b) to install or service any such equipment or household appliances for customers, unless such service is not provided by the cooperative but by a third party individual, firm or corporation licensed to perform such service, (c) to sell HVACR equipment or household appliances to customers metered and billed on residential rates, (d) to sell HVACR equipment to customers other than those metered and billed on residential rates except where such sale is an incidental part of providing other energy services or providing traditional cooperative activities, (e) to sell or distribute propane or fuel oil; sell, install or service propane or fuel oil equipment; or maintain or buy an inventory of propane or fuel oil equipment for resale, or (f) to serve as a coordinator of nonelectric energy services or provide engineering consulting services except when such energy or engineering services are an incidental part of a marketing effort to provide other energy or engineering services or as a part of providing services that are traditional cooperative activities; (ii) provided further, that notwithstanding clause (i), such cooperative may engage within its certificated service territory in any of the activities enumerated in clause (i) that (a) have received State Corporation Commission approval prior to February 1, 1998, (b) such cooperative is ordered or required to undertake by any jurisdictional court or regulatory authority, (c) were lawfully undertaken prior to February 1, 1998, (d) are specifically permitted by statute, or (e) are undertaken by any other regulated public service company or its unregulated affiliate within such cooperative's certificated service territory; and (iii) also provided that such cooperative or its affiliate may not undertake such activities as are prohibited by clause (i) within the certificated service territory of another public service company unless such activities are undertaken by such public service company or its unregulated affiliate within such cooperative's certificated service territory. In addition, such cooperative may establish one or more subsidiaries to engage in any other business activities not prohibited by law, including making unregulated sales of electric power to members of such cooperative that are served at or by dedicated or excess facilities within the cooperative's certificated service territory and that contract for electric utility services to serve a demand that is reasonably expected to exceed 90 megawatts; notwithstanding the foregoing, no such subsidiary may engage in any business activities that the cooperatives are prohibited from engaging in under this section. For purposes of determining whether a cooperative is formed not for pecuniary profit, the establishment of one or more affiliates thereof on a for-profit basis shall not disqualify such entity from being formed as a cooperative pursuant to this article. B. Nothing in this article shall be construed to authorize a cooperative formed pursuant to this article, or any affiliate thereof, to engage, on a not-for-profit basis, within either the cooperative's certificated service territory or in the certificated service territory of another public service company, in the sale of products, the provision of services, or other business activity, except for regulated electric utility services, unregulated sales of electric power to its members within its certificated service territory, and traditional cooperative activities. However, if such products or services are not currently provided by any person other than a cooperative formed under or subject to this chapter or its affiliate and the Commission determines that no such other person is likely, within a reasonable time, to effectively provide such products and services in such territory, an affiliate of a cooperative may provide such products or services on a not-for-profit basis. The Commission shall also permit an affiliate of a cooperative formed under or subject to this chapter to provide such products or services on a not-for-profit basis upon a finding that the affiliate will not receive the benefit of any federal income tax exemption that is not available to persons other than cooperatives and will not receive the benefit of any federally guaranteed or subsidized financing that is not available to persons other than cooperatives; and provided further that nothing in this subsection shall prohibit the continued operation of any business activities of any not-for-profit cooperative or affiliate formed, operating, and actively providing products or services to customers on or before July 1, 1999. 1999, c. 874; 2000, cc. 964, 989; 2025, cc. 499, 598.

Va. Code § 56-231.17

§ 56-231.17. Articles of incorporation.A. The articles of incorporation mentioned in § 56-231.16 shall be entitled and endorsed "Articles of Incorporation of the........ Electric Cooperative" or "Articles of Incorporation of the........ Utility Consumer Services Cooperative" (the blank space being filled in with the distinguishing part of the name of the cooperative) and shall state: 1. The name of the cooperative, which name need not contain the word "corporation" or "incorporated" but shall be such as to distinguish it from any other cooperative. 2. To the extent it conducts regulated electric distribution operations, a reasonable designation of the territory in which such operations are principally to be conducted. 3. The location of its principal office and post office address thereof. 4. The maximum number of directors, which shall be not less than five. 5. The names and post office addresses of the directors who are to manage the affairs of the cooperative for the first year of its existence, or until their successors are chosen. 6. The period, if any, limited for the duration of the cooperative. 7. The terms and conditions upon which persons shall be admitted to membership in the cooperative, and in the case of a cooperative incorporating with capital stock, a statement of the maximum and minimum amount of the capital stock of the cooperative and its division into shares. 8. In the case of a cooperative incorporating on or after July 1, 1999, the registered office and registered agent of the cooperative. B. The articles of incorporation may also contain any provision not inconsistent with law or the provisions of Chapters 9 (§ 13.1-601 et seq.) and 10 (§ 13.1-801 et seq.) of Title 13.1 which the incorporators may choose to insert for the regulation of the business and the conduct of the affairs of the cooperative; and any provision as to the plan of financial organization, or relating to the internal regulation or government of the cooperative, its directors and members; provided, however, that subsections D through G of § 13.1-620 and subdivision 1 of § 13.1-825 shall not apply to any affiliate or subsidiary of a cooperative. 1999, c. 874.

Va. Code § 56-231.18

§ 56-231.18. Name of other corporations not to include term "electric cooperative" or "utility consumer services cooperative.".The words "electric cooperative" or "utility consumer services cooperative" shall not be used in the corporate name of corporations other than (i) those subject to the provisions of this chapter, (ii) nonstock corporations of which cooperatives are members, and (iii) corporations, all of the stock of which is owned by cooperatives. 1999, c. 874; 2000, cc. 944, 999.

Va. Code § 56-231.31

§ 56-231.31:1. Donation of certain patronage capital to the cooperative.Notwithstanding any other provision of law, when there is held by any cooperative any retired patronage capital to the credit of (i) a deceased person who has no spouse or next of kin identified in the records of the cooperative or (ii) a member or former member who has terminated service and who does not have a current address on file with the cooperative, then the bylaws or member agreements of the cooperative may provide that such credits shall be deemed to have been transferred as a gift to the cooperative and shall thereafter be the property of the cooperative; however, after July 1, 1999, such credits may be deemed gifts to the cooperative only if the cooperative publishes notice of such credit in its regular member publication and a publication of general circulation, and such credit is not claimed by such member, former member or next of kin within 120 days of such publication or such longer period as set out in the bylaws or member agreements of the cooperative. If there is no such provision in the cooperative's bylaws or member agreement, or if there is no publication, then any unclaimed credit shall be treated in accordance with the Virginia Disposition of Unclaimed Property Act (§ 55.1-2500 et seq.). This section shall apply only to cooperatives organized under or governed by this article for the purpose of providing regulated electric utilities service on a mutual, not-for-profit basis, with a board democratically elected by its member consumers. 1999, cc. 939, 940.

Va. Code § 56-231.38

§ 56-231.38. Definitions.As used in this article: "Affiliate" means a separate affiliated or subsidiary corporation or other separate legal entity. "Board" means any board of directors of a cooperative formed under or which becomes subject to this article. "Commission" means the State Corporation Commission of Virginia. "Cooperative" means a power supply cooperative formed under the former Power Supply Cooperatives Act (§ 56-231.1 et seq.) or a utility aggregation cooperative formed under this article or which becomes subject to this article. "Energy" means and includes all energy, regardless of how or where it is generated or produced. "HVACR" means heating, ventilation, air conditioning and refrigeration. "Member" means any person that holds any class of membership in a cooperative. "Obligations" means all evidences of indebtedness issued by or the payment of which is assumed by a cooperative. "Patronage capital" includes all amounts received by a cooperative from the sale of electric power to members in excess of the cooperative's cost of furnishing electric power to members and such other margins as determined by the Board. "Person" means and includes natural persons, firms, associations, cooperatives, corporations, limited liability companies, business trusts, partnerships, limited liability partnerships and bodies politic. "Propane or fuel oil equipment" means equipment and related systems to store or use propane or fuel oil products. "Regulated utility services" means utility services that are subject to regulation as to rates or service by the Commission. "System" means any plant, works, facility, or property used or useful in connection with the purchase, generation, sale or transmission of energy, utility products and services, or both. "Traditional cooperative activity" means any business, service or activity in which cooperatives in Virginia have traditionally engaged and that is incidental to and substantially related to the electric utility business conducted by a cooperative on or before July 1, 1999; provided, however, that traditional cooperative activity does not include any program to (i) buy or maintain an inventory of HVACR equipment or household appliances; (ii) install or service any such equipment or household appliances for customers, unless such service is not provided by the cooperative but by a third party individual, firm or corporation licensed to perform such service; (iii) sell HVACR equipment or household appliances to customers metered and billed on residential rates; (iv) sell HVACR equipment to customers other than those metered and billed on residential rates except where such sale is an incidental part of providing other energy services or providing other traditional cooperative activities; (v) sell or distribute propane or fuel oil; sell, install or service propane or fuel oil equipment; or maintain or buy an inventory of propane or fuel oil equipment for resale; or (vi) serve as a coordinator of nonelectric energy services or provide engineering consulting services except when such energy or engineering services are an incidental part of a marketing effort to provide other energy or engineering services or as a part of providing services that are other traditional cooperative activities. "Utility services" means any products, services, and equipment related to energy, telecommunications, water and sewerage. 1999, c. 874; 2000, cc. 944, 964, 989, 999.

Va. Code § 56-231.39

§ 56-231.39. Organization and purpose.A. Subject to § 56-231.50:1, any utility consumer service cooperative or utility aggregation cooperative may form a cooperative in accordance with this article, either stock or nonstock, not for pecuniary profit, with the exception of for-profit affiliates, for the purpose of purchasing, generating or transmitting energy products and services for sale or resale, operating or participating in an independent system operator, regional transmission entity, regional power exchange, or both, and any other lawful purpose, consistent with sound business principles and prudent management practices; (i) provided, however, that within the certificated service territory of any member distribution cooperative that existed as of January 1, 1999, no such cooperative shall, prior to July 1, 2000, undertake or initiate any new program (a) to buy or maintain an inventory of HVACR equipment or household appliances, (b) to install or service any such equipment or household appliances for customers, unless such service is not provided by the cooperative but by a third party individual, firm or corporation licensed to perform such service, (c) to sell HVACR equipment or household appliances to customers who are metered and billed on residential rates, (d) to sell HVACR equipment to customers other than those metered and billed on residential rates except where such sale is an incidental part of providing other energy services or providing traditional cooperative activities, (e) to sell or distribute propane or fuel oil; sell, install or service propane or fuel oil equipment; or maintain or buy an inventory of propane or fuel oil equipment for resale, or (f) to serve as a coordinator of nonelectric energy services or provide engineering consulting services except when such energy or engineering services are an incidental part of a marketing effort to provide other energy or engineering services or as a part of providing services that are traditional cooperative activities; (ii) provided further, that notwithstanding clause (i), such cooperative may, within the certificated service territory of a specific distribution cooperative that existed as of January 1, 1999, and then only to the extent that such specific distribution cooperative could lawfully do so, engage in any of the activities enumerated in clause (i) that (a) have received State Corporation Commission approval prior to February 1, 1998, (b) such cooperative is ordered or required to undertake by any jurisdictional court or regulatory authority, (c) were lawfully undertaken prior to February 1, 1998, (d) are specifically permitted by statute, or (e) are undertaken by any other regulated public service company or its unregulated affiliate within such distribution cooperative's certificated service territory; and (iii) also provided that such cooperative or its affiliate may not undertake such activities as are prohibited by clause (i) within the certificated service territory of another public service company unless such activities are undertaken by such public service company or its unregulated affiliate within the certificated service territory of a specific distribution cooperative existing as of January 1, 1999, and the certificated service territories of the public service company and the specific distribution cooperative overlap. In addition, such cooperative may establish one or more subsidiaries to engage in any other business activities not prohibited by law. Notwithstanding the foregoing, no such subsidiary may engage in any business activities that the cooperatives are prohibited from engaging in under this section. For purposes of determining whether a cooperative is formed not for pecuniary profit, the establishment of one or more affiliates thereof on a for-profit basis shall not disqualify such entity from being formed as a cooperative pursuant to this article. B. Nothing in this article shall be construed to authorize a cooperative formed pursuant to this article, or any affiliate thereof, to engage, within any political subdivision of the Commonwealth on a not-for-profit basis, in the sale of products, the provision of services, or other business activity, except for electric power services and traditional cooperative activities. However, if such business activities are not currently provided by any person other than a cooperative formed under or subject to this chapter or its affiliate and the Commission determines that no such other person is likely, within a reasonable time, to effectively provide such products and services in such political subdivision, an affiliate of a cooperative may provide such products or services on a not-for-profit basis. The Commission shall also permit an affiliate of a cooperative formed under or subject to this chapter to provide such products or services on a not-for-profit basis upon a finding that the affiliate will not receive the benefit of any federal income tax exemption that is not available to persons other than cooperatives and will not receive the benefit of any federally guaranteed or subsidized financing that is not available to persons other than cooperatives; and provided further, that nothing in this subsection shall prohibit the continued operation of any business activities of any not-for-profit cooperative or affiliate formed, operating, and actively providing products or services to customers on or before July 1, 1999. 1999, c. 874; 2000, cc. 964, 989.

Va. Code § 56-231.43

§ 56-231.43. Powers.A. Each cooperative formed under this article shall have power to do any and all lawful acts or things, including, but not limited to the power: 1. To purchase, sell, generate, store, transport or transmit energy, energy services, products and equipment. 2. To sue and be sued. 3. To have a seal and alter the same at pleasure. 4. To acquire, hold and dispose of property, real and personal, tangible and intangible, or interests therein and to pay in cash or property or on credit, and to secure and procure payment of all or any part of the purchase price thereof on such terms and conditions as the board shall determine. 5. To render service and to acquire, own, operate, maintain and improve a system or systems. 6. To accept gifts or grants of money or of property, real or personal, and to accept voluntary and uncompensated services. 7. To sell, lease, mortgage or otherwise encumber or dispose of all or any parts of its property. 8. To contract debts, borrow money and to issue or assume the payment of bonds and other obligations. 9. To fix, maintain and collect reasonable fees, rents, tolls and other charges for service rendered. 10. To exercise, with respect to its construction of regulated transmission facilities as a power supply cooperative, all the powers set forth in § 56-49, including the power of eminent domain as prescribed for other public service corporations by general law. 11. To assist its members, by loans or otherwise, in the acquisition by them of energy and electrical, technological and other equipment related to the business of the cooperative. 12. To issue nonassessable nonvoting common and preferred capital stock or similar securities and pay dividends thereon. 13. To perform any and all of the foregoing acts through or by means of its own officers, agents and employees, or by contract. B. A cooperative shall have the power and is authorized, from time to time, to issue its obligations for any corporate purpose. 1. The obligations may be authorized by resolution of the board, and may bear any date or dates, mature at any time or times, bear any interest, be payable at any times, be in any denominations, be in any form, either coupon or registered, carry any registration privileges, be executed in any manner, be payable in any medium of payment, at any place or places, and be subject to any terms of redemption, as provided by the resolution. 2. These obligations may be sold in the manner and upon the terms as the board may determine. Pending the preparation or execution of definitive bonds or obligations, interim receipts or certificates of temporary bonds may be delivered to the purchaser of such obligations. C. A cooperative may purchase any of its own obligations. D. The Virginia Securities Act (§ 13.1-501 et seq.) shall not apply to membership certificates issued by a cooperative or its cooperative affiliates, or subsidiaries organized prior to January 1, 1999. 1999, c. 874; 2000, cc. 944, 999.

Va. Code § 56-231.47

§ 56-231.47. Adoption of article.Any cooperative of this Commonwealth engaged in the purchase, sale, generation or transmission of electric energy products or services for sale or resale may come under the provisions of this article by filing with the Commission a certificate of adoption in the manner provided by subsection (b) of § 13.1-334 and relinquishing all rights and powers granted by its former charter. 1999, c. 874.

Va. Code § 56-232

§ 56-232. Public utility and schedules defined.A. The term "public utility" as used in §§ 56-233 to 56-240 and 56-246 to 56-250: 1. Shall mean and embrace every corporation (other than a municipality), company, individual, or association of individuals or cooperative, their lessees, trustees, or receivers, appointed by any court whatsoever, that now or hereafter may own, manage or control any plant or equipment or any part of a plant or equipment within the Commonwealth for the conveyance of telephone messages or for the production, transmission, delivery, or furnishing of heat, chilled air, chilled water, light, power, or water, or sewerage facilities, either directly or indirectly, to or for the public. 2. Notwithstanding any provision of subdivision 1 of this subsection or subsection G of § 13.1-620, shall also include any governmental entity established pursuant to the laws of any other state, corporation (other than a municipality established under the laws of this Commonwealth), company, individual, or association of individuals or cooperative, their lessees, trustees, or receivers, appointed by any court whatsoever, that at any time owns, manages or controls any plant or equipment, or any part thereof, located within the Commonwealth, which plant or equipment is used in the provision of sewage treatment services to or for an authority as defined in § 15.2-5101; however, the Commission shall have no jurisdiction to regulate the rates, terms and conditions of sewage treatment services that are provided by any such public utility directly to persons pursuant to the terms of a franchise agreement between the public utility and a municipality established under the laws of this Commonwealth. 3. Except as provided in subdivision 2, shall not be construed to include any corporation created under the provisions of Title 13.1 unless the articles of incorporation expressly state that the corporation is to conduct business as a public service company. B. Notwithstanding any provision of law to the contrary, no person, firm, corporation, or other entity shall be deemed a public utility or public service company, solely by virtue of engaging in production, transmission, or sale at retail of electric power as a qualifying small power producer using renewable or nondepletable primary energy sources within the meaning of regulations adopted by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission in implementation of the Public Utility Regulatory Policies Act of 1978 (P.L. 95-617) and not exceeding 7.5 megawatts of rated capacity, nor solely by virtue of serving as an aggregator of the production of such small power producers, provided that the portion of the output of any qualifying small power producer which is sold at retail shall not be sold to residential consumers. C. No qualifying small power producer, within the meaning of regulations adopted by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, shall be deemed a public utility within the meaning of Chapter 7 (§ 62.1-80 et seq.) of Title 62.1. D. The term "public utility" as herein defined shall not be construed to include any chilled water air-conditioning cooperative serving residences in less than a one square mile area, or any company that is excluded from the definition of "public utility" by subdivision (b)(4), (b)(8), (b)(9), or (b)(10) of § 56-265.1. E. Subject to the provisions of § 56-232.1, the term "schedules" as used in §§ 56-234 through 56-245 shall include schedules of rates and charges for service to the public and also contracts for rates and charges in sales at wholesale to other public utilities or for divisions of rates between public utilities, but shall not include contracts of telephone companies with the state government or contracts of other public utilities with municipal corporations or the federal or state government, or any contract executed prior to July 1, 1950. Code 1919, § 4067; 1918, p. 413; 1922, p. 887; 1942, p. 20; 1950, pp. 54, 481; 1954, c. 525; 1956, c. 436; 1964, c. 195; 1966, c. 620; 1975, c. 358; 1981, c. 385; 1984, c. 341; 1985, cc. 2, 41; 1990, c. 488; 1999, c. 419; 2000, cc. 528, 543; 2002, c. 813; 2003, c. 172; 2006, c. 411; 2009, c. 746.

Va. Code § 56-232.2

§ 56-232.2:1. Regulation of electric vehicle charging service.The Commission shall not regulate or prescribe the rates, charges, and fees for the provision of retail electric vehicle charging service provided by any agency as defined in § 2.2-128, persons, localities, park authority created by a locality pursuant to § 15.2-5702, or school boards other than public service corporations. Sales of electricity by public utilities to an agency as defined in § 2.2-128, a person, a locality, park authority created by a locality pursuant to § 15.2-5702, or a school board that (i) is not a public service corporation and (ii) provides electric vehicle charging service shall continue to be regulated by the Commission to the same extent as are other services provided by public utilities. The Commission may adopt regulations implementing this section. 2011, c. 408; 2017, c. 239; 2018, cc. 295, 446; 2019, c. 248; 2020, c. 490; 2022, c. 255.

Va. Code § 56-234

§ 56-234. Duty to furnish adequate service at reasonable and uniform rates.A. It shall be the duty of every public utility to furnish reasonably adequate service and facilities at reasonable and just rates to any person, firm or corporation along its lines desiring same. Notwithstanding any other provision of law: 1. A telephone company shall not have the duty to extend or expand its facilities to furnish service and facilities when the person, firm or corporation has service available from one or more alternative providers of wireline or terrestrial wireless communications services at prevailing market rates; and 2. A telephone company may meet its duty to furnish reasonably adequate service and facilities through the use of any and all available wireline and terrestrial wireless technologies; however, a telephone company, when restoring service to an existing wireline customer, shall offer the option to furnish service using wireline facilities. For purposes of subdivisions 1 and 2, the Commission shall have the authority upon request of an individual, corporation, or other entity, or a telephone company, to determine whether the wireline or terrestrial wireless communications service available to the party requesting service is a reasonably adequate alternative to local exchange telephone service. The use by a telephone company of wireline and terrestrial wireless technologies shall not be construed to grant any additional jurisdiction or authority to the Commission over such technologies. For purposes of subdivision 1, "prevailing market rates" means rates similar to those generally available to consumers in competitive areas for the same services. B. It shall be the duty of every public utility to charge uniformly therefor all persons, corporations or municipal corporations using such service under like conditions. However, no provision of law shall be deemed to preclude voluntary rate or rate design tests or experiments, or other experiments involving the use of special rates, where such experiments have been approved by order of the Commission after notice and hearing and a finding that such experiments are necessary in order to acquire information which is or may be in furtherance of the public interest. The Commission's final order regarding any petition filed by an investor-owned electric utility for approval of a voluntary rate or rate design test or experiment shall be entered the earlier of not more than six months after the filing of the petition or not more than three months after the date of any evidentiary hearing concerning such petition. The charge for such service shall be at the lowest rate applicable for such service in accordance with schedules filed with the Commission pursuant to § 56-236. But, subject to the provisions of § 56-232.1, nothing contained herein or in § 56-481.1 shall apply to (i) schedules of rates for any telecommunications service provided to the public by virtue of any contract with, (ii) for any service provided under or relating to a contract for telecommunications services with, or (iii) contracts for service rendered by any telephone company to, the state government or any agency thereof, or by any other public utility to any municipal corporation or to the state or federal government. The provisions hereof shall not apply to or in any way affect any proceeding pending in the State Corporation Commission on or before July 1, 1950, and shall not confer on the Commission any jurisdiction not now vested in it with respect to any such proceeding. C. The Commission may conclude that competition can effectively ensure reasonably adequate retail services in competitive exchanges and may carry out its duty to ensure that a public utility is furnishing reasonably adequate retail service in its competitive exchanges by monitoring individual customer complaints and requiring appropriate responses to such complaints. D. An electric utility formed under or subject to Chapter 9.1 (§ 56-231.15 et seq.) may meet its duty to furnish reasonably adequate service through unregulated sales of electric power directly from one or more of its affiliates to any customer located within the cooperative's certificated service territory that contracts for electric utility services to serve a demand that is reasonably expected to exceed 90 megawatts. Code 1919, § 4066; 1918, p. 675; 1924, p. 540; 1927, p. 125; 1950, p. 55; 1964, c. 195; 1970, c. 258; 1976, c. 290; 1985, cc. 2, 41; 2002, c. 833; 2011, cc. 738, 740; 2018, c. 296; 2025, cc. 499, 598.

Va. Code § 56-234.3

§ 56-234.3. Approval of expenditures for and monitoring of new generation facilities and projected operation programs of electric utilities.Prior to construction or financial commitments therefor, any electric utility subject to the jurisdiction of the State Corporation Commission intending to construct any new generation facility capable of producing 100 megawatts or more of electric energy shall submit to the State Corporation Commission a petition setting forth the nature of the proposed construction and the necessity therefor in relation to its projected forecast of programs of operation. Such petition shall include (i) the utility's preliminary construction plans, (ii) the methods by which the work will be contracted, by competitive bid or otherwise, (iii) the names and addresses of the contractors and subcontractors, when known, proposed to do such work, and (iv) the plan by which the public utility will monitor such construction to ensure that the work will be done in a proper, expeditious and efficient manner. The Commission, upon receipt of the petition, shall order that a public hearing be held to assist it in accumulating as much relevant data as possible in reaching its determination for the necessity of the proposed generation facility. The Commission shall review the petition, consider the testimony given at the public hearing, and determine whether the proposed improvements are necessary to enable the public utility to furnish reasonably adequate service and facilities at reasonable and just rates. After making its determination, the Commission shall enter an order within nine months after the filing of such petition either approving or disapproving the proposed expenditure. Upon approval, the Commission shall set forth in its order terms and conditions it deems necessary for the efficient and proper construction of the generation facility. Every electric utility capable of producing 100 megawatts or more of electric energy shall file with the Commission a projected forecast of its programs of operation, on such terms and for such time periods as directed by the Commission. Such a forecast shall include, but not be limited to, the anticipated required capacity to fulfill the requirements of the forecast, how the utility will achieve such capacity, the financial requirements for the period covered, the anticipated sources of those financial requirements, the research and development procedures, where appropriate, of new energy sources, and the budget for the research and development program. In addition, the Commission shall investigate and monitor the major construction projects of any public utility to assure that such projects are being conducted in an economical, expeditious, and efficient manner. Whenever uneconomical, inefficient or wasteful practices, procedures, designs or planning are found to exist, the Commission shall have the authority to employ, at the sole expense of the utility, qualified persons, answerable solely to the Commission, who shall audit and investigate such practices, procedures, designs or planning and recommend to the Commission measures necessary to correct or eliminate such practices, procedures, designs or planning. Consistent with § 56-235.3, any public utility, electric or otherwise, seeking to pass through the cost of any capital project to its customers, shall have the burden of proving that such cost was incurred through reasonable, proper and efficient practices, and to the extent that such public utility fails to bear such burden of proof, such costs shall not be passed on to its customers in its rate base. The Commission shall have the authority to approve, disapprove, or alter the utility's program in a manner consistent with the best interest of the citizens of the Commonwealth. The petitioning or filing public utility may appeal the decision of the Commission to the Supreme Court of Virginia. 1976, c. 701; 1977, c. 261; 1978, c. 700; 1984, cc. 453, 454; 1997, c. 138.

Va. Code § 56-235.12

§ 56-235.12. Economic development programs.A. As used in this section: "Acquire utility rights-of-way" means the planning, surveying, permitting, and acquisition of land, including options, easements, and other estates in land. "Costs" includes depreciation, taxes, return on investment, and other land-related costs associated with costs incurred to acquire utility rights-of-way pursuant to a Program. "Economic Development Program" or "Program" means a program under which a utility is authorized by the Commission under this section to acquire utility rights-of-way for one or more qualified economic development sites. "Partnership" means the Virginia Economic Development Partnership Authority. "Qualified economic development site" means an industrial site within the Commonwealth that has been certified by the Partnership pursuant to subsection B. "Utility" means a public utility providing water, sewer, electric, or natural gas service to retail customers in the Commonwealth. B. The Partnership is authorized to certify that an industrial site is a qualified economic development site if it finds that: 1. The person with legal authority to develop the site is authorized to contract for the extension of utility service to the site; 2. The development of the site is compliant with applicable zoning requirements and is consistent with the locality's comprehensive plan; 3. Applicable environmental surveys and reviews, including any wetlands survey, geotechnical borings, a topographical survey, a cultural resources review, an Endangered Species review, or a Phase 1 Environmental Assessment, if required, are completed; 4. An estimate of the costs of the development of the site has been prepared and provided to the Partnership; and 5. The acquisition of utility rights-of-way for the site will further the creation of new jobs and capital investment in the Commonwealth by facilitating the location of one or more significant economic development projects in the Commonwealth. C. A utility proposing an Economic Development Program shall file a proposal with the Commission for review. A proposal for approval of a Program shall include an analysis of how acquiring utility rights-of-way will enhance the Commonwealth's infrastructure and promote the Commonwealth's competitive business environment by improving the readiness of a qualified economic development site. D. The Commission shall approve, or approve with appropriate modifications, a Program if it finds that: 1. The implementation of the Program will provide material economic development benefits that might not otherwise be attained absent the Commission's approval of the Program; 2. The Program proposes a rate mechanism, including base rates or a rate adjustment clause, that authorizes the utility to recover its costs incurred in implementing the Program until such time as the investment is placed in service; 3. The proposal to acquire utility rights-of-way would not otherwise be immediately supported by expected revenues from new loads served under the Program at the qualified economic development site; 4. The utility's capital investment does not exceed one percent of gross plant investment in the aggregate or $5 million for any specific qualified economic development site; 5. The associated charges resulting from implementation of the Program will apply only to firm service customers; 6. The Virginia Economic Development Partnership has certified pursuant to subsection B that the site for which the utility proposes to acquire utility rights-of-way under the Program is a qualified economic development site; 7. The Program is designed only to acquire utility rights-of-way to a qualified economic development site and not to provide service to other customers or potential customers; 8. The utility's assumptions regarding costs to acquire utility rights-of-way under the Program are not unduly speculative; and 9. The Program is not otherwise contrary to the public interest. E. After Commission review and absent action by the Commission to the contrary, the Program shall take effect 120 days following the date on which the proposal for the Program was filed. Any amendment to a Program following its implementation shall be submitted to the Commission at least 60 days prior to the proposed effective date thereof and, absent action by the Commission to the contrary, the amendment shall become effective on such date. F. The Commission's approval of a Program shall authorize the utility to: 1. Acquire utility rights-of-way for the ordinary extension of utility facilities in the normal course of business to one or more qualified economic development sites; and 2. Recover costs incurred in implementing the Program, including costs deferred and associated carrying costs, from the time incurred until the time the Commission establishes new rates that include recovery of such deferred costs. G. A utility, in implementing a Program, shall in good faith coordinate the acquisition of rights-of-way with communications providers and other utilities, including water, sewer, electric, or natural gas utilities, so that any facilities ultimately to be constructed may be collocated to the extent feasible. H. In calculating the utility's return on the investment with regard to costs incurred in implementing a Program, the Commission shall use the utility's regulatory capital structure, including the cost of equity most recently approved by the Commission. If the utility's cost of capital at the time its Economic Development Program is filed has not been changed by order of the Commission within the preceding five years, the Commission may require the utility to file an updated weighted average cost of capital, and the utility may propose an updated weighted average cost of capital. I. Nothing in this section shall: 1. Be deemed to prevent one or more utilities from jointly filing a Program under this section, and the Commission may consolidate consideration of Programs filed to serve the same qualified economic development site; 2. Otherwise impair or enlarge the powers granted to public service companies by this title; 3. Permit a Program to include conversion of existing retail propane customers to electric or natural gas; or 4. Prohibit an electric utility from recovering its transmission-related costs incurred in implementing the Program through a rate adjustment clause pursuant to subdivision A 4 of § 56-585.1. J. A utility may request proprietary treatment of any and all supporting materials provided in support of a Program. 2019, cc. 494, 495.

Va. Code § 56-235.2

§ 56-235.2. All rates, tolls, etc., to be just and reasonable to jurisdictional customers; findings and conclusions to be set forth; alternative forms of regulation for electric companies.A. Any rate, toll, charge or schedule of any public utility operating in this Commonwealth shall be considered to be just and reasonable only if: (1) the public utility has demonstrated that such rates, tolls, charges or schedules in the aggregate provide revenues not in excess of the aggregate actual costs incurred by the public utility in serving customers within the jurisdiction of the Commission, including such normalization for nonrecurring costs and annualized adjustments for future costs as the Commission finds reasonably can be predicted to occur during the rate year, and a fair return on the public utility's rate base used to serve those jurisdictional customers, which return shall be calculated in accordance with § 56-585.1 for utilities subject to such section; (1a) the investor-owned public electric utility has demonstrated that no part of such rates, tolls, charges or schedules includes costs for advertisement, except for advertisements either required by law or rule or regulation, or for advertisements which solely promote the public interest, conservation or more efficient use of energy; and (2) the public utility has demonstrated that such rates, tolls, charges or schedules contain reasonable classifications of customers. Notwithstanding § 56-234, the Commission may approve, either in the context of or apart from a rate proceeding after notice to all affected parties and hearing, special rates, contracts or incentives to individual customers or classes of customers where it finds such measures are in the public interest. Such special charges shall not be limited by the provisions of § 56-235.4. In determining costs of service, the Commission may use the test year method of estimating revenue needs. In any Commission order establishing a fair and reasonable rate of return for an investor-owned gas, telephone or electric public utility, the Commission shall set forth the findings of fact and conclusions of law upon which such order is based. For ratemaking purposes, the Commission shall determine the federal and state income tax costs for investor-owned water, gas, or electric utility that is part of a publicly-traded, consolidated group as follows: (i) such utility's apportioned state income tax costs shall be calculated according to the applicable statutory rate, as if the utility had not filed a consolidated return with its affiliates, and (ii) such utility's federal income tax costs shall be calculated according to the applicable federal income tax rate and shall exclude any consolidated tax liability or benefit adjustments originating from any taxable income or loss of its affiliates. In any ratemaking proceeding for an investor-owned utility authorized to furnish water or water and sewer service initiated after January 1, 2022, the Commission shall evaluate such utility on a stand-alone basis and, for purposes of establishing any revenue requirement and rates, utilize such utility's actual end-of-test period capital structure and cost of capital without regard to the cost of capital, capital structure, or investments of any other entities with which such utility may be affiliated, unless the Commission finds based on evidence in the record that the debt to equity ratio of the actual end-of-test period capital structure of such utility is unreasonable, in which case the Commission may utilize a debt to equity ratio that it finds to be reasonable. In all proceedings initiated after January 1, 2022, in which the Commission reviews the rates and associated earnings of an investor-owned utility authorized to furnish water or water and sewer service, the Commission shall conduct such review utilizing the same cost of capital and capital structure adopted in the utility's most recent rate case in which such rates were set, without regard to any later changes in the cost of capital or capital structure. B. The Commission shall, before approving special rates, contracts, incentives or other alternative regulatory plans under subsection A, ensure that such action (i) protects the public interest, (ii) will not unreasonably prejudice or disadvantage any customer or class of customers, and (iii) will not jeopardize the continuation of reliable electric service. C. After notice and public hearing, the Commission shall issue guidelines for special rates adopted pursuant to subsection A that will ensure that other customers are not caused to bear increased rates as a result of such special rates. 1977, c. 336; 1984, c. 312; 1996, c. 156; 2007, cc. 537, 888, 933; 2022, cc. 581, 582.

Va. Code § 56-235.4

§ 56-235.4. Prohibition of multiple rate increases within any twelve-month period; exception.A. The regulated operating revenues of a public utility shall not be increased pursuant to Chapter 9.1 (§ 56-231.15 et seq.), 10 (§ 56-232 et seq.) or 19 (§ 56-531 et seq.) of this title more than once within any twelve-month period. This limitation shall not apply to increases in regulated operating revenues resulting from (i) increases in rates pursuant to § 56-245 or § 56-249.6, (ii) any automatic rate adjustment clause approved by the Commission, (iii) new rate schedules for service not offered under existing rate schedules or for expansion, reduction, or termination of existing services, (iv) initiation, modification or termination of experimental rates under § 56-234, or (v) the making permanent of an experimental program. Notwithstanding any other provisions of this section, a telephone company may apply to the Commission to pass on to its customers as a part of its rates any changes approved by the Commission in the carrier access charges. B. The Commission may adopt such rules and regulations as may be necessary to carry out the provisions of this section. The Commission may specify, by rule, the time during the calendar year when application may be filed by electric utility and cooperatives, gas utilities, telephone utilities and cooperatives, and other utilities. The Commission may by rule provide standards and procedures for expedited handling of rate increase applications, and such rules may provide that an expedited rate increase may take effect in less than twelve months after the preceding increase so long as regulated operating revenues are not increased pursuant to the provisions of subsection A of this section more than once in any calendar year. 1984, c. 725; 1989, c. 666; 1990, c. 787; 1995, c. 382; 1997, c. 707; 2000, c. 994.

Va. Code § 56-235.6

§ 56-235.6. Optional performance-based regulation of certain utilities.A. Notwithstanding any provision of law to the contrary, the Commission may approve a performance-based ratemaking methodology for any public utility engaged in the business of furnishing gas service (for the purposes of this section a "gas utility") or electricity service (for the purposes of this section an "electric utility"), upon application of the gas utility or electric utility, and after such notice and opportunity for hearing as the Commission may prescribe. For the purposes of this section, "performance-based ratemaking methodology" shall mean a method of establishing rates and charges that are in the public interest, and that departs in whole or in part from the cost-of-service methodology set forth in § 56-235.2. B. The Commission shall approve such performance-based ratemaking methodology if it finds that it: (i) preserves adequate service to all classes of customers (including transportation-only customers if for a gas utility); (ii) does not unreasonably prejudice or disadvantage any class of gas utility or electric utility customers; (iii) provides incentives for improved performance by the gas utility or electric utility in the conduct of its public duties; (iv) results in rates that are not excessive; and (v) is in the public interest. Performance-based forms of regulation may include, but not be limited to, fixed or capped base rates, the use of revenue indexing, price indexing, ranges of authorized return, gas cost indexing for gas utilities, and innovative utilization of utility-related assets and activities (such as a gas utility's off-system sales of excess gas supplies and release of upstream pipeline capacity, performance of billing services for other gas or electricity suppliers, and reduction or elimination of regulatory requirements) in ways that benefit both the utility and its customers and may include a mechanism for automatic annual adjustments to revenues or prices to reflect changes in any index adopted for the implementation of such performance-based form of regulation. In making the findings required by this subsection, the Commission shall include, but not be limited to, in its considerations: (i) any proposed measures, including investments in infrastructure, that are reasonably estimated to preserve or improve system reliability, safety, supply diversity, and gas utility transportation options; and (ii) other customer benefits that are reasonably estimated to accrue from the gas or electric utility's proposal. C. Each gas utility or electric utility shall have the option to apply for implementation of a performance-based form of regulation. If the Commission approves the application with modifications, the gas utility or electric utility may, at its option, withdraw its application and continue to be regulated under the form of regulation that existed immediately prior to the filing of the application. The Commission may, after notice and opportunity for hearing, alter, amend or revoke, or authorize a gas utility or electric utility to discontinue, a performance-based form of regulation previously implemented under this section if it finds that (i) service to one or more classes of customers has deteriorated, or will deteriorate, to the point that the public interest will not be served by continuation of the performance-based form of regulation; (ii) any class of gas utility customer or electric utility customer is being unreasonably prejudiced or disadvantaged by the performance-based form of regulation; (iii) the performance-based form of regulation does not, or will not, provide reasonable incentives for improved performance by a gas utility or electric utility in the conduct of its public duties (which determination may include, but not be limited to, consideration of whether rates are inadequate to recover a gas utility's or electric utility's cost of service); (iv) the performance-based form of regulation is resulting in rates that are excessive compared to a gas utility's or electric utility's cost of service and any benefits that accrue from the performance-based plan; (v) the terms ordered by the Commission in connection with approval of a gas utility's or electric utility's implementation of a performance-based form of regulation have been violated; or (vi) the performance-based form of regulation is no longer in the public interest. Any request by a gas utility or electric utility to discontinue its implementation of a performance-based form of regulation may include application pursuant to this chapter for approval of new rates under the standards of § 56-235.2 for a gas utility or pursuant to § 56-585.1 for an investor-owned incumbent electric utility. D. The Commission shall use the annual review process established in § 56-234.2 to monitor each performance-based form of regulation approved under this section and to make any annual prospective adjustments to revenues or prices necessary to reflect increases or decreases in any index adopted for the implementation of such performance-based form of regulation. 1996, c. 350; 2006, c. 574; 2007, cc. 888, 933.

Va. Code § 56-235.7

§ 56-235.7. Jurisdiction of Commission when federal governmental facility ceases to be retail customer of electric utility.Notwithstanding anything to the contrary in § 56-234, the rates and charges for service to any federal governmental facility that is a retail customer of any electric utility prior to January 1, 1996, and which ceases, in whole or in part, to be a retail customer of that electric utility after January 1, 1996, because of its purchase of electricity from another supplier shall be subject to the jurisdiction of the Commission for the limited purpose of determining the proper rate, if any, to be paid by the federal government to the electric utility for any and all costs stranded due to the cessation of such retail service, and payments of such costs shall be made pursuant to a tariff filed and approved by the Commission; provided, however, the Commission's jurisdiction shall not arise unless and until the effective date of any federal action that allows any federal governmental facility to purchase electricity from a supplier other than the electric public service company now providing electric service to such federal facility. 1996, c. 466.

Va. Code § 56-235.9

§ 56-235.9. Recovery of funds used for capital projects prior to a rate case for strategic natural gas facilities.A. As used in this section: "Capitalized carrying cost" includes the return on the investment, depreciation, and tax. "Natural gas transmission company" means any investor-owned public service company engaged in the business of transporting natural gas to more than one electric utility, natural gas utility, or non-jurisdictional customer. "Natural gas utility" means any investor-owned public service company engaged in the business of furnishing natural gas service to the public. "Strategic natural gas facility" includes, without limitation, a natural gas distribution or transmission pipeline, storage facility, compressor station, liquefied natural gas facility, peaking facility or other appurtenant facility, used to furnish natural gas service in the Commonwealth that, for a natural gas utility with fewer than 150,000 customers, adds stand-alone design day deliverability or designed send-out of at least 10,000 dekaTherms per day or two or more such facilities, regardless of size, that add design day deliverability or designed send out of at least 75,000 dekaTherms per day in the aggregate, and for a natural gas utility with 150,000 or more customers, adds stand-alone design day deliverability or designed send out of at least 20,000 dekaTherms per day or two or more such facilities, regardless of size, that add design day deliverability or designed send out of at least 100,000 dekaTherms per day in the aggregate, and for a natural gas transmission company, adds design day deliverability or designed send out of at least 100,000 dekaTherms per day in the aggregate. B. Any natural gas utility that places a strategic natural gas facility into service on or after July 1, 2008, or natural gas transmission company that places a strategic natural gas facility into service on or after July 1, 2014, to serve its customers shall have the right to recover through its rates charged to those customers the entire prudently incurred costs of the facility including: planning, development and construction costs; costs of infrastructure associated therewith; an allowance for funds used during construction; and the capitalized carrying cost from the time construction is completed and the asset is placed into service until the time that the Commission establishes new rates that include recovery of all costs as defined herein. Such recovery shall be permitted by allowing such costs to be recorded in the utility's plant accounts and included in rate base for purposes of cost recovery (i) in new rate schedules for service not offered under existing rate schedules or new rate schedules for expansion of existing services as permitted by § 56-235.4, (ii) in a rate case using the cost of service methodology set forth in § 56-235.2, or (iii) in a performance-based regulation plan authorized by § 56-235.6, subject to Commission determination that such costs were prudently incurred. The allowance for funds used during construction and the return on investment shall be calculated utilizing the weighted average cost of capital, including the cost of debt and cost of equity used in determining the natural gas utility's base rates in effect during the construction period of the strategic natural gas facility. C. Nothing in this section shall be construed to prohibit the Commission from granting similar treatment to other natural gas facilities when the Commission deems such treatment to be in the public interest. 2008, c. 867; 2014, cc. 467, 507.

Va. Code § 56-236.1

§ 56-236.1. Rates to be charged churches.No electric utility, subject to regulation by the Commission, shall charge a church for its services by any method other than actual kilowatt hour consumption; nor shall any such electric utility charge a church for its electrical service at a rate in excess of the applicable residential rate for the area in which it is located. As used in this section, "church" shall be limited to the synagogue or church building in which the sanctuary or principal place of worship is located and to all educational buildings which are physically attached by enclosed corridors or hallways to the building in which the sanctuary or principal place of worship is located. Notwithstanding the requirements of the first sentence of this section, the Commission may, after a hearing upon application by an electric utility, set a rate for churches in excess of the applicable residential rate if the utility proves that the cost of service for churches exceeds the cost of service for those other customers under the residential rate. In setting such a rate, the Commission shall consider the special use characteristics of churches, such as the amount of electricity utilized during off-peak power periods for the utility. The provisions of this section shall not apply to churches which are served by an electric utility having a time of usage rate approved by the Commission and which have elected to be on such time of usage rate. 1978, c. 531; 1980, c. 259.

Va. Code § 56-238

§ 56-238. Suspension of proposed rates, etc.; investigation; effectiveness of rates pending investigation and subject to bond; fixing reasonable rates, etc.The Commission, either upon complaint or on its own motion, may suspend the enforcement of any or all of the proposed rates, tolls, charges, rules or regulations for schedules required to be filed under § 56-236 of any public utility, except an investor-owned electric public utility, for a period not exceeding 150 days, or if the public utility is an investor-owned water utility not subject to Chapter 10.2:1 (§ 56-265.13:1 et seq.) for a period not exceeding 180 days, from the date of filing, and the Commission shall suspend the enforcement of all of the proposed rates, tolls, charges, rules or regulations of an investor-owned electric public utility until the Commission's final order in the proceeding, during which times the Commission shall investigate the reasonableness or justice of such proposed rates, tolls, charges, rules and regulations and thereupon fix and order substituted therefor such rates, tolls, charges, rules and regulations as shall be just and reasonable. The Commission's final order in such a proceeding involving an investor-owned electric public utility that is filed after January 1, 2010, shall be entered not more than nine months after the date of filing, at which time the suspension period shall expire, and any revisions in rates or credits so ordered shall take effect not more than 60 days after the date of the order. Notice of the suspension of any such proposed rate, toll, charge, rule or regulation shall be given by the Commission to the public utility, prior to the expiration of the 30 days' notice to the Commission and the public heretofore provided for. If the proceeding has not been concluded and an order made at the expiration of the suspension period, after notice to the Commission by the public utility making the filing, the proposed rates, tolls, charges, rules or regulations shall go into effect. Where increased rates, tolls or charges are thus made effective, the Commission shall, by order, require the public utility to furnish a bond, to be approved by the Commission, to refund any amounts ordered by the Commission, to keep accurate accounts in detail of all amounts received by reason of such increase, and upon completion of the hearing and decision, to order such public utility to refund, with interest at a rate set by the Commission, the portion of such increased rates, tolls or charges by its decision found not justified. The Commission shall prescribe all necessary rules and regulations to effectuate the purposes of this section on or before September 1, 1980. This section shall not apply to proceedings conducted pursuant to § 56-245 or 56-249.6. Code 1919, § 4066; 1918, p. 674; 1924, p. 539; 1927, p. 123; 1980, c. 446; 2010, cc. 1, 2; 2011, cc. 738, 740; 2017, c. 619.

Va. Code § 56-240

§ 56-240. Proposed rates, etc., or changes thereof, not suspended effective subject to later change by Commission; refund or credit; appeal; investor-owned public utilities required to show increase complies with § 56-235.2.Unless the Commission so suspends such schedule of rates, tolls, charges, rules and regulations or changes thereof that are required to be filed under § 56-236, the same shall go into effect as originally filed by any public utility as defined in § 56-232, upon the date specified in the schedule subject, however, to the power of the Commission, upon investigation thereafter, to fix and order substituted therefor such rate or rates, tolls, charges, rules, or regulations, as shall be just and reasonable, as provided in §§ 56-235 and 56-247. The Commission may thereupon, in its discretion, order such public utility to refund or give credit promptly to the parties entitled thereto any portion or all of the charges originally filed by the public utility which may have been collected or received in excess of those charges finally fixed and ordered substituted therefor by the Commission. Rates of any utility found to be operating in violation of § 56-265.3 may be deemed subject to refund by the Commission, on its own motion, as of the date of the Commission's order finding that the utility was operating in violation of § 56-265.3. Such rates shall then be interim in nature and subject to refund until such time as the Commission has determined the appropriateness of the rates. Any amount of the rates found excessive by the Commission shall be subject to refund with interest, as may be ordered by the Commission. From any action of the Commission in prescribing rates, refunds, credits, tolls, charges, rules and regulations or changes thereof that are required to be filed under § 56-236, an appeal may be taken by the corporation whose rates, refunds, credits, tolls, charges, rules and regulations or changes thereof are affected, or by the Commonwealth, or by any person deeming himself aggrieved by such action. No such rate increase shall go into effect under the provisions of this section for an investor-owned gas, telephone or electric public utility unless such public utility has filed with its schedule information and data designed to show that any increase complies with the just and reasonable requirements of § 56-235.2, and unless based thereon the Commission finds a reasonable probability that the increase will be justified upon full investigation and hearing. The Commission is authorized to promulgate any rules necessary to implement this provision. Code 1919, § 4066; 1918, p. 675; 1924, p. 540; 1927, pp. 124, 125; 1971 Ex. Sess., c. 31; 1973, c. 262; 1979, c. 249; 1998, c. 63; 2011, cc. 738, 740.

Va. Code § 56-245.1

§ 56-245.1:4. Notice procedures for nonpayment; disconnecting utility service.A. Each utility subject to the provisions of § 56-245.1:3 shall provide to each of its residential customers a copy of its disconnection for nonpayment policy (i) at any time a new residential account is established, (ii) when any disconnection for nonpayment of bills or fees is scheduled by including a copy of the policy with such notice, or (iii) by publishing the disconnection policy on the utility's website. Each such utility shall provide all required notices in English and Spanish. Such required notices shall include information regarding payment plans and state, federal, or utility energy assistance programs. B. Each utility subject to the provisions of this section shall deliver notice of nonpayment of bills or fees to its residential customers prior to disconnection by using at least two of the following methods: (i) mail, (ii) email, (iii) text message, (iv) phone call, or (v) door hanger. C. Utility disconnections due to the nonpayment of bills or fees are prohibited for residential customers until the customer's account is 60 days in arrears. After each missed payment, the utility shall provide notice pursuant to subsection B and make contact with the customer and offer bill payment assistance, arrange a payment plan, or provide information to the customer for other bill payment assistance or energy savings programs. D. No electric or gas utility shall require a deposit of more than 25 percent of the arrearage amount for service, exclusive of nonpayment fees, penalties, or interest, in order to restore service to any residential customer where such utility received funding from the Department of Social Services for such customer through the Home Energy Assistance Program pursuant to § 63.2-805 within the last 12 months. A customer is eligible for this provision once every three years. 2024, cc. 790, 824. Article 2.1. Regulation of Submetering and Energy Allocation Equipment.

Va. Code § 56-245.2

§ 56-245.2. Definitions.A. When used in this article, unless expressly stated otherwise: "Apartment house" means a building or buildings with the primary purpose of residential occupancy containing more than two dwelling units all of which are rented primarily for nontransient use, with rental paid at intervals of one week or longer. Apartment house includes residential condominiums and cooperatives, whether rented or owner occupied. "Campground" means the same as the term is defined in § 35.1-1. "Campsite" means that same as that term is defined in § 35.1-1. "Dwelling unit" means a room or rooms suitable for occupancy as a residence containing kitchen and bathroom facilities. "Energy allocation equipment" means any device, other than submetering equipment, used to determine approximate electric or natural gas usage for any dwelling unit or nonresidential rental unit within an apartment house, office building or shopping center, or campsite at a campground. "Nonresidential rental unit" means a room or rooms in which retail or commercial services, clerical work or professional duties are carried out. "Office building" means a building or buildings containing more than two rental units which are rented primarily for retail, commercial or professional use, with rental paid at intervals of one month or longer. "Owner-paid areas" means those areas for which the owner bears financial responsibility for energy costs which include but are not limited to areas outside individual residential or nonresidential units or campsites or in owner-occupied or owner-shared areas such as maintenance shops, vacant units, meeting units, meeting rooms, offices, swimming pools, laundry rooms, or model apartments. "Shopping center" means a building or buildings containing more than two stores which are rented primarily for commercial, retail or professional use. "Submetering equipment" means equipment used to measure actual electricity or natural gas usage in any dwelling unit or nonresidential rental unit or campsite when such equipment is not owned or controlled by the electric or natural gas utility serving the apartment house, office building, shopping center, or campground in which the dwelling unit or nonresidential rental unit or campsite is located. B. Any building or buildings which qualify as an apartment house, office building, or shopping center shall not be excluded from § 56-245.3 because the apartment house, office building or shopping center contains a mixture of dwelling units and nonresidential rental units. 1978, c. 392; 1979, c. 313; 1992, c. 766; 2012, c. 338.

Va. Code § 56-245.3

§ 56-245.3. Commission to promulgate regulations and standards.A. Notwithstanding any law to the contrary, the Commission shall promulgate regulations and standards under which any owner, operator, or manager of an apartment house, office building, shopping center, or campground, which is not individually metered for electricity or gas for each dwelling unit, nonresidential rental unit, or campsite may install submetering equipment or energy allocation equipment for the purpose of fairly allocating (a) the cost of electrical or gas consumption for each dwelling unit, nonresidential rental unit, or campsite and (b) electrical or gas demand and customer charges made by the utility. In addition to other appropriate safeguards for the tenant, the regulations shall require (i) that an apartment house, office building, shopping center, or campground owner shall not impose on the tenant any charges, over and above the cost per kilowatt hour, cubic foot or therm, plus demand and customer charges, where applicable, which are charged by the utility company to the owner, including any sales, local utility, or other taxes, if any, except that additional service charges permitted by § 55.1-1212 or 55.1-1404, as applicable, may be collected to cover administrative costs and billing, and (ii) that the apartment house, office building, shopping center, or campground owner shall maintain adequate records regarding submetering and energy allocation equipment and shall make such records available for inspection by the Commission during reasonable business hours. The provisions of this section shall not restrict the right of the owner, operator or manager to recover in periodic lease payments the tenant's fair share of electricity or gas costs attributable to owner-paid areas and costs incurred by the owner, operator or manager in establishing and maintaining the submetering or energy allocation equipment. B. Only for purposes of Commission enforcement of the regulations adopted under this section, the owners, operators, or managers of apartment houses, office buildings, shopping centers, or campgrounds included within the purview of this article shall be treated as public service corporations under §§ 56-5, 56-6 and 56-7. All submetering equipment shall be subject to the same regulations and standards established by the Commission for accuracy, testing, and record keeping of meters installed by electric or gas utilities and shall be subject to the meter requirements of § 56-245.1. All energy allocation equipment shall be subject to regulations and standards established by the Commission to ensure that such systems result in a reasonable determination of energy use and the resulting costs for each dwelling unit, nonresidential rental unit, or campsite. Violations of Commission regulations and orders issued under this section shall be subject to the penalty set forth in § 12.1-33. C. In implementing this section, no apartment house, office building, shopping center, or campground shall be considered a public utility or public service corporation engaged in the business of distributing or reselling electricity or gas except as provided in subsection B. The apartment house, office building, shopping center, or campground may use submetering or energy allocation equipment solely to allocate the costs of electric or gas service fairly among the tenants using the apartment house, office building, shopping center, or campground. D. For the purposes of rules promulgated pursuant to this section, billing requirements and all other rules related to submetering or energy allocation equipment use by tenants of an apartment house, office building, shopping center, or campground shall apply to residential and nonresidential unit owners. 1978, c. 392; 1979, c. 313; 1980, c. 741; 1986, c. 11; 1988, c. 231; 1989, c. 188; 1991, c. 573; 1992, c. 766; 2003, c. 355; 2012, c. 338; 2024, c. 557. Article 3. Powers of Commission in Relation to Service.

Va. Code § 56-247.1

§ 56-247.1. Commission to require public utilities to follow certain procedures.A. The Commission shall require that public utilities adhere to the following procedures for services not found to be competitive: 1. Every public utility shall provide its residential customers one full billing period to pay for one month's local or basic services, before initiating any proceeding against a residential customer for nonpayment of local service. 2. Pay the residential customer a fair rate of interest as determined by the Commission on money deposited and return the deposit with the interest after not more than one year of satisfactory credit has been established. 3. Every public utility shall establish customer complaint procedures that will ensure prompt and effective handling of all customer inquiries, service requests, and complaints. Such procedure shall be approved by the Commission before its implementation and it shall be distributed to its residential customers. The utility shall disclose to the customer that the Commission is the responsible regulatory agency and that the customer may contact the Commission on regulatory matters and provide the customer with the contact information for the Commission. 4. No electric or gas utility shall terminate a customer's service without 10 days' notice by mail to the customer. 5. No public utility shall terminate the residential service of a customer for such customer's nonpayment of basic nonresidential services as defined by its terms and conditions on file with the Virginia State Corporation Commission. 6. A public utility providing water service shall not terminate service for nonpayment until it first sends the customer written notice by mail 10 days in advance of making the termination but, in no event, shall it terminate the customer's service until 20 days after the customer's bill has become due. Any such notice shall also include contact information for the customer's use in contacting the public utility regarding the notice. 7. Any electric utility formed under or subject to Chapter 9.1 (§ 56-231.15 et seq.) may install and operate, upon a customer's request and pursuant to an appropriate tariff for any type or classification of service, a prepaid metering equipment and system that is configured to terminate electric service immediately and automatically when the customer has incurred charges for electric service equal to the customer's prepayments for such service. Subdivisions 1, 2, 4, and 5 shall not apply to services provided pursuant to electric service provided on a prepaid basis by a prepaid metering equipment and system pursuant to this subsection. Such tariffs shall be filed with the Commission for its review and determination that the tariff is not contrary to the public interest. 8. No electric utility shall terminate the residential service of a customer for such customer's nonpayment for metered services when the electric utility believes that the customer is receiving or has received electric utility services for which the customer was not properly billed as the result of tampering with the electric utility's meter in a manner that prevented the meter from accurately recording usage, until the electric utility has complied with the procedure set forth in subsection C. However, the requirement that the electric utility comply with the procedure set forth in subsection C before terminating service shall not apply if (i) the condition of a customer's wiring, equipment, or appliances is either unsafe or unsuitable for receiving the electric utility service; (ii) the customer's use of the electric utility service or equipment interferes with or may be detrimental to the electric utility's facilities or to the provision of electric utility service by the electric utility to any other customer; (iii) a tamper-evident meter seal securing the meter is broken, damaged, or missing; (iv) electric service is furnished over a line that is not owned or leased by the electric utility and the line is either not in a safe and suitable condition or is inadequate to receive electric utility service; (v) emergency repairs or alterations are needed; (vi) there are unavoidable shortages or interruptions in a supply of utility service; (vii) the electric utility is acting upon orders from an authority having jurisdiction; or (viii) the actions taken are to preserve life or property, or to avoid or abate utility or fire hazard. B. Any and all Commission rules and regulations concerning the denial of telephone service for nonpayment of such service shall not apply to services found to be competitive. C. If an electric utility believes that a customer is receiving or has received electric utility services for which the customer was not properly billed as the result of tampering with the electric utility's meter in a manner that prevented the meter from accurately recording usage, the electric utility shall (i) retrieve the meter from the customer's premises, which may be done without providing prior notice to the customer; (ii) immediately replace it with a new meter; and (iii) determine whether the meter has been tampered with. Within 60 days after any such determination of meter tampering has been made, the electric utility shall provide evidence of such tampering to the customer. If, after determining the meter has been tampered with, the electric utility seeks payment for electric utility services not properly billed, the electric utility shall provide the customer with an invoice with a reasonable and final estimate of the amount owed by the customer as a result of the meter's failure to accurately record the customer's usage. The invoice shall explain the electric utility's calculation of the estimated amount owed as a result of any suspected failure. The electric utility shall provide the customer one full billing period to pay the amount billed in such invoice before initiating any proceeding against the customer for nonpayment. During such billing period, the customer may submit an informal complaint to the Commission disputing the amount sought by the utility. The customer may commence a formal proceeding after the informal complaint process has been exhausted in accordance with Commission regulations. 1976, c. 738; 1977, c. 59; 1980, c. 415; 2010, c. 320; 2011, cc. 500, 738, 740; 2020, c. 668.

Va. Code § 56-249.1

§ 56-249.1. Commission may require transfer of gas, water or electricity by one utility to another; compensation.The Commission may require a public utility to transfer to another public utility of like business, gas, water or electricity, whenever the public health, welfare or safety shall be found to so require; provided, however, that the transferring public utility shall be compensated, at a rate fixed by the Commission, for all such deliveries by the receiving public utility. 1975, c. 358.

Va. Code § 56-249.3

§ 56-249.3. Certain electric utilities to file reports in relation to fuel transactions, fuel purchases, fuel adjustment clauses, etc.The Commission shall require that public electric utilities, owning and operating generating facilities, or privately owned utilities purchasing power at wholesale for retail sales within this State, file monthly with the Commission for its review such information as it may deem necessary, which may include the following: 1. The various types of fuels received such as coal, oil, nuclear fuel or natural gas; 2. The following information on fossil fuels: a. The supplier of the fossil fuel, the cost in cents per MBTU of the fuel, with a notation of whether the fuel was contracted for, purchased on the spot market or purchased from an affiliate of the electric utility; b. The quantities of the various types of fossil fuels received stated in tons of coal, barrels of oil, millions of cubic feet of natural gas; c. The average BTU content per pound, gallon or cubic foot received, whichever is applicable; d. The average sulfur and ash content, where applicable, of the fuel received; 3. Total demurrage charges incurred at each generating plant; 4. Total cost of transportation incurred at each generating plant; 5. The quantity of fuel consumed by each generation unit in the generating plant; 6. The average cost of the fossil and nuclear fuel in cents per MBTU's consumed at each plant with and without handling charges; 7. The monthly net heat rate expressed in BTU's per kilowatt-hour for each generating unit; 8. The kilowatt-hour output delivered into the system on a monthly basis; 9. The monthly net kilowatt-hour interchange; and 10. The monthly system kilowatt-hour sales. 1977, c. 125; 1979, c. 617.

Va. Code § 56-249.6

§ 56-249.6:2. Financing for certain deferred fuel costs; Phase II Utilities.A. Notwithstanding the provisions of § 56-249.6 or Chapter 3 (§ 56-55 et seq.), an electric utility, on or before July 1, 2024, may petition the Commission for a financing order and the Commission shall either issue (i) such financing order or (ii) an order rejecting the petition, no more than four months from the date of filing such petition and in accordance with the requirements of subdivision 2. 1. The petition shall include (i) an estimate of the total amount of deferred fuel costs that the electric utility has incurred over the time period noted in the petition; (ii) an indication of whether the electric utility proposes to finance all or a portion of the deferred fuel costs using one or more series or tranches of deferred fuel cost bonds; (iii) an estimate and details of the financing costs related to the deferred fuel costs to be financed through the deferred fuel cost bonds; (iv) an estimate of the deferred fuel cost charges necessary to recover the deferred fuel costs and all financing costs and the proposed period for recovery of such costs; (v) a description of any benefits expected to result from the issuance of deferred fuel cost bonds, including the avoidance of or significant mitigation of abrupt and significant increases in rates to the electric utility's customers for the applicable time period; and (vi) direct testimony and exhibits supporting the petition. If the electric utility proposes to finance a portion of the deferred fuel costs, the electric utility shall identify in the petition the specific amount of deferred fuel costs for the applicable time period to be financed using deferred fuel cost bonds. By electing not to finance a portion of the deferred fuel costs for an applicable time period using deferred fuel cost bonds, an electric utility shall not be deemed to waive its right to recover such costs pursuant to a separate proceeding with the Commission. 2. a. If an electric utility petitions the Commission for a financing order pursuant to this section, following notice and an opportunity for hearing, the Commission shall either issue (i) a financing order or (ii) an order rejecting the petition, not more than four months from the date of filing such petition. b. A financing order issued by the Commission pursuant to this section shall include: (1) The amount of deferred fuel costs to be financed using deferred fuel cost bonds. The Commission shall describe and estimate the amount of financing costs that may be recovered through deferred fuel cost charges. The financing order shall also specify the period over which deferred fuel costs and financing costs may be recovered and whether the deferred fuel cost bonds may be offered and issued in one or more series or tranches during a fixed period not to exceed one year after the date of the financing order; (2) A finding that the proposed issuance of deferred fuel cost bonds is in the public interest and the associated deferred fuel cost charges are just and reasonable; (3) A finding that the structuring and pricing of the deferred fuel cost bonds are reasonably expected to result in reasonable deferred fuel cost charges consistent with market conditions at the time the deferred fuel cost bonds are priced and the terms set forth in such financing order; (4) A requirement that, for so long as the deferred fuel cost bonds are outstanding and until all financing costs have been paid in full, the imposition and collection of deferred fuel cost charges authorized under a financing order shall be non-bypassable and paid by all retail customers of the electric utility, irrespective of the generation supplier of such customer, except for an exempt retail access customer; (5) A formula-based true-up mechanism for making annual adjustments to the deferred fuel cost charges that customers are required to pay pursuant to the financing order and for making any adjustments that are necessary to correct for any overcollection or undercollection of the charges or to otherwise ensure the timely payment of deferred fuel cost bonds and financing costs and other required amounts and charges payable in connection with the deferred fuel cost bonds; (6) The deferred fuel cost property that is, or shall be, created in favor of an electric utility or its successors or assignees and that shall be used to pay or secure deferred fuel cost bonds and all financing costs; (7) The authority of the electric utility to establish the terms and conditions of the deferred fuel cost bonds, including repayment schedules, expected interest rates, the issuance in one or more series or tranches with different maturity dates, and other financing costs; (8) A finding that the deferred fuel cost charges shall be allocated among customer classes in accordance with the methodology approved in the electric utility's last fuel factor proceeding; (9) A requirement that after the final terms of an issuance of deferred fuel cost bonds have been established and before the issuance of deferred fuel cost bonds, the electric utility determines the resulting initial deferred fuel cost charge in accordance with the financing order and that such initial deferred fuel cost charge be final and effective upon the issuance of such deferred fuel cost bonds without further Commission action so long as such initial deferred fuel cost charge is consistent with the financing order; (10) A method of tracing funds collected as deferred fuel cost charges, or other proceeds of deferred fuel cost property, and a requirement that such method be the method of tracing such funds and determining the identifiable cash proceeds of any deferred fuel cost property subject to the financing order under applicable law; and (11) Any other conditions not otherwise inconsistent with this section that the Commission determines are appropriate. c. A financing order issued to an electric utility may provide that creation of the electric utility's deferred fuel cost property is conditioned upon, and simultaneous with, the sale or other transfer for the deferred fuel cost property to an assignee and the pledge of the deferred fuel cost property to secure deferred fuel cost bonds. d. If the Commission issues a financing order, the Commission shall establish a protocol for the electric utility to annually file a petition or, in the Commission's discretion, a letter setting out application of the formula-based mechanism and, based on estimates of consumption for each rate class and other mathematical factors, requesting administrative approval to make applicable adjustments. The review of the filing shall be limited to determining whether there are any mathematical or clerical errors in the application of the formula-based mechanism relating to the appropriate amount of any overcollection or undercollection of deferred fuel cost charges and the amount of an adjustment. The adjustments shall ensure the recovery of revenues sufficient to provide for the payment of principal, interest, acquisition, defeasance, financing costs, or redemption premium and other fees, costs, and charges in respect of deferred fuel cost bonds approved under the financing order. Within 30 days after receiving an electric utility's request pursuant to this subdivision d, the Commission shall either approve the request or inform the electric utility of mathematical or clerical errors in its calculation. If the Commission informs the electric utility of mathematical or clerical errors in its calculation, the electric utility may correct its error and refile its request. The time frames previously described in this subdivision d shall apply to a refiled request. e. Subsequent to the transfer of deferred fuel cost property to an assignee or the issuance of deferred fuel cost bonds authorized thereby, whichever is earlier, a financing order shall be irrevocable and, except for changes made pursuant to the formula-based mechanism authorized in this section, the Commission shall not amend, modify, or terminate the financing order by any subsequent action or reduce, impair, postpone, terminate, or otherwise adjust deferred fuel cost charges approved in the financing order. After the issuance of a financing order, the electric utility shall retain sole discretion regarding whether to assign, sell, or otherwise transfer deferred fuel cost property or to cause deferred fuel cost bonds to be issued, including the right to defer or postpone such assignment, sale, transfer, or issuance. 3. At the request of an electric utility, the Commission may commence a proceeding and issue a subsequent financing order that provides for refinancing, retiring, or refunding deferred fuel cost bonds issued pursuant to the original financing order if the Commission finds that the subsequent financing order satisfies all of the criteria specified in this section for a financing order. Effective upon retirement of the refunded deferred fuel cost bonds and the issuance of new deferred fuel cost bonds, the Commission shall adjust the related deferred fuel cost charges accordingly. 4. a. A financing order shall remain in effect and deferred fuel cost property under the financing order shall continue to exist until deferred fuel cost bonds issued pursuant to the financing order have been paid in full or defeased and, in each case, all Commission-approved financing costs of such deferred fuel cost bonds have been recovered in full. b. A financing order issued to an electric utility shall remain in effect and unabated notwithstanding the reorganization, bankruptcy or other insolvency proceedings, merger, or sale of the electric utility or its successors or assignees. B. 1. The Commission shall not, in exercising its powers and carrying out its duties regarding any matter within its authority pursuant to this chapter, and notwithstanding any other provision of law, consider the deferred fuel cost bonds issued pursuant to a financing order to be the debt of the electric utility other than for federal income tax purposes, consider the deferred fuel cost charges paid under the financing order to be the revenue of the electric utility for any purpose, or consider the deferred fuel costs or financing costs specified in the financing order to be the costs of the electric utility, nor shall the Commission determine any action taken by an electric utility that is consistent with the financing order to be unjust or unreasonable. 2. The Commission shall not order or otherwise directly or indirectly require an electric utility to use deferred fuel cost bonds to finance any project, addition, plant, facility, extension, capital improvement, equipment, or any other expenditure. After the issuance of a financing order, the electric utility shall retain sole discretion regarding whether to cause the deferred fuel cost bonds to be issued, including the right to defer or postpone such sale, assignment, transfer, or issuance. Nothing shall prevent the electric utility from abandoning the issuance of deferred fuel cost bonds under the financing order by filing with the Commission a statement of abandonment and the reasons therefor. The Commission shall not deny an electric utility its right to recover deferred fuel costs as otherwise provided in this section, or refuse or condition authorization or approval of the issuance and sale by an electric utility of securities or the assumption by the electric utility of liabilities or obligations, solely because of the potential availability of deferred fuel cost bond financing. C. The electric bills of an electric utility that has obtained a financing order and caused deferred fuel cost bonds to be issued shall comply with the provisions of this subsection; however, the failure of an electric utility to comply with this subsection does not invalidate, impair, or affect any financing order, deferred fuel cost property, deferred fuel cost charge, or deferred fuel cost bonds. The electric utility shall: 1. Explicitly reflect that a portion of the charges on any electric bill represents deferred fuel cost charges approved in a financing order issued to the electric utility and, if the deferred fuel cost property has been transferred to an assignee, such bill shall include a statement to the effect that the assignee is the owner of the rights to deferred fuel cost charges and that the electric utility or another entity, if applicable, is acting as a collection agent or servicer for the assignee. The tariff applicable to customers must indicate the deferred fuel cost charge and the ownership of the charge; and 2. Include the deferred fuel cost charge on each customer's bill as a separate line item and include both the rate and the amount of the charge on each bill. D. 1. The following provisions shall be applicable to deferred fuel cost property: a. All deferred fuel cost property that is specified in a financing order shall constitute an existing, present intangible property right or interest therein, notwithstanding that the imposition and collection of deferred fuel cost charges depends on the electric utility, to which the financing order is issued, performing its servicing functions relating to the collection of deferred fuel cost charges and on future electricity consumption. The deferred fuel cost property shall exist (i) regardless of whether or not the revenues or proceeds arising from the deferred fuel cost property have been billed, have accrued, or have been collected and (ii) notwithstanding the fact that the value or amount of the deferred fuel cost property is dependent on the future provision of service to customers by the electric utility or its successors or assignees and the future consumption of electricity by customers; b. Deferred fuel cost property specified in a financing order shall exist until deferred fuel cost bonds issued pursuant to the financing order are paid in full and all financing costs and other costs of such deferred fuel cost bonds have been recovered in full; c. All or any portion of deferred fuel cost property specified in a financing order issued to an electric utility may be transferred, sold, conveyed, or assigned to a successor or assignee that is wholly owned, directly or indirectly, by the electric utility and created for the limited purpose of acquiring, owning, or administering deferred fuel cost property or issuing deferred fuel cost bonds under the financing order. All or any portion of deferred fuel cost property may be pledged to secure deferred fuel cost bonds issued pursuant to the financing order, amounts payable to financing parties and to counterparties under any ancillary agreements, and other financing costs. Any transfer, sale, conveyance, assignment, grant of a security interest in or pledge of deferred fuel cost property by an electric utility, or an affiliate of the electric utility, to an assignee, to the extent previously authorized in a financing order, shall not require the prior consent and approval of the Commission; d. If an electric utility defaults on any required payment of charges arising from deferred fuel cost property specified in a financing order, a court, upon application by an interested party, and without limiting any other remedies available to the applying party, shall order the sequestration and payment of the revenues arising from the deferred fuel cost property to the financing parties or their assignees. Any such financing order shall remain in full force and effect notwithstanding any reorganization, bankruptcy, or other insolvency proceedings with respect to the electric utility or its successors or assignees; e. The interest of a transferee, purchaser, acquirer, assignee, or pledgee in deferred fuel cost property specified in a financing order issued to an electric utility, and in the revenue and collections arising from that property, shall not be subject to setoff, counterclaim, surcharge, or defense by the electric utility or any other person or in connection with the reorganization, bankruptcy, or other insolvency of the electric utility or any other entity; f. Any successor to an electric utility, whether pursuant to any reorganization, bankruptcy, or other insolvency proceeding or whether pursuant to any merger or acquisition, sale, or other business combination, or transfer by operation of law, as a result of electric utility restructuring or otherwise, shall perform and satisfy all obligations of, and have the same rights under a financing order as, the electric utility under the financing order in the same manner and to the same extent as the electric utility, including collecting and paying to the person entitled to receive the revenues, collections, payments, or proceeds of the deferred fuel cost property. Nothing in this subdivision f is intended to limit or impair any authority of the Commission concerning the transfer or succession of interests of public utilities; and g. Deferred fuel cost bonds shall be nonrecourse to the credit or any assets of the electric utility other than the deferred fuel cost property as specified in the financing order and any rights under any ancillary agreement. 2. The following provisions shall be applicable to security interests: a. The creation, perfection, and enforcement of any security interest in deferred fuel cost property to secure the repayment of the principal and interest and other amounts payable in respect of deferred fuel cost bonds; amounts payable under any indenture, ancillary agreement, or other financing documents in respect of the deferred fuel costs; and other financing costs shall be governed by this subsection and not by the provisions of the Uniform Commercial Code (Titles 8.1A through 8.9A); b. A security interest in deferred fuel cost property shall be created and enforceable when all of the following have occurred: (i) a financing order is issued, (ii) value is received by the debtor or seller for such deferred fuel cost property, (iii) the debtor or seller has rights in such deferred fuel cost property or the power to transfer rights in such deferred fuel cost property, and (iv) a security agreement granting such security interest is executed and delivered by the debtor or seller. The description of deferred fuel cost property in a security agreement shall be sufficient if the description refers to this section and the financing order creating the deferred fuel cost property; c. A security interest shall attach without any physical delivery of collateral or other act and, upon the filing of a financing statement with the Commission, the lien of the security interest shall be valid, binding, and perfected against all parties having claims of any kind in tort, contract, or otherwise against the person granting the security interest, regardless of whether the parties have notice of the lien. Also upon this filing, a transfer of an interest in the deferred fuel cost property shall be perfected against all parties having claims of any kind, including any judicial lien or other lien creditors or any claims of the transferor or creditors of the transferor, and shall have priority over all competing claims other than any prior security interest, ownership interest, or assignment in the property previously perfected in accordance with this section; d. The Commission shall maintain any financing statement filed to perfect any security interest under this section in the same manner that the Commission maintains financing statements filed by transmitting utilities under the Uniform Commercial Code (Titles 8.1A through 8.9A). The filing of a financing statement under this section shall be governed by the provisions regarding the filing of financing statements in the Uniform Commercial Code (Titles 8.1A through 8.9A); e. The priority of a security interest in deferred fuel cost property shall not be affected by the commingling of deferred fuel cost charges with other amounts. Any pledgee or secured party shall have a perfected security interest in the amount of all deferred fuel cost charges that are deposited in any cash or deposit account of the qualifying utility in which deferred fuel cost charges have been commingled with other funds and any other security interest that may apply to those funds shall be terminated when they are transferred to a segregated account for the assignee or a financing party; f. No application of the formula-based adjustment mechanism as provided in this section shall affect the validity, perfection, or priority of a security interest in or transfer of deferred fuel cost property; and g. If a default or termination occurs under the deferred fuel cost bonds, the financing parties or their representatives may foreclose on or otherwise enforce their lien and security interest in any deferred fuel cost property as if they were secured parties with a perfected and prior lien under the Uniform Commercial Code (Titles 8.1A through 8.9A), and the Commission may order that amounts arising from deferred fuel cost charges be transferred to a separate account for the financing parties' benefit, to which their lien and security interest shall apply. On application by or on behalf of the financing parties, the Commission shall order the sequestration and payment to them of revenues arising from the deferred fuel cost charges. 3. a. Any sale, assignment, or other transfer of deferred fuel cost property shall be an absolute transfer and true sale of and not a pledge of, or secured transaction relating to, the transferor's right, title, and interest in, to, and under the deferred fuel cost property if the documents governing the transaction expressly state that the transaction is a sale or other absolute transfer other than for federal and state income tax purposes. For all purposes other than federal and state income tax purposes, the parties' characterization of a transaction as a sale of an interest in deferred fuel cost property shall be conclusive that the transaction is a true sale and that ownership has passed to the party characterized as the purchaser, regardless of any fact or circumstance that might support characterization of the transfer as a secured transaction. A transfer of an interest in deferred fuel cost property shall occur only when all of the following have occurred: (i) the financing order creating the deferred fuel cost property has become effective, (ii) the documents evidencing the transfer of deferred fuel cost property have been executed by the transferor and delivered to the assignee, and (iii) value is received by the transferor for the deferred fuel cost property. After such a transaction, the deferred fuel cost property shall not be subject to any claims of the transferor or the transferor's creditors, other than creditors holding a prior security interest in the deferred fuel cost property perfected in accordance with subdivision 2. b. The characterization of the sale, assignment, or other transfer as an absolute transfer and true sale, and the corresponding characterization of the interest of the assignee as an ownership interest, shall not be affected or impaired by the occurrence of any of the following factors: (1) Commingling of deferred fuel cost charges with other amounts; (2) The retention by the seller of (i) a partial or residual interest, including an equity interest, in the deferred fuel cost property, whether direct or indirect, or whether subordinate or otherwise, or (ii) the right to recover costs associated with taxes, franchise fees, or license fees imposed on the collection of deferred fuel cost charges; (3) Any recourse that the assignee may have against the seller; (4) Any right or obligation that the seller may have to repurchase the deferred fuel cost charges; (5) Any indemnification obligations of the seller; (6) The obligation of the seller to collect deferred fuel cost charges on behalf of the assignee; (7) The transferor acting as the servicer of the deferred fuel cost charges or the existence of any contract that authorizes or requires the electric utility, to the extent that any interest in deferred fuel cost property is sold or assigned, to agree with the assignee or any financing party that it will continue to operate its system to provide service to its customers, will collect amounts in respect of the deferred fuel cost charges for the benefit and account of such assignee or financing party, and will account for and remit such amounts to or for the account of such assignee or financing party; (8) The treatment of the sale, conveyance, assignment, or other transfer for tax, financial reporting, or other purposes; (9) The granting or providing to bondholders of a preferred right to the deferred fuel cost property or credit enhancement by the electric utility or its affiliates with respect to the deferred fuel cost bonds; or (10) Any application of the formula-based adjustment mechanism as provided in this section. c. Any right that an electric utility has in the deferred fuel cost property before its pledge, sale, or transfer or any other right created under this section or created in the financing order and assignable under this section or assignable pursuant to a financing order shall be property in the form of a contract right or a chose in action. Transfer of an interest in deferred fuel cost property to an assignee shall be enforceable only when all of the following have occurred: (i) a financing order is issued, (ii) value is received by the transferor for such deferred fuel cost property, (iii) the transferor has rights in such deferred fuel cost property or the power to transfer rights in such deferred fuel cost property, and (iv) transfer documents in connection with the issuance of deferred fuel cost bonds are executed and delivered by the transferor. An enforceable transfer of an interest in deferred fuel cost property to an assignee shall be perfected against all third parties, including subsequent judicial or other lien creditors, when a notice of that transfer has been given by the filing of a financing statement in accordance with subdivision 2 c. The transfer shall be perfected against third parties as of the date of filing. d. The Commission shall maintain any financing statement filed to perfect any sale, assignment, or transfer of deferred fuel cost property under this section in the same manner that the Commission maintains financing statements filed by transmitting utilities under the Uniform Commercial Code (Titles 8.1A through 8.9A). The filing of any financing statement under this section shall be governed by the provisions regarding the filing of financing statements in the Uniform Commercial Code (Titles 8.1A through 8.9A). The filing of such a financing statement shall be the only method of perfecting a transfer of deferred fuel cost property. e. The priority of a transfer perfected under this section shall not be impaired by any later modification of the financing order or deferred fuel cost property or by the commingling of funds arising from deferred fuel cost property with other funds. Any other security interest that may apply to those funds, other than a security interest perfected under subdivision 2, shall be terminated when they are transferred to a segregated account for the assignee or a financing party. If deferred fuel cost property has been transferred to an assignee or financing party, any proceeds of that property shall be held in trust for the assignee or financing party. f. The priority of the conflicting interests of assignees in the same interest or rights in any deferred fuel cost property shall be determined as follows: (1) Conflicting perfected interests or rights of assignees shall rank according to priority in time of perfection. Priority shall date from the time a filing covering the transfer is made in accordance with subdivision 2 c; (2) A perfected interest or right of an assignee shall have priority over a conflicting unperfected interest or right of an assignee; and (3) A perfected interest or right of an assignee shall have priority over a person who becomes a lien creditor after the perfection of such assignee's interest or right. E. The description of deferred fuel cost property being transferred to an assignee in any sale agreement, purchase agreement, or other transfer agreement, granted or pledged to a pledgee in any security agreement, pledge agreement, or other security document, or indicated in any financing statement, shall only be sufficient if such description or indication refers to the financing order that created the deferred fuel cost property and states that the agreement or financing statement covers all or part of the property described in the financing order. This section shall apply to all purported transfers of, and all purported grants or liens or security interests in, deferred fuel cost property, regardless of whether the related sale agreement, purchase agreement, other transfer agreement, security agreement, pledge agreement, or other security document was entered into, or any financing statement was filed. F. All financing statements referenced in this section shall be subject to Part 5 of Title 8.9A (§ 8.9A-501 et seq.) of the Uniform Commercial Code, except that the requirement as to continuation statements shall not apply. G. The laws of the Commonwealth shall govern the validity, enforceability, attachment, perfection, priority, and exercise of remedies with respect to the transfer of an interest or right or the pledge or creation of a security interest in any deferred fuel cost property. H. Neither the Commonwealth nor its political subdivisions shall be liable on any deferred fuel cost bonds, and the bonds shall not be a debt or a general obligation of the Commonwealth or any of its political subdivisions, agencies, or instrumentalities, nor shall they be special obligations or indebtedness of the Commonwealth or any of its agencies or political subdivisions. An issue of deferred fuel cost bonds shall not, directly, indirectly, or contingently, obligate the Commonwealth or any agency, political subdivision, or instrumentality of the Commonwealth to levy any tax or make any appropriation for payment of the deferred fuel cost bonds, other than in their capacity as consumers of electricity. All deferred fuel cost bonds shall contain on the face thereof a statement to the following effect: "NEITHER THE FULL FAITH AND CREDIT NOR THE TAXING POWER OF THE COMMONWEALTH IS PLEDGED TO THE PAYMENT OF THE PRINCIPAL OF, OR INTEREST ON, THIS BOND." I. All of the following entities may legally invest any sinking funds, moneys, or other funds in deferred fuel cost bonds: 1. Subject to applicable statutory restrictions on state or local investment authority, the Commonwealth, units of local government, political subdivisions, public bodies, and public officers, except for members of the Commission; 2. Banks and bankers, savings and loan associations, credit unions, trust companies, savings banks and institutions, investment companies, insurance companies, insurance associations, and other persons carrying on a banking or insurance business; 3. Personal representatives, guardians, trustees, and other fiduciaries; and 4. All other persons authorized to invest in bonds or other obligations of a similar nature. J. 1. The Commonwealth and its agencies, including the Commission, pledge and agree with bondholders, the owners of the deferred fuel cost property, and other financing parties that the Commonwealth and its agencies shall not take any action listed in this subdivision. This subsection does not preclude limitation or alteration if full compensation is made by law for the full protection of the deferred fuel cost charges collected pursuant to a financing order and of the bondholders and any assignee or financing party entering into a contract with the electric utility. The Commonwealth and its agencies, including the Commission, shall not: a. Alter the provisions of this section that authorize the Commission to create an irrevocable contract right or chose in action by the issuance of a financing order, to create deferred fuel cost property, and to make the deferred fuel cost charges imposed by a financing order irrevocable, binding, or nonbypassable charges; b. Take or permit any action that impairs or would impair the value of deferred fuel cost property or the security for the deferred fuel cost bonds or revises the deferred fuel costs for which recovery is authorized; c. In any way impair the rights and remedies of the bondholders, assignees, and other financing parties; or d. Except for changes made pursuant to the formula-based adjustment mechanism authorized under this section, reduce, alter, or impair deferred fuel cost charges that are to be imposed, billed, charged, collected, and remitted for the benefit of the bondholders, any assignee, and any other financing parties until any and all principal, interest, premium, financing costs and other fees, expenses, or charges incurred, and any contracts to be performed, in connection with the related deferred fuel cost bonds have been paid and performed in full. 2. Any person that issues deferred fuel cost bonds may include the language specified in subdivision 1 in the deferred fuel cost bonds and related documentation. K. An assignee or financing party shall not be considered an electric utility or person providing electric service by virtue of engaging in the transactions described in this section. L. If there is a conflict between this section and any other law regarding the attachment, assignment, or perfection, or the effect of perfection, or priority of, assignment or transfer of, or security interest in deferred fuel cost property, this section shall govern. M. In making determinations under this section, the Commission may engage an outside consultant and counsel. N. If any provision of this section is held invalid or is invalidated, superseded, replaced, repealed, or expires for any reason, that occurrence shall not affect the validity of any action allowed under this section that is taken by an electric utility, an assignee, a financing party, a collection agent, or a party to an ancillary agreement, and any such action shall remain in full force and effect with respect to all deferred fuel cost bonds issued or authorized in a financing order issued under this section before the date that such provision is held invalid or is invalidated, superseded, replaced, or repealed, or expires for any reason. O. As used in this section: "Ancillary agreement" means a bond, insurance policy, letter of credit, reserve account, surety bond, interest rate lock or swap arrangement, hedging arrangement, liquidity or credit support arrangement, or other financial arrangement entered into in connection with deferred fuel cost bonds. "Assignee" means a legally recognized entity to which an electric utility assigns, sells, or transfers, other than as a security, all or a portion of its interest in or right to deferred fuel cost property. "Assignee" includes a corporation, limited liability company, general partnership or limited partnership, public authority trust, financing entity, or other entity to which an assignee assigns, sells, or transfers, other than as a security, all or a portion of its interest in or right to deferred fuel cost property. "Bondholder" means a person who holds a deferred fuel cost bond. "Deferred fuel cost bonds" means bonds debentures, notes, certificates of participation, certificates of beneficial interest, certificates of ownership, or other evidences of indebtedness or ownership that are issued in one or more series or tranches by an electric utility or its assignee pursuant to a financing order, the proceeds of which are used directly or indirectly to recover, finance, or refinance Commission-approved deferred fuel costs and financing costs, and that are secured by or payable from deferred fuel cost property. If certificates of participation or ownership are issued, references in this section to principal, interest, or premium shall be construed to refer to comparable amounts under those certificates. "Deferred fuel cost charge" means the nonbypassable charges authorized by the Commission to repay, finance, or refinance deferred fuel costs and financing costs (i) imposed on and part of all retail customer bills, except those of exempt retail access customers; (ii) collected by an electric utility or its successor or assignees, or a collection agent, in full, separate and apart from the electric utility's base rates; and (iii) paid by all retail customers of the electric utility, irrespective of the generation supplier of such customer, except for an exempt retail access customer. "Deferred fuel cost property" includes: 1. All rights and interests of an electric utility or successor or assignee of the electric utility under a financing order, including the right to impose, bill, charge, collect, and receive deferred fuel cost charges authorized under the financing order and to obtain periodic adjustments to such charges as provided in the financing order; and 2. All revenues, collections, claims, rights to payments, payments, money, or proceeds arising from the rights and interests specified in the financing order, regardless of whether such revenues, collections, claims, rights to payment, payments, money, or proceeds are imposed, billed, received, collected, or maintained together with or commingled with other revenues, collections, rights to payment, payments, money, or proceeds. "Deferred fuel costs" means the unrecovered amounts of previously incurred costs of fuel used to generate electricity, including the costs of purchased power, that have been deferred by an electric utility for future recovery from the utility's customers, along with financing costs on the utility's fuel deferral balance. "Electric utility" means a Phase II Utility. "Exempt retail access customer" means a retail customer of an electric utility that, pursuant to the provisions of § 56-577 or 56-577.1, purchased electric energy exclusively from a supplier of electric energy licensed to sell retail electric energy exclusively within the Commonwealth other than the electric utility, or that purchased electric energy from the electric utility pursuant to a Commission-approved market-based tariff, during the period when the deferred fuel costs to be financed were incurred. Such exemption shall be prorated to the extent an otherwise exempt retail customer purchased electric energy from the electric utility, in which case the retail customer shall be responsible for its pro rata share of deferred fuel cost charges authorized under a financing order. "Financing costs" means: 1. Interest and any premium, including any acquisition, defeasance, or redemption premium, payable on deferred fuel cost bonds; 2. Any payment required under any indenture, ancillary agreement, or other financing documents pertaining to deferred fuel cost bonds and any amount required to fund or replenish a reserve account or other accounts established under the terms of any indenture, ancillary agreement, or other financing documents pertaining to deferred fuel cost bonds; 3. Any other costs related to structuring, offering, issuing, supporting, repaying, refunding, servicing, and complying with deferred fuel cost bonds, including service fees, accounting and auditing fees, trustee fees, legal fees, consulting fees, structuring adviser fees, administrative fees, placement and underwriting fees, independent director and manager fees, capitalized interest, rating agency fees, stock exchange listing and compliance fees, security registration fees, filing fees, information technology programming costs, and any other costs necessary to otherwise ensure the timely payment of deferred fuel cost bonds or other amounts or charges payable in connection with the bonds, including costs related to obtaining the financing order; 4. Any taxes and license fees or other fees imposed on the revenues generated from the collection of deferred fuel cost charges or otherwise resulting from the collection of deferred fuel cost charges, in any such case whether paid, payable, or accrued; 5. Any state and local taxes, franchise, gross receipts, and other taxes or similar charges, including regulatory assessment fees, whether paid, payable, or accrued; 6. Any costs incurred by the Commission for any outside consultants or counsel retained in connection with the securitization of deferred fuel costs; and 7. Any financing costs on the utility's fuel deferral balance prior to issuance of any fuel cost bonds, calculated at the utility's approved weighted average cost of capital. "Financing order" means an order that authorizes the issuance of deferred fuel cost bonds; the imposition, collection, and periodic adjustments of a deferred fuel cost charge; the creation of deferred fuel cost property; the sale, assignment, or transfer of deferred fuel cost property to an assignee; and any other actions necessary or advisable to take actions described in the financing order. "Financing party" means bondholders and trustees, collateral agents, any party under an ancillary agreement, or any other person acting for the benefit of bondholders. "Financing statement" has the same meaning as provided in § 8.9A-102 of the Uniform Commercial Code. "Phase II Utility" has the same meaning as provided in subdivision A 1 of § 56-585.1. "Pledgee" means a financing party to which an electric utility or its successors or assignees mortgages, negotiates, pledges, or creates a security interest or lien on all or any portion of its interest in or right to deferred fuel cost property. 2023, cc. 757, 775.

Va. Code § 56-249.8

§ 56-249.8. Financing for certain securitized asset costs; Phase I Utility.A. As used in this section: "Ancillary agreement" means a bond, insurance policy, letter of credit, reserve account, surety bond, interest rate lock or swap arrangement, hedging arrangement, liquidity or credit support arrangement, or other financial arrangement entered into in connection with securitized asset cost bonds. "Assignee" means a legally recognized entity to which an electric utility assigns, sells, or transfers, other than as a security, all or a portion of its interest in or right to securitized asset cost property. "Assignee" includes a corporation, limited liability company, general partnership or limited partnership, public authority trust, financing entity, or other entity to which an assignee assigns, sells, or transfers, other than as a security, all or a portion of its interest in or right to securitized asset cost property. "Bondholder" means a person who holds a securitized asset cost bond. "Electric utility" means a Phase I Utility, as that term is defined in subdivision A 1 of § 56-585.1. "Financing costs" means: 1. Interest and any premium, including any acquisition, defeasance, or redemption premium, payable on securitized asset cost bonds; 2. Any payment required under any indenture, ancillary agreement, or other financing documents pertaining to securitized asset cost bonds and any amount required to fund or replenish a reserve account or other accounts established under the terms of any indenture, ancillary agreement, or other financing documents pertaining to securitized asset bonds; 3. Any other costs related to structuring, offering, issuing, supporting, repaying, refunding, servicing, and complying with securitized asset cost bonds, including service fees, accounting and auditing fees, trustee fees, legal fees, consulting fees, structuring adviser fees, administrative fees, placement and underwriting fees, independent director and manager fees, capitalized interest, rating agency fees, stock exchange listing and compliance fees, security registration fees, filing fees, information technology programming costs, and any other costs necessary to otherwise ensure the timely payment of securitized asset cost bonds or other amounts or charges payable in connection with the bonds, including costs related to obtaining the financing order; 4. Any taxes and license fees or other fees imposed on the revenues generated from the collection of securitized asset cost charges or otherwise resulting from the collection of securitized asset cost charges, in any such case whether paid, payable, or accrued; 5. Any state and local taxes, franchise, gross receipts, and other taxes or similar charges, including regulatory assessment fees, whether paid, payable, or accrued; 6. Any costs incurred by the Commission for any outside consultants or counsel retained in connection with the securitization of securitized asset costs; and 7. Any financing costs on the utility's securitized asset cost balance prior to issuance of any securitized asset cost bonds, calculated at the utility's approved weighted average cost of capital. "Financing order" means an order that authorizes the issuance of securitized asset cost bonds; the imposition, collection, and periodic adjustments of a securitized asset cost charge; the creation of securitized asset cost property; the sale, assignment, or transfer of securitized asset cost property to an assignee; and any other actions necessary or advisable to take actions described in the financing order. "Financing party" means bondholders and trustees, collateral agents, any party under an ancillary agreement, or any other person acting for the benefit of bondholders. "Financing statement" has the same meaning as provided in § 8.9A-102 of the Uniform Commercial Code. "Pledgee" means a financing party to which an electric utility or its successors or assignees mortgages, negotiates, pledges, or creates a security interest or lien on all or any portion of its interest in or right to securitized asset cost property. "Securitized asset cost bonds" means bonds, debentures, notes, certificates of participation, certificates of beneficial interest, certificates of ownership, or other evidences of indebtedness or ownership that are issued in one or more series or tranches by an electric utility or its assignee pursuant to a financing order, the proceeds of which are used directly or indirectly to recover, finance, or refinance Commission-approved securitized asset costs and financing costs, and that are secured by or payable from securitized asset cost property. If certificates of participation or ownership are issued, references in this section to principal, interest, or premium shall be construed to refer to comparable amounts under those certificates. "Securitized asset cost charge" means the non-bypassable charges authorized by the Commission to repay, finance, or refinance securitized asset costs and financing costs (i) imposed on and part of all retail customer bills, except those of exempt retail access customers; (ii) collected by an electric utility or its successor or assignees, or a collection agent, in full, separate and apart from the electric utility's base rates; and (iii) paid by all retail customers of the electric utility, irrespective of the generation supplier of such customer, except for an exempt retail access customer. "Securitized asset costs" means (i) storm recovery costs incurred by an electric utility due to severe weather events, as recognized by nationally recognized standards including standards published by the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers, and natural disasters and (ii) undepreciated generation utility plant balances. "Storm recovery costs" means investments and expenses incurred by an electric utility on or after January 1, 2024, arising from or related to any major storm, extraordinary weather event, or natural disaster affecting Phase I Utility ratepayers in Virginia, including costs of the mobilization, staging, construction, reconstruction, repair, or replacement of production, generation, transport, transmission, general, or distribution facilities and the costs of any other activity by or on behalf of an electric utility in connection with the restoration of service associated with outages impacting its customers as a result of such major storm, extraordinary weather event, or natural disaster. "Undepreciated generation utility plant balances" means any unrecovered capitalized costs of or undepreciated investments in one or more fossil-fired electric generating plants having nameplate capacity in excess of 1,000 megawatts each, and related supply, transmission, equipment, and fixtures. "Undepreciated generation utility plant balances" shall include (i) the net book value of assets on the electric utility's balance sheet related to such generating plants and related infrastructure and (ii) carrying costs authorized by the Commission. "Undepreciated generation utility plant balances" does not include (a) any costs of removing retired generating plant assets; (b) any capitalized costs and investments in fossil-fired electric generating plants and related supply, transmission, equipment, and fixtures incurred or made by an electric utility on or after December 31, 2023; and (c) any non-cash asset retirement obligation assets and related accumulated depreciation. "Uniform Commercial Code" means Titles 8.1A through 8.13 (§ 8.1A-101 et seq.). B. Notwithstanding the provisions of Chapter 3 (§ 56-55 et seq.), an electric utility may petition the Commission for a financing order pursuant to this section. No more than four months after the date such petition is filed, the Commission shall issue either (i) such financing order in accordance with the requirements of subdivision 2 or (ii) an order rejecting the petition. 1. The petition shall include (i) an estimate of the total amount of any securitized asset costs that the electric utility has incurred over the time period noted in the petition; (ii) an indication of whether the electric utility proposes to finance all or a portion of the securitized asset costs using one or more series or tranches of securitized asset cost bonds; (iii) an estimate and details of the financing costs related to the securitized asset costs to be financed through the securitized asset cost bonds; (iv) an estimate of the securitized asset cost charges necessary to recover the securitized asset costs and all financing costs and the proposed period for recovery of such costs; (v) a description of any benefits expected to result from the issuance of securitized asset cost bonds, including the avoidance of or significant mitigation of abrupt and significant increases in rates to the electric utility's customers for the applicable time period; and (vi) direct testimony and exhibits supporting the petition. If the electric utility proposes to finance a portion of the securitized asset costs, the electric utility shall identify in the petition the specific amount of securitized asset costs for the applicable time period to be financed using securitized asset cost bonds. By electing not to finance a portion of the securitized asset costs for an applicable time period using securitized asset cost bonds, an electric utility shall not be deemed to waive its right to recover such costs pursuant to a separate proceeding with the Commission. 2. a. A financing order issued by the Commission pursuant to this section shall include: (1) The amount of securitized asset costs to be financed using securitized asset cost bonds. The Commission shall describe and estimate the amount of financing costs that may be recovered through securitized asset cost charges. The financing order shall also specify the period over which securitized asset costs and financing costs may be recovered and whether the securitized asset cost bonds may be offered and issued in one or more series or tranches during a fixed period not to exceed one year after the date of the financing order; (2) A finding that the proposed issuance of securitized asset cost bonds is in the public interest and the associated securitized asset cost charges are just and reasonable; (3) A finding that the structuring and pricing of the securitized asset cost bonds are reasonably expected to result in reasonable securitized asset charges consistent with market conditions at the time the securitized asset cost bonds are priced and the terms set forth in such financing order; (4) A requirement that, for so long as the securitized asset cost bonds are outstanding and until all financing costs have been paid in full, the imposition and collection of securitized asset cost charges authorized under a financing order shall be non-bypassable and paid by all retail customers of the electric utility, irrespective of the generation supplier of such customer, except for an exempt retail access customer; (5) A formula-based true-up mechanism for making annual adjustments to the securitized asset cost charges that customers are required to pay pursuant to the financing order and for making any adjustments that are necessary to correct for any overcollection or undercollection of the charges or to otherwise ensure the timely payment of securitized asset cost bonds and financing costs and other required amounts and charges payable in connection with the securitized asset cost bonds; (6) The securitized asset cost property that is, or shall be, created in favor of an electric utility or its successors or assignees and that shall be used to pay or secure securitized asset cost bonds and all financing costs; (7) The authority of the electric utility to establish (i) the terms and conditions of the securitized asset cost bonds, including repayment schedules, expected interest rates, the issuance in one or more series or tranches with different maturity dates, and other financing costs, and (ii) the terms and conditions of the ancillary documents related to the securitized asset cost bonds, including servicing arrangements for securitized asset cost charges; (8) A finding that the securitized asset cost charges shall be allocated among customer classes in accordance with the methodology approved in the electric utility's most recent base rate case; (9) A requirement that after the final terms of an issuance of securitized asset cost bonds have been established and before the issuance of securitized asset cost bonds, the electric utility determines the resulting initial securitized asset cost charge in accordance with the financing order and that such initial securitized asset cost charge be final and effective upon the issuance of such securitized asset cost bonds without further Commission action so long as such initial securitized asset cost charge is consistent with the financing order; (10) A method of tracing funds collected as securitized asset cost charges, or other proceeds of securitized asset cost property, and a requirement that such method be the method of tracing such funds and determining the identifiable cash proceeds of any securitized asset cost property subject to the financing order under applicable law; (11) A requirement that the electric utility's base rates, exclusive of the cost of securitized asset cost bonds, reflect the reduction of rates associated with securitization effective on the date on which proceeds from the issuance of the securitized asset cost bonds are received by the electric utility. Such requirement may be met through the use of a temporary tracker to credit customers until such reduction is reflected in the base rates established through the electric utility's next base rate case; (12) Any other conditions not otherwise inconsistent with this section that the Commission determines are appropriate; (13) A requirement that the electric utility's base rates, exclusive of the cost of securitized asset cost bonds, reflect the reduction of rate base associated with the securitization of utility plant balances effective on the date proceeds from the issuance of the securitized asset cost bonds are received by the utility. This can be accomplished through the use of a temporary tracker to credit customers until the electric utility's next base rate case, at which point the reduction in rate base shall be reflected in base rates; (14) A method of tracing funds collected as securitized asset cost charges, or other proceeds of securitized asset cost property, and a requirement that such method be the method of tracing such funds and determining the identifiable cash proceeds of any securitized asset cost property subject to the financing order under applicable law; and (15) Any other conditions not otherwise inconsistent with this section that the Commission determines are appropriate. b. Neither a financing order issued pursuant to this section nor the Commission's approval of a petition for a financing order shall require that securitized asset cost bonds be marketed as a specified type of security or that the assignee be formed as a specified type of entity. The electric utility shall maintain discretion to determine the type of security that securitized asset cost bonds shall be. c. A financing order issued to an electric utility may provide that creation of the electric utility's securitized asset cost property is conditioned upon, and simultaneous with, the sale or other transfer for the securitized asset cost property to an assignee and the pledge of the securitized asset cost property to secure securitized asset cost bonds. d. If the Commission issues a financing order, the Commission shall establish a protocol for the electric utility to annually file a petition or, in the Commission's discretion, a letter setting out application of the formula-based mechanism and, based on estimates of consumption for each rate class and other mathematical factors, requesting administrative approval to make applicable adjustments. The review of the filing shall be limited to determining whether there are any mathematical or clerical errors in the application of the formula-based mechanism relating to the appropriate amount of any overcollection or undercollection of securitized asset cost charges and the amount of an adjustment. The adjustments shall ensure the recovery of revenues sufficient to provide for the payment of principal, interest, acquisition, defeasance, financing costs, or redemption premium and other fees, costs, and charges in respect of securitized asset cost bonds approved under the financing order. Within 30 days after receiving an electric utility's request pursuant to this subdivision d, the Commission shall either approve the request or inform the electric utility of any mathematical or clerical errors in its calculation. If the Commission informs the electric utility of mathematical or clerical errors in its calculation, the electric utility may correct such errors and refile its request. The 30-day time frame previously described in this subdivision d shall apply to a refiled request. e. Subsequent to the transfer of securitized asset cost property to an assignee or the issuance of securitized asset cost bonds authorized thereby, whichever is earlier, a financing order shall be irrevocable and, except for changes made pursuant to the formula-based mechanism authorized in this section, the Commission shall not amend, modify, or terminate the financing order by any subsequent action or reduce, impair, postpone, terminate, or otherwise adjust securitized asset cost charges approved in the financing order. After the issuance of a financing order, the electric utility shall retain sole discretion regarding whether to assign, sell, or otherwise transfer securitized asset cost property or to cause securitized asset cost bonds to be issued, including the right to defer or postpone such assignment, sale, transfer, or issuance. 3. At the request of an electric utility, the Commission may commence a proceeding and issue a subsequent financing order that provides for refinancing, retiring, or refunding securitized asset cost bonds issued pursuant to the original financing order if the Commission finds that the subsequent financing order satisfies all of the criteria specified in this section for a financing order. Effective upon retirement of the refunded securitized asset bonds and the issuance of new securitized asset cost bonds, the Commission shall adjust the related securitized asset cost charges accordingly. 4. a. A financing order shall remain in effect and securitized asset cost property under the financing order shall continue to exist until securitized asset cost bonds issued pursuant to the financing order have been paid in full or defeased and, in each case, all Commission-approved financing costs of such securitized asset cost bonds have been recovered in full. b. A financing order issued to an electric utility shall remain in effect and unabated notwithstanding the reorganization, bankruptcy or other insolvency proceedings, merger, or sale of the electric utility or its successors or assignees. C. 1. The Commission shall not, in exercising its powers and carrying out its duties regarding any matter within its authority pursuant to this chapter, and notwithstanding any other provision of law, (i) consider the securitized asset cost bonds issued pursuant to a financing order to be the debt of the electric utility other than for federal income tax purposes, including for any purpose under § 56-585.8; (ii) consider the securitized asset cost charges paid under the financing order to be the revenue of the electric utility for any purpose, including for any purpose under § 56-585.8; (iii) consider the securitized asset costs or financing costs specified in the financing order to be the costs of the electric utility, including for any purpose under § 56-585.8; or (iv) determine any action taken by an electric utility that is consistent with the financing order to be unjust or unreasonable. 2. The Commission shall not order or otherwise directly or indirectly require an electric utility to use securitized asset cost bonds to finance any project, addition, plant, facility, extension, capital improvement, equipment, or any other expenditure. After the issuance of a financing order, the electric utility shall retain sole discretion regarding whether to cause the securitized asset cost bonds to be issued, including the right to defer or postpone such sale, assignment, transfer, or issuance. Nothing shall prevent the electric utility from abandoning the issuance of securitized asset cost bonds under the financing order by filing with the Commission a statement of abandonment and the reasons therefor. The Commission shall not deny an electric utility its right to recover securitized asset costs as otherwise provided in this section, or refuse or condition authorization or approval of the issuance and sale by an electric utility of securities or the assumption by the electric utility of liabilities or obligations, solely because of the potential availability of securitized asset cost bond financing. D. The electric bills of an electric utility that has obtained a financing order and caused securitized asset cost bonds to be issued shall comply with the provisions of this subsection; however, the failure of an electric utility to comply with this subsection shall not invalidate, impair, or affect any financing order, securitized asset cost property, securitized asset cost charge, or securitized asset cost bonds. The electric utility shall: 1. Explicitly reflect that a portion of the charges on any electric bill represents securitized asset cost charges approved in a financing order issued to the electric utility and, if the securitized asset cost property has been transferred to an assignee, such bill shall include a statement to the effect that the assignee is the owner of the rights to securitized asset cost charges and that the electric utility or another entity, if applicable, is acting as a collection agent or servicer for the assignee. The tariff applicable to customers must indicate the securitized asset cost charge and the ownership of the charge; and 2. Include the securitized asset cost charge on each customer's bill as a separate line item and include both the rate and the amount of the charge on each bill. E. 1. The following provisions shall be applicable to securitized asset cost property: a. All securitized asset cost property that is specified in a financing order shall constitute an existing, present intangible property right or interest therein, notwithstanding that the imposition and collection of securitized asset cost charges depends on the electric utility, to which the financing order is issued, performing its servicing functions relating to the collection of securitized asset cost charges and on future electricity consumption. The securitized asset cost property shall exist (i) regardless of whether or not the revenues or proceeds arising from the securitized asset cost property have been billed, have accrued, or have been collected and (ii) notwithstanding the fact that the value or amount of the securitized asset cost property is dependent on the future provision of service to customers by the electric utility or its successors or assignees and the future consumption of electricity by customers; b. Securitized asset cost property specified in a financing order shall exist until securitized asset cost bonds issued pursuant to the financing order are paid in full and all financing costs and other costs of such securitized asset cost bonds have been recovered in full; c. All or any portion of securitized asset cost property specified in a financing order issued to an electric utility may be transferred, sold, conveyed, or assigned to a successor or assignee that is wholly owned, directly or indirectly, by the electric utility and created for the limited purpose of acquiring, owning, or administering securitized asset cost property or issuing securitized asset cost bonds under the financing order. All or any portion of securitized asset cost property may be pledged to secure securitized asset cost bonds issued pursuant to the financing order, amounts payable to financing parties and to counterparties under any ancillary agreements, and other financing costs. Any transfer, sale, conveyance, assignment, or grant of a security interest in or pledge of securitized asset cost property by an electric utility, or an affiliate of the electric utility, to an assignee, to the extent previously authorized in a financing order, shall not require the prior consent and approval of the Commission; d. If an electric utility defaults on any required payment of charges arising from securitized asset cost property specified in a financing order, a court, upon application by an interested party, and without limiting any other remedies available to the applying party, shall order the sequestration and payment of the revenues arising from the securitized asset cost property to the financing parties or their assignees. Any such financing order shall remain in full force and effect notwithstanding any reorganization, bankruptcy, or other insolvency proceedings with respect to the electric utility or its successors or assignees; e. The interest of a transferee, purchaser, acquirer, assignee, or pledgee in securitized asset cost property specified in a financing order issued to an electric utility, and in the revenue and collections arising from that property, shall not be subject to setoff, counterclaim, surcharge, or defense by the electric utility or any other person or in connection with the reorganization, bankruptcy, or other insolvency of the electric utility or any other entity; f. Any successor to an electric utility, whether pursuant to any reorganization, bankruptcy, or other insolvency proceeding or whether pursuant to any merger or acquisition, sale, or other business combination, or transfer by operation of law, as a result of electric utility restructuring or otherwise, shall perform and satisfy all obligations of, and have the same rights under a financing order as, the electric utility under the financing order in the same manner and to the same extent as the electric utility, including collecting and paying to the person entitled to receive the revenues, collections, payments, or proceeds of the securitized asset cost property. Nothing in this subdivision f is intended to limit or impair any authority of the Commission concerning the transfer or succession of interests of public utilities; and g. Securitized asset cost bonds shall be nonrecourse to the credit or any assets of the electric utility other than the securitized asset cost property as specified in the financing order and any rights under any ancillary agreement. 2. The following provisions shall be applicable to security interests: a. The creation, perfection, and enforcement of any security interest in securitized asset cost property to secure the repayment of the principal and interest and other amounts payable in respect of securitized asset cost bonds; amounts payable under any indenture, ancillary agreement, or other financing documents in respect of the securitized asset costs; and other financing costs shall be governed by this subsection and not by the provisions of the Uniform Commercial Code; b. A security interest in securitized asset cost property shall be created and enforceable when all of the following have occurred: (i) a financing order is issued, (ii) value is received by the debtor or seller for such securitized asset cost property, (iii) the debtor or seller has rights in such securitized asset cost property or the power to transfer rights in such securitized asset cost property, and (iv) a security agreement granting such security interest is executed and delivered by the debtor or seller. The description of securitized asset cost property in a security agreement shall be sufficient if the description refers to this section and the financing order creating the securitized asset cost property; c. A security interest shall attach without any physical delivery of collateral or other act and, upon the filing of a financing statement with the Commission, the lien of the security interest shall be valid, binding, and perfected against all parties having claims of any kind in tort, contract, or otherwise against the person granting the security interest, regardless of whether the parties have notice of the lien. Also upon this filing, a transfer of an interest in the securitized asset cost property shall be perfected against all parties having claims of any kind, including any judicial lien or other lien creditors or any claims of the transferor or creditors of the transferor, and shall have priority over all competing claims other than any prior security interest, ownership interest, or assignment in the property previously perfected in accordance with this section; d. The Commission shall maintain any financing statement filed to perfect any security interest under this section in the same manner that the Commission maintains financing statements filed by transmitting utilities under the Uniform Commercial Code. The filing of a financing statement under this section shall be governed by the provisions regarding the filing of financing statements in the Uniform Commercial Code; e. The priority of a security interest in securitized asset cost property shall not be affected by the commingling of securitized asset cost charges with other amounts. Any pledgee or secured party shall have a perfected security interest in the amount of all securitized asset cost charges that are deposited in any cash or deposit account of the qualifying utility in which securitized asset cost charges have been commingled with other funds and any other security interest that may apply to those funds shall be terminated when they are transferred to a segregated account for the assignee or a financing party; f. No application of the formula-based adjustment mechanism as provided in this section shall affect the validity, perfection, or priority of a security interest in or transfer of securitized asset cost property; and g. If a default or termination occurs under the securitized asset cost bonds, the financing parties or their representatives may foreclose on or otherwise enforce their lien and security interest in any securitized asset cost property as if they were secured parties with a perfected and prior lien under the Uniform Commercial Code, and the Commission may order that amounts arising from securitized asset cost charges be transferred to a separate account for the financing parties' benefit, to which their lien and security interest shall apply. On application by or on behalf of the financing parties, the Commission shall order the sequestration and payment to them of revenues arising from the securitized asset cost charges. 3. a. Any sale, assignment, or other transfer of securitized asset cost property shall be an absolute transfer and true sale of and not a pledge of, or secured transaction relating to, the transferor's right, title, and interest in, to, and under the securitized asset cost property if the documents governing the transaction expressly state that the transaction is a sale or other absolute transfer other than for federal and state income tax purposes. For all purposes other than federal and state income tax purposes, the parties' characterization of a transaction as a sale of an interest in securitized asset cost property shall be conclusive that the transaction is a true sale and that ownership has passed to the party characterized as the purchaser, regardless of any fact or circumstance that might support characterization of the transfer as a secured transaction. A transfer of an interest in securitized asset cost property shall occur only when all of the following have occurred: (i) the financing order creating the securitized asset cost property has become effective, (ii) the documents evidencing the transfer of securitized asset cost property have been executed by the transferor and delivered to the assignee, and (iii) value is received by the transferor for the securitized asset cost property. After such a transaction, the securitized asset cost property shall not be subject to any claims of the transferor or the transferor's creditors, other than creditors holding a prior security interest in the securitized asset cost property perfected in accordance with subdivision 2. b. The characterization of the sale, assignment, or other transfer as an absolute transfer and true sale, and the corresponding characterization of the interest of the assignee as an ownership interest, shall not be affected or impaired by the occurrence of any of the following factors: (1) Commingling of securitized asset cost charges with other amounts; (2) The retention by the seller of (i) a partial or residual interest, including an equity interest, in the securitized asset cost property, whether direct or indirect, or whether subordinate or otherwise, or (ii) the right to recover costs associated with taxes, franchise fees, or license fees imposed on the collection of securitized asset cost charges; (3) Any recourse that the assignee may have against the seller; (4) Any right or obligation that the seller may have to repurchase the securitized asset cost charges; (5) Any indemnification obligations of the seller; (6) The obligation of the seller to collect securitized asset cost charges on behalf of the assignee; (7) The transferor acting as the servicer of the securitized asset cost charges or the existence of any contract that authorizes or requires the electric utility, to the extent that any interest in securitized asset cost property is sold or assigned, to agree with the assignee or any financing party that it will continue to operate its system to provide service to its customers, will collect amounts in respect of the securitized asset cost charges for the benefit and account of such assignee or financing party, and will account for and remit such amounts to or for the account of such assignee or financing party; (8) The treatment of the sale, conveyance, assignment, or other transfer for tax, financial reporting, or other purposes; (9) The granting or providing to bondholders of a preferred right to the securitized asset cost property or credit enhancement by the electric utility or its affiliates with respect to the securitized asset cost bonds; or (10) Any application of the formula-based adjustment mechanism as provided in this section. c. Any right that an electric utility has in the securitized asset cost property before its pledge, sale, or transfer or any other right created under this section or created in the financing order and assignable under this section or assignable pursuant to a financing order shall be property in the form of a contract right or a chose in action. Transfer of an interest in securitized asset cost property to an assignee shall be enforceable only when all of the following have occurred: (i) a financing order is issued, (ii) value is received by the transferor for such securitized asset cost property, (iii) the transferor has rights in such securitized asset cost property or the power to transfer rights in such securitized asset cost property, and (iv) transfer documents in connection with the issuance of securitized asset cost bonds are executed and delivered by the transferor. An enforceable transfer of an interest in securitized asset cost property to an assignee shall be perfected against all third parties, including subsequent judicial or other lien creditors, when a notice of that transfer has been given by the filing of a financing statement in accordance with subdivision 2 c. The transfer shall be perfected against third parties as of the date of filing. d. The Commission shall maintain any financing statement filed to perfect any sale, assignment, or transfer of securitized asset cost property under this section in the same manner that the Commission maintains financing statements filed by transmitting utilities under the Uniform Commercial Code. The filing of any financing statement under this section shall be governed by the provisions regarding the filing of financing statements in the Uniform Commercial Code. The filing of such a financing statement shall be the only method of perfecting a transfer of securitized asset cost property. e. The priority of a transfer perfected under this section shall not be impaired by any later modification of the financing order or securitized asset cost property or by the commingling of funds arising from securitized asset cost property with other funds. Any other security interest that may apply to those funds, other than a security interest perfected under subdivision 2, shall be terminated when they are transferred to a segregated account for the assignee or a financing party. If securitized asset cost property has been transferred to an assignee or financing party, any proceeds of that property shall be held in trust for the assignee or financing party. f. The priority of the conflicting interests of assignees in the same interest or rights in any securitized asset cost property shall be determined as follows: (1) Conflicting perfected interests or rights of assignees shall rank according to priority in time of perfection. Priority shall date from the time a filing covering the transfer is made in accordance with subdivision 2 c; (2) A perfected interest or right of an assignee shall have priority over a conflicting unperfected interest or right of an assignee; and (3) A perfected interest or right of an assignee shall have priority over a person who becomes a lien creditor after the perfection of such assignee's interest or right. F. The description of securitized asset cost property being transferred to an assignee in any sale agreement, purchase agreement, or other transfer agreement, granted or pledged to a pledgee in any security agreement, pledge agreement, or other security document, or indicated in any financing statement shall only be sufficient if such description or indication refers to the financing order that created the securitized asset cost property and states that the agreement or financing statement covers all or part of the property described in the financing order. This section shall apply to all purported transfers of, and all purported grants or liens or security interests in, securitized asset cost property, regardless of whether the related sale agreement, purchase agreement, other transfer agreement, security agreement, pledge agreement, or other security document was entered into, or any financing statement was filed. G. All financing statements referenced in this section shall be subject to Part 5 of Title 8.9A (§ 8.9A-501 et seq.) of the Uniform Commercial Code, except that the requirement as to continuation statements shall not apply. H. The laws of the Commonwealth shall govern the validity, enforceability, attachment, perfection, priority, and exercise of remedies with respect to the transfer of an interest or right or the pledge or creation of a security interest in any securitized asset cost property. I. Neither the Commonwealth nor its political subdivisions shall be liable on any securitized asset cost bonds, and the bonds shall not be a debt or a general obligation of the Commonwealth or any of its political subdivisions, agencies, or instrumentalities, nor shall they be special obligations or indebtedness of the Commonwealth or any of its agencies or political subdivisions. An issue of securitized asset cost bonds shall not, directly, indirectly, or contingently, obligate the Commonwealth or any agency, political subdivision, or instrumentality of the Commonwealth to levy any tax or make any appropriation for payment of the securitized asset cost bonds, other than in their capacity as consumers of electricity. All securitized asset cost bonds shall contain on the face thereof a statement to the following effect: "NEITHER THE FULL FAITH AND CREDIT NOR THE TAXING POWER OF THE COMMONWEALTH IS PLEDGED TO THE PAYMENT OF THE PRINCIPAL OF, OR INTEREST ON, THIS BOND." J. All of the following entities may legally invest any sinking funds, moneys, or other funds in securitized asset cost bonds: 1. Subject to applicable statutory restrictions on state or local investment authority, the Commonwealth, units of local government, political subdivisions, public bodies, and public officers, except for members of the Commission; 2. Banks and bankers, savings and loan associations, credit unions, trust companies, savings banks and institutions, investment companies, insurance companies, insurance associations, and other persons carrying on a banking or insurance business; 3. Personal representatives, guardians, trustees, and other fiduciaries; and 4. All other persons authorized to invest in bonds or other obligations of a similar nature. K. 1. The Commonwealth and its agencies, including the Commission, pledge and agree with bondholders, the owners of the securitized asset cost property, and other financing parties that the Commonwealth and its agencies shall not take any action listed in this subdivision. This subsection does not preclude limitation or alteration if full compensation is made by law for the full protection of the securitized asset cost charges collected pursuant to a financing order and of the bondholders and any assignee or financing party entering into a contract with the electric utility. The Commonwealth and its agencies, including the Commission, shall not: a. Alter the provisions of this section that authorize the Commission to create an irrevocable contract right or chose in action by the issuance of a financing order, to create securitized asset cost property, and to make the securitized asset cost charges imposed by a financing order irrevocable, binding, or non-bypassable charges; b. Take or permit any action that impairs or would impair the value of securitized asset cost property or the security for the securitized asset cost bonds or revises the securitized asset costs for which recovery is authorized; c. In any way impair the rights and remedies of the bondholders, assignees, and other financing parties; or d. Except for changes made pursuant to the formula-based adjustment mechanism authorized under this section, reduce, alter, or impair securitized asset cost charges that are to be imposed, billed, charged, collected, and remitted for the benefit of the bondholders, any assignee, and any other financing parties until any and all principal, interest, premium, financing costs and other fees, expenses, or charges incurred, and any contracts to be performed, in connection with the related securitized asset cost bonds have been paid and performed in full. 2. Any person that issues securitized asset cost bonds may include the language specified in subdivision 1 in the securitized asset cost bonds and related documentation. L. An assignee or financing party shall not be considered an electric utility or person providing electric service by virtue of engaging in the transactions described in this section. M. If there is a conflict between this section and any other law regarding the attachment, assignment, or perfection, or the effect of perfection, or priority of, assignment or transfer of, or security interest in securitized asset cost property, this section shall govern. N. In making determinations under this section, the Commission may engage an outside consultant and counsel. O. Nothing in this section shall be construed to limit the ability of an electric utility to seek any available relief pursuant to any other provision of law, including § 56-585.8. P. The provisions of this section shall not apply to any customer that has chosen to purchase electric energy from a licensed supplier other than the incumbent electric utility serving the exclusive territory in which such customer is located pursuant to § 56-577 prior to February 1, 2019. 2025, cc. 497, 597.

Va. Code § 56-254

§ 56-254. Sale or lease of plants to cities or towns.The board of directors of any public service corporation operating a gas, electric or water plant within the limits of any city or town, or within territory contiguous thereto, is hereby authorized to sell or lease to such city or town the entire plant of such corporation, or any part thereof, including the franchises and easements of such corporation; provided the action of the board of directors be authorized or ratified by an affirmative vote of a majority in interest of the stock issued and outstanding of such corporation, unless a larger interest is required by the charter or bylaws of such corporation. 1918, p. 463; Michie Code 1942, § 4073g.

Va. Code § 56-255

§ 56-255. Extension of electric service to territory not being served.If, from any rural territory not now being served, application be made to the Commission by a group of five or more persons, natural or artificial, to require an extension of electric service to such territory, the Commission shall, if necessary to accomplish the purposes sought, fix a time for hearing such application, on such terms and conditions as the Commission may prescribe, and, if it be established to the satisfaction of the Commission that a proper guaranteed revenue for a sufficient number of years will accrue to any company which may be required to construct the desired extension, and that a reasonable investment will accrue to the company constructing such extension, then the Commission is hereby authorized and empowered to require the nearest or most advantageously located electric utility company to such territory to construct such extension to such point or points in such territory and to serve such customer or customers therein, as in its judgment is right and proper. 1936, p. 1056; Michie Code 1942, § 4057(24).

Va. Code § 56-256

§ 56-256. Powers of corporations generally; rights, powers, privileges and immunities, etc.Every corporation organized for the purpose of: (1) constructing, maintaining, and operating an electric railway, or works, (2) supplying and distributing electricity for light, heat, or power, (3) producing, distributing, and selling steam, heat, or power, or compressed air, (4) producing, distributing and selling gas made of coal or other materials, (5) furnishing and distributing a water supply to any city or town, or (6) piping cold air outside of its plant, or (7) constructing and maintaining any public viaduct, bridge or conduit, shall, in addition to the powers conferred upon corporations generally, have all the rights, powers, privileges, and immunities, and be subject to all the rules, regulations, restrictions, pains, and penalties prescribed by §§ 56-458, 56-459 to 56-462, 56-466, 56-467 and 56-484, which sections shall apply to, and as far as practicable, operate upon the corporations mentioned in this section, unless otherwise provided. Code 1919, §§ 4058, 4061.

Va. Code § 56-256.1

§ 56-256.1. Height of electric power distribution lines over agricultural land.Unless placement at a greater height is required pursuant to § 56-466 or other applicable law, any electric distribution line that is installed, either as a new line or as a replacement for an existing line, on or after July 1, 2018, by or for an electric utility upon or over land upon which agricultural operations, as defined in § 3.2-300, are conducted shall be placed at a height that is not less than the minimum height requirement that applies to the placement of electric distribution lines above road crossings. 2018, c. 354. Article 5. Pipelines and Other Works.

Va. Code § 56-257

§ 56-257. Manner of installing underground utility lines.A. Every operator, as defined in § 56-265.15, having the right to install underground utility lines, as defined in § 56-265.15, except interstate gas pipelines subject to regulation by the U.S. Department of Transportation, shall install such underground utility lines in accordance with accepted industry standards. Such standards shall include, as applicable, standards established by the National Electric Safety Code, the Commission's pipeline safety regulations, the Department of Health's waterworks regulations (12VAC5-590-10 et seq.), and standards established by the Utility Industry Coalition of Virginia. B. The Commission shall promulgate any rules or regulations necessary to enforce the provisions of this section as to those operators that do not comply with such accepted industry standards. C. This section shall not authorize the Commission to order action by, or impose penalties on, any county, city or town. However, the Commission shall inform counties, cities and towns of alleged violations by the locality of the accepted industry standards or regulations adopted under this section and, at the request of the locality, suggest corrective action. Code 1919, § 4059; 1996, c. 278; 2000, c. 779.

Va. Code § 56-257.1

§ 56-257.1. Means of locating nonmetallic underground conduits.Any plastic or other nonmetallic pressurized conduit installed underground on and after July 1, 1976, shall have affixed thereto a wire conductive of electricity or some other means of locating the conduit while it is underground. 1976, c. 556.

Va. Code § 56-257.5

§ 56-257.5. Manner of installing underground utility lines through agricultural operation.A. For purposes of this section: "Topsoil" means at least 12 inches of the surface soil layer or a six-inch layer of soil that includes the surface soil and the unconsolidated subsoil immediately below it. "Underground utility line" means an underground pipeline or conduit of an inside diameter greater than 12 inches or an underground electrical transmission or distribution line of a capacity greater than 115 kilovolts. B. Every operator, as defined in § 56-265.15, having the right to install an underground utility line shall install such underground utility line in accordance with regulations adopted pursuant to subsection C. C. The Commission shall adopt regulations applicable to any operator that is subject to the provisions of subsection B. The regulations shall require that if such operator, in the course of installing the underground utility line, disturbs an area of land that measures 10,000 square feet or more and constitutes one or more agricultural operations, as defined in § 3.2-300, the operator shall, if desired by the landowner or land management agency, either (i) redistribute the topsoil removed from the disturbed area to graded areas elsewhere on the land of the affected property owner or (ii) if insufficient graded areas are available as sites for such redistribution, stockpile the topsoil removed from the disturbed area until it can be redistributed on the area initially disturbed. The regulations shall require that redistributed topsoil be placed on scarified land and that stockpiled topsoil be protected from erosion and compaction. If the property owner does not agree, then the topsoil shall be disposed of in accordance with applicable law. 2020, c. 666.

Va. Code § 56-259

§ 56-259. Rights-of-way, etc., may be contracted for; location of easements of public service corporations.A. Any corporation of the character mentioned in this chapter or in Chapter 2 (§ 56-49 et seq.) may contract with any person or corporation, the owner of lands, or of any interest, franchise, privilege, or easement therein, over, under, or through which any pipeline transmitting petroleum products or natural gas, power or telephone line, sewer or water main or similar works is to be constructed, for the right-of-way for such line, sewer, main or works, and for sufficient land for its necessary offices, plant, or plants, works, stations and structures. All such contracts shall specify with reasonable particularity and definiteness the location of such easement of right-of-way; provided, however, that this provision shall not apply to contracts between any such corporation and any political subdivision of this Commonwealth, but any such corporation shall provide the location of its facilities on land owned by such a political subdivision upon request of such political subdivision. B. The location of any easement of right-of-way of any public service corporation shall be as specified in the instrument by which such easement was conveyed to such public service corporation; provided that, with respect to all such easements granted after December 31, 1968, if such location is not specified by metes and bounds or by reference to a center line or survey line showing courses and distances from some ascertainable point of beginning, the location of such easement shall be determined by reference to the facilities constructed thereon, and the center line of those facilities shall be the center line of the easement. C. Prior to acquiring any easement of right-of-way, public service corporations will consider the feasibility of locating such facilities on, over, or under existing easements of rights-of-way. In the event any public service corporation owning a right-of-way shall deny a request of any other public service corporation for joint use of that right-of-way, the corporation whose request is denied shall have the right, within thirty days after the denial to apply to the Commission for an order requiring such joint use. The Commission shall conduct a hearing on such application and shall direct the corporation owning the right-of-way to allow joint use if the Commission finds that such joint use is reasonable and that the present or future public utility service of such corporation will not be adversely affected by such joint use. In making such determination, the Commission may establish the terms and conditions for such joint use, including, without limitation, a requirement of compensation by the utility making the request to the utility owning the right-of-way, if the Commission finds such a requirement to be appropriate. D. In any case involving an application for a certificate pursuant to § 56-265.2, the governing body of each locality in which a gas pipeline or electrical transmission line would be located shall have the right to request the Commission to consider directing a joint use of right-of-way within that locality pursuant to the standards in subsection C of this section, provided that the governing body shall file its request no later than the date for public comment on the application established by the Commission. E. A renewable generator, as defined in § 56-614, should where feasible locate distribution facilities, as defined in § 56-614, that are required to connect its renewable energy facility that generates electricity to the electric distribution grid, to distribute steam generated at such facility, or to distribute its landfill gas to customers or a natural gas distribution or transmission pipeline, as applicable, on, over, or under existing easements of rights-of-way of a public service corporation. The renewable generator shall request joint use of the right-of-way from the public service corporation that owns the easement of right-of-way and shall offer to enter into an agreement that will specify the terms and conditions, including rental, under which such joint use will occur. The compensation to be paid to the public service corporation for such joint use shall be as negotiated between the public service corporation and the renewable generator. If any public service corporation owning an easement of right-of-way shall deny a request for the joint use of that right-of-way, the renewable generator shall have the right, exercisable within 30 days after the denial, to apply to the Commission for an order requiring such joint use. The Commission shall conduct a hearing on such application and shall direct the public service corporation owning the easement of right-of-way to allow joint use if the Commission finds that such joint use is reasonable and that the present or future public utility service of such corporation will not be adversely affected by such joint use. In making such determination, the Commission may establish the terms and conditions for such joint use, including, without limitation, the rental compensation that the renewable generator shall pay to the public service corporation owning the easement of right-of-way. The provisions of this subsection shall not apply to railroads. Code 1919, § 4062; 1964, c. 523; 1968, c. 534; 1972, c. 519; 1979, c. 309; 2001, cc. 745, 752; 2009, c. 807.

Va. Code § 56-261

§ 56-261. Duties of companies furnishing water or sewerage facilities.Every public service corporation engaged in the business of furnishing water or sewerage facilities to any city, incorporated town, or county having a population greater than 500 inhabitants per square mile as shown by United States census, in this Commonwealth or to inhabitants thereof (whether or not such business is conducted under or by virtue of a municipal franchise), shall furnish at all times and at a reasonable charge a supply of water, a system of distribution or disposal and services and facilities incidental to such supply, distribution or disposal sufficient and adequate to the protection of the health of such inhabitants and to the public health of the community, and any such water company shall furnish a supply of water adequate for proper fire protection within such city or town or such county and the adjacent territory served by the mains of such corporation. Each person operating a sewerage system which includes one or more sewage treatment plants shall notify in writing, the Commission, the Director of the Department of Environmental Quality and each electric or natural gas utility supplying or distributing energy to such system that such system includes a sewage treatment plant. 1924, p. 690; 1928, p. 632; Michie Code 1942, § 4073a; 2000, c. 183.

Va. Code § 56-265.1

§ 56-265.1. Definitions.In this chapter, the following terms shall have the following meanings: (a) "Company" means a corporation, a limited liability company, an individual, a partnership, an association, a joint-stock company, a business trust, a cooperative, or an organized group of persons, whether incorporated or not; or any receiver, trustee or other liquidating agent of any of the foregoing in his capacity as such; but not a municipal corporation or a county, unless such municipal corporation or county has obtained a certificate pursuant to § 56-265.4:4. (b) "Public utility" means any company that owns or operates facilities within the Commonwealth of Virginia for the generation, transmission, or distribution of electric energy for sale, for the production, storage, transmission, or distribution, otherwise than in enclosed portable containers, of natural gas, or, if produced, stored, transmitted, or distributed by a natural gas utility as defined in § 56-265.4:6, supplemental or substitute forms of gas sources as defined in § 56-248.1, or geothermal resources for sale for heat, light or power, or for the furnishing of telephone service, sewerage facilities or water. A "public utility" may own a facility for the storage of electric energy for sale that includes one or more pumped hydroelectricity generation and storage facilities located in the coalfield region of Virginia as described in § 15.2-6002. However, the term "public utility" does not include any of the following: (1) Except as otherwise provided in § 56-265.3:1, any company furnishing sewerage facilities, geothermal resources or water to less than 50 customers. Any company furnishing water or sewer services to 10 or more customers and excluded by this subdivision from the definition of "public utility" for purposes of this chapter nevertheless shall not abandon the water or sewer services unless and until approval is granted by the Commission or all the customers receiving such services agree to accept ownership of the company. (2) Any company generating and distributing electric energy exclusively for its own consumption. (3) Any company (A) which furnishes electric service together with heating and cooling services, generated at a central plant installed on the premises to be served, to the tenants of a building or buildings located on a single tract of land undivided by any publicly maintained highway, street or road at the time of installation of the central plant, and (B) which does not charge separately or by meter for electric energy used by any tenant except as part of a rental charge. Any company excluded by this subdivision from the definition of "public utility" for the purposes of this chapter nevertheless shall, within 30 days following the issuance of a building permit, notify the State Corporation Commission in writing of the ownership, capacity and location of such central plant, and it shall be subject, with regard to the quality of electric service furnished, to the provisions of Chapters 10 (§ 56-232 et seq.) and 17 (§ 56-509 et seq.) and regulations thereunder and be deemed a public utility for such purposes, if such company furnishes such service to 100 or more lessees. (4) Any company, or affiliate thereof, making a first or direct sale, or ancillary transmission or delivery service, of natural gas to fewer than 35 commercial or industrial customers, which are not themselves "public utilities" as defined in this chapter, or to certain public schools as indicated in this subdivision, for use solely by such purchasing customers at facilities which are not located in a territory for which a certificate to provide gas service has been issued by the Commission under this chapter and which, at the time of the Commission's receipt of the notice provided under § 56-265.4:5, are not located within any area, territory, or jurisdiction served by a municipal corporation that provided gas distribution service as of January 1, 1992, provided that such company shall comply with the provisions of § 56-265.4:5. Direct sales or ancillary transmission or delivery services of natural gas to public schools in the following localities may be made without regard to the number of schools involved and shall not count against the "fewer than 35" requirement in this subdivision: the Counties of Dickenson, Wise, Russell, and Buchanan, and the City of Norton. (5) Any company which is not a public service corporation and which provides compressed natural gas service at retail for the public. (6) Any company selling landfill gas from a solid waste management facility permitted by the Department of Environmental Quality to a public utility certificated by the Commission to provide gas distribution service to the public in the area in which the solid waste management facility is located. If such company submits to the public utility a written offer for sale of such gas and the public utility does not agree within 60 days to purchase such gas on mutually satisfactory terms, then the company may sell such gas to (i) any facility owned and operated by the Commonwealth which is located within three miles of the solid waste management facility or (ii) any purchaser after such landfill gas has been liquefied. The provisions of this subdivision shall not apply to the City of Lynchburg or Fairfax County. (7) Any authority created pursuant to the Virginia Water and Waste Authorities Act (§ 15.2-5100 et seq.) making a sale or ancillary transmission or delivery service of landfill gas to a commercial or industrial customer from a solid waste management facility permitted by the Department of Environmental Quality and operated by that same authority, if such an authority limits off-premises sale, transmission or delivery service of landfill gas to no more than one purchaser. The authority may contract with other persons for the construction and operation of facilities necessary or convenient to the sale, transmission or delivery of landfill gas, and no such person shall be deemed a public utility solely by reason of its construction or operation of such facilities. If the purchaser of the landfill gas is located within the certificated service territory of a natural gas public utility, the public utility may file for Commission approval a proposed tariff to reflect any anticipated or known changes in service to the purchaser as a result of the use of landfill gas. No such tariff shall impose on the purchaser of the landfill gas terms less favorable than similarly situated customers with alternative fuel capabilities; provided, however, that such tariff may impose such requirements as are reasonably calculated to recover the cost of such service and to protect and ensure the safety and integrity of the public utility's facilities. (8) A company selling or delivering only landfill gas, electricity generated from only landfill gas, or both, that is derived from a solid waste management facility permitted by the Department of Environmental Quality and sold or delivered from any such facility to not more than three commercial or industrial purchasers or to a natural gas or electric public utility, municipal corporation or county as authorized by this section. If a purchaser of the landfill gas is located within the certificated service territory of a natural gas public utility or within an area in which a municipal corporation provides gas distribution service and the landfill gas is to be used in facilities constructed after January 1, 2000, such company shall submit to such public utility or municipal corporation a written offer for sale of that gas prior to offering the gas for sale or delivery to a commercial or industrial purchaser. If the public utility or municipal corporation does not agree within 60 days following the date of the offer to purchase such landfill gas on mutually satisfactory terms, then the company shall be authorized to sell such landfill gas, electricity, or both, to the commercial or industrial purchaser, utility, municipal corporation, or county. Such public utility may file for Commission approval a proposed tariff to reflect any anticipated or known changes in service to the purchaser as a result of the purchaser's use of the landfill gas. No such tariff shall impose on such purchaser of the landfill gas terms less favorable than those imposed on similarly situated customers with alternative fuel capabilities; provided, however, that such tariff may impose such requirements as are reasonably calculated to recover any cost of such service and to protect and ensure the safety and integrity of the public utility's facilities. (9) A company that is not organized as a public service company pursuant to subsection D of § 13.1-620 and that sells and delivers propane air only to one or more public utilities. Any company excluded by this subdivision from the definition of "public utility" for the purposes of this chapter nevertheless shall be subject to the Commission's jurisdiction relating to gas pipeline safety and enforcement. (10) A farm or aggregation of farms that owns and operates facilities within the Commonwealth for the generation of electric energy from waste-to-energy technology. As used in this subdivision, (i) "farm" means any person that obtains at least 51 percent of its annual gross income from agricultural operations and produces the agricultural waste used as feedstock for the waste-to-energy technology, (ii) "agricultural waste" means biomass waste materials capable of decomposition that are produced from the raising of plants and animals during agricultural operations, including animal manures, bedding, plant stalks, hulls, and vegetable matter, and (iii) "waste-to-energy technology" means any technology, including a methane digester, that converts agricultural waste into gas, steam, or heat that is used to generate electricity on-site. (11) A company, other than an entity organized as a public service company, that provides non-utility gas service as provided in § 56-265.4:6. (12) A company, other than an entity organized as a public service company, that provides storage of electric energy that is not for sale to the public. (c) "Commission" means the State Corporation Commission. (d) "Geothermal resources" means those resources as defined in § 45.2-2000. 1950, p. 599; 1954, c. 354; 1970, c. 265; 1981, c. 506; 1988, c. 440; 1990, c. 488; 1991, c. 263; 1992, c. 476; 1994, cc. 652, 852; 1995, c. 643; 1997, cc. 105, 148; 1999, c. 768; 2000, cc. 528, 543; 2002, cc. 479, 489; 2004, cc. 748, 1028; 2005, c. 22; 2006, c. 411; 2007, c. 813; 2009, cc. 746, 794; 2018, c. 296; 2020, c. 1190; 2022, cc. 728, 759.

Va. Code § 56-265.15

§ 56-265.15. Definitions; calculation of time periods.A. As used in this chapter: "Abandoned" means no longer in service and physically disconnected from a portion of the underground utility line that is in use for storage or conveyance of service. "Contract locator" means any person contracted by an operator specifically to determine the approximate horizontal location of the operator's utility lines that may exist within the area specified by a locate request. "Damage" means any impact upon or removal of support from an underground facility as a result of excavation or demolition which according to the operating practices of the operator would necessitate the repair of such facility. "Demolish" or "demolition" means any operation by which a structure or mass of material is wrecked, razed, rendered, moved, or removed by means of any tools, equipment, or discharge of explosives which could damage underground utility lines. "Designer" means any licensed professional designated by the project owner who designs government projects, commercial projects, residential projects consisting of 25 or more units, or industrial projects, which projects require the approval of governmental or regulatory authorities having jurisdiction over the project area. "Emergency" means a sudden or unexpected occurrence involving a clear and imminent danger, demanding immediate action to prevent or mitigate loss of, or damage to, life, health, property, or essential public services. "Excavate" or "excavation" means any operation in which earth, rock, or other material in the ground is moved, removed, or otherwise displaced by means of any tools, equipment, or explosives and includes, without limitation, grading, trenching, digging, ditching, dredging, drilling, augering, tunneling, scraping, cable or pipe plowing and driving, wrecking, razing, rendering, moving, or removing any structure or mass of material. "Excavate" or "excavation" does not include installation of a sign that consists of metal, plastic, or wooden poles placed in the ground by hand or by foot without the use of tools or equipment. "Exigent circumstances" means circumstances outside of an operator's or contract locator's, as described in subsection D of § 56-265.19, control that necessarily prevent an operator or locator from completing the marking task, including a wrong address provided with the locate request; failure to provide a reasonably specific location of proposed excavation; inaccessibility of the excavation site due to physical barrier or risk of serious bodily injury; a locate request that cannot be carried out by a traditional locating method and requires assistance from the operator; catastrophic technological failure outside of the locator's, operator's, or notification center's control; or the area of excavation does not conform with the requirements of subsection F of § 56-265.17. "Extraordinary circumstances" means floods, snow, ice storms, tornadoes, earthquakes, or other natural disasters. "Hand digging" means any excavation involving nonmechanized tools or equipment. Hand digging includes, but is not limited to, digging with shovels, picks, and manual post hole diggers, vacuum excavation or soft digging. "Locate request" means the completed delivery of information to the notification center requesting markings for a specified area of excavation or demolition and receipt of the same by the notification center in accordance with this chapter. "Notification center" means an organization whose membership is open to all operators of underground facilities located within the notification center's designated service area, which maintains a data base, provided by its member operators, that includes the geographic areas in which its member operators desire transmissions of notices of proposed excavation, and which has the capability to transmit, within one hour of receipt, notices of proposed excavation to member operators by electronic means. "Notify," "notice" or "notification" means the completed delivery of information to the person to be notified, and the receipt of same by such person in accordance with this chapter. The delivery of information includes the use of any electronic or technological means of data transfer. "Operator" means any person who owns, furnishes or transports materials or services by means of a utility line. "Person" means any individual, operator, firm, joint venture, partnership, corporation, association, municipality, or other political subdivision, governmental unit, department or agency, and includes any trustee, receiver, assignee, or personal representative thereof. "Positive response" means a code or phrase posted by an operator or locator to the notification center detailing the marking status of a locate request. "Positive response system" means the excavator-operator information exchange system that is required by subsection E of § 56-265.16:1 and provides the means for operators or their contract locators to respond to and report the marking status of a locate request. "Private sewer lateral" means a privately owned, legally authorized utility line that transports wastewater from one or more buildings to a sewer system utility line owned by a sewer system operator. "Private water lateral" means a privately owned, legally authorized utility line that supplies water from a water system utility line owned by a water system operator to one or more buildings or properties. "Sewer system" means a system of utility lines used for conveying wastewater, and includes sewer system laterals but does not include private sewer laterals. "Sewer system lateral" means a lateral utility line located in the public right-of-way or public sewer easement, owned by a sewer system operator, and used to transport wastewater to the operator's main sewer line. "Sewer system operator" means an operator of a sewer system. "Soft digging" means any excavation using tools or equipment that utilize air or water pressure as the direct means to break up soil or earth for removal by vacuum excavation. "Utility line" means any item of public or private property which is buried or placed below ground or submerged for use in connection with the storage or conveyance of water, sewage, telecommunications, electric energy, cable television, oil, petroleum products, gas, or other substances, and includes pipes, sewers, combination storm/sanitary sewer systems, conduits, cables, valves, lines, wires, manholes, attachments, and those portions of poles below ground. The term "sewage" does not include any gravity storm drainage systems. Except for any publicly owned gravity sewer system within a county which has adopted the urban county executive form of government, the term "utility line" does not include any gravity sewer system or any combination gravity storm/sanitary sewer system within any counties, cities, towns or political subdivisions constructed or replaced prior to January 1, 1995. No excavator shall be held liable for the cost to repair damage to any such systems constructed or replaced prior to January 1, 1995, unless such systems are located in accordance with § 56-265.19. "Water system" means a system of utility lines used for supplying water, and does not include private water laterals. "Water system operator" means an operator of a water system. "Willful" means an act done intentionally, knowingly, and purposely, without justifiable excuse, as distinguished from an act done carelessly, thoughtlessly, heedlessly or inadvertently. "Working day" means every day, except Saturdays, Sundays, and legal state and national holidays. B. Unless otherwise specified, all time periods used in this chapter shall be calculated from the time of the original locate request as provided in § 56-265.17. In addition, all time periods exclude Saturdays, Sundays, and legal state and national holidays. 1979, c. 291; 1980, cc. 696, 710; 1992, c. 192; 1994, c. 890; 1996, c. 79; 2002, c. 841; 2010, cc. 205, 777, 832; 2023, cc. 299, 300.

Va. Code § 56-265.19

§ 56-265.19:1. Private sewer laterals and sewer system laterals.A. Notwithstanding any provision of this chapter to the contrary, the protection of sewer system laterals and private sewer laterals shall be implemented as provided in this section. When an excavation is to take place within a public right-of-way or public sewer easement, the sewer system operator shall exercise reasonable care to mark the approximate horizontal location of sewer system laterals within the public right-of-way or public sewer easement as provided in § 56-265.19. B. When (i) an excavation is to take place outside the public right-of-way or public sewer easement, (ii) the excavation involves the installation or maintenance of gas or electric utility lines by trenchless technology, (iii) the potential for a conflict with a sewer lateral exists, and (iv) sewer system laterals are located in the public right-of-way: 1. The sewer system operator shall exercise reasonable care to mark the approximate horizontal location of sewer system laterals by: a. Marking the location of the sewer system lateral where it meets the edge of the right-of-way or public sewer easement, if known; or b. If the location described in subdivision B 1 a is unknown, marking the location where the sewer system lateral connects to the sewer system main. 2. When the sewer system laterals have been marked in accordance with subdivision B 1 and the excavator reasonably concludes that a private sewer lateral may be impacted by the planned excavation based upon visual evidence, knowledge of the proposed excavation site, or other information available to the excavator, the excavator shall exercise reasonable care to protect the private sewer lateral. For purposes of this subdivision, reasonable care includes the following actions: a. Reviewing information provided by the private sewer lateral owner; b. Meeting with the sewer system operator on-site, if the sewer system operator has additional information to provide about the location of private sewer laterals; or c. Conducting a visual inspection of the proposed excavation site in an effort to determine the probable path of the sewer lateral. C. When (i) an excavation is to take place within or outside the public right-of-way or public sewer easement, (ii) the excavation involves the installation or maintenance of gas or electric utility lines by trenchless technology, (iii) the potential for a conflict with a sewer lateral exists, and (iv) private sewer laterals are located in the public right-of-way or easement: 1. The sewer system operator shall assist the excavator by one of the following methods, unless the operator marks private sewer laterals in the manner required for its sewer system laterals under subsection B: a. Provide copies of the best reasonably available records regarding the location of the private sewer laterals by electronic message, mail, facsimile, or other delivery method. If an excavation affects 25 or more private sewer laterals, the sewer system operator's response shall be in accordance with the timelines set forth in § 56-265.17:3. If the provision of records required by this subsection imposes an unreasonable burden or substantial cost upon a sewer system operator, the excavator and the sewer system operator shall endeavor in good faith to reach an agreement to provide the sewer system operator with additional time to provide the records or any other mutually agreeable accommodation. b. Provide the best reasonably available records on the Internet or another readily accessible electronic system in order that the records may be retrieved by the excavator from a remote location. If the sewer system operator has implemented such a system, then the sewer system operator shall have no further obligations to provide records under subdivision C 1 a. c. If the sewer system operator has no such records, but has additional information to provide about the location of private sewer laterals, then the sewer system operator shall notify the excavator of such information and, upon request, either meet with the excavator on-site or convey such information to the excavator. 2. When the records have been made available in accordance with subdivision C 1 and the excavator reasonably concludes that a private sewer lateral may be impacted by the planned excavation based upon visual evidence, knowledge of the proposed excavation site, or other information available to the excavator, the excavator shall exercise reasonable care to protect the private sewer lateral. For purposes of this subdivision, reasonable care includes the following actions: a. Reviewing information provided by the sewer system operator; b. Reviewing information provided by the private sewer lateral owner; c. Meeting with the sewer system operator on-site if the sewer system operator has additional information to provide about the location of private sewer laterals; or d. Conducting a visual inspection of the proposed excavation site in an effort to determine the probable path of the sewer lateral. D. Sewer system operators shall mark utility lines, other than sewer system laterals and private sewer laterals, as provided by other sections of this chapter. E. Water system operators shall mark water system utility lines as provided by other sections of this chapter, except that a water system operator shall not be responsible for marking private water laterals. F. Records regarding the location of private sewer laterals provided on the Internet or otherwise made accessible by an electronic system pursuant to subdivision C 1 b shall also be accessible to other public utilities and cable operators or excavators working on their behalf for purposes of compliance with this chapter. G. In all excavations, the excavator shall exercise reasonable care to protect underground utility lines. 2010, c. 205.

Va. Code § 56-265.2

§ 56-265.2. Certificate of convenience and necessity required for acquisition, etc., of new facilities.A. 1. Subject to the provisions of subdivision 2, it shall be unlawful for any public utility to construct, enlarge or acquire, by lease or otherwise, any facilities for use in public utility service, except ordinary extensions or improvements in the usual course of business, without first having obtained a certificate from the Commission that the public convenience and necessity require the exercise of such right or privilege. Any certificate required by this section shall be issued by the Commission only after opportunity for a hearing and after due notice to interested parties. The certificate for overhead electrical transmission lines of 138 kilovolts or more shall be issued by the Commission only after compliance with the provisions of § 56-46.1. 2. For construction of any transmission line of 138 kilovolts and associated facilities, a public utility shall either (i) obtain a certificate pursuant to subdivision 1 or (ii) obtain approval pursuant to the requirements of (a) § 15.2-2232 and (b) any applicable local zoning ordinances by the locality or localities in which the transmission line will be located. Issuance by the Commission of a certificate pursuant to subdivision 1 approving construction of a 138 kilovolt transmission line and any associated facilities shall be deemed to satisfy the requirements of § 15.2-2232 and all local zoning ordinances with respect to the transmission line and its associated facilities. For purposes of this subdivision, "associated facilities" include any station, substation, transition station, and switchyard facilities to be constructed outside of any county operating under the county executive form of government that is located in Planning District 8 in association with a 138 kilovolt transmission line. B. In exercising its authority under this section, the Commission, notwithstanding the provisions of § 56-265.4, may permit the construction and operation of electrical generating facilities, which shall not be included in the rate base of any regulated utility whose rates are established pursuant to Chapter 10 (§ 56-232 et seq.), upon a finding that such generating facility and associated facilities including transmission lines and equipment (i) will have no material adverse effect upon the rates paid by customers of any regulated public utility in the Commonwealth; (ii) will have no material adverse effect upon reliability of electric service provided by any such regulated public utility; and (iii) are not otherwise contrary to the public interest. In review of its petition for a certificate to construct and operate a generating facility described in this subsection, the Commission shall give consideration to the effect of the facility and associated facilities, including transmission lines and equipment, on the environment and establish such conditions as may be desirable or necessary to minimize adverse environmental impact as provided in § 56-46.1. Facilities authorized by a certificate issued pursuant to this subsection may be exempted by the Commission from the provisions of Chapter 10 (§ 56-232 et seq.). C. A map showing the location of any proposed ordinary extension or improvement outside of the territory in which the public utility is lawfully authorized to operate shall be filed with the Commission, and prior notice of such ordinary extension shall be given to the public utility or other entity authorized to provide the same utility service within said territory. Ordinary extensions outside the service territory of a public utility shall be undertaken only for use in providing its public utility service and shall be constructed and operated so as not to interfere with the service or facilities of any public utility or other entity authorized to provide utility service within any other territory. If, upon objection of the affected utility or entity filed within 30 days of the aforesaid notice and after investigation and opportunity for a hearing the Commission finds an ordinary extension would not comply with this section, it may alter or amend the plan for such activity or prohibit its construction. D. Whenever a certificate is required under this section for a pipeline for the transmission or distribution of natural or manufactured gas, the Commission may issue such a certificate only after compliance with the provisions of § 56-265.2:1. As used in this section and § 56-265.2:1, "pipeline for the transmission or distribution of manufactured or natural gas" shall include the pipeline and any related facilities incidental or necessary to the operation of the pipeline. E. This section shall be subject to the requirements of § 56-265.3, if any, and nothing herein shall be construed to supersede § 56-265.3. 1950, p. 599; 1985, c. 282; 1995, cc. 311, 514; 1998, c. 92; 2012, cc. 54, 284; 2017, c. 728.

Va. Code § 56-265.26

§ 56-265.26:1. Utility line depth requirement.Every operator having the right to install underground utility lines shall install such underground utility lines at depths required by accepted industry standards. Such standards shall include, as applicable, standards established by the National Electrical Safety Code, Bellcore Blue Book-Manual of Construction Procedures, the Commission's pipeline safety regulations, the Department of Health's waterworks regulations, and the depth standards of the Virginia Cable Telecommunications Association, which shall be established in consultation with the State Corporation Commission no later than July 1, 2002. 2002, c. 841.

Va. Code § 56-265.8

§ 56-265.8:1. Inspection and approval of certain installations not regulated pursuant to this chapter.The owner or operator of any facility for the generation of electrical energy not subject to regulation under the Utilities Facilities Act but designed to generate electrical energy for the use by persons other than the owner or operator shall at his expense have the facility designed and inspected by a professional engineer licensed to work in the State of Virginia. Said engineer shall certify that the installation meets the standards of the National Electrical Code and the National Safety Code and that there is adequate equipment for standby purposes. The provisions of this section shall apply only to generation facilities used as a primary source of power and not to emergency supply systems. The provisions hereof shall not apply to municipally owned and operated facilities. 1970, c. 363.

Va. Code § 56-383

§ 56-383. Railroad company may construct and maintain telegraph or telephone line.Any railroad company may construct and maintain along the line of its improvement an electric telegraph or telephone for its own use and that of the public, and may make reasonable charges on messages and intelligence conveyed thereby. Code 1919, § 3943. §§ 56-384 through 56-389. Repealed.Repealed by Acts 1996, cc. 114 and 157. Article 5. Segregation of Races, Etc. §§ 56-390 through 56-404. Repealed.Repealed by Acts 1970, c. 731. Article 6. Highway Crossings.

Va. Code § 56-41.1

§ 56-41.1. Rates and charges for use of poles by telephone cooperatives, mutual telephone associations and small investor-owned telephone utilities.A. The General Assembly has determined that the joint use of poles by electric light, heat and power companies, telephone cooperatives, mutual telephone associations and small investor-owned telephone utilities is in the public interest and should be encouraged to the maximum extent possible. B. The terms and rates for the joint use of poles by electric light, heat and power companies, telephone cooperatives, mutual telephone associations and small investor-owned telephone utilities shall be by agreement between the parties. In the event that the terms and rates cannot be agreed upon by the interested parties, it shall be the duty of the Commission to determine and establish such terms and the rates to be paid for joint use. 1989, c. 605.

Va. Code § 56-416

§ 56-416. Effect of failure to give statutory signals.If the employees in charge of any railroad engine or train fail to give the signals required by law on approaching a grade crossing of a public highway not protected with an automatically operating gate, operating wigwag signal or other operating electrical or operating automatic crossing protection device, the fact that a traveler on such highway failed to exercise due care in approaching such crossing shall not bar recovery for an injury to or death of such traveler, nor for an injury to or the destruction of property in his charge, where such injury, death, or destruction results from a collision on such crossing between such engine or train and such traveler or the property in his charge, respectively; but the failure of the traveler to exercise such care may be considered in mitigation of damages. Code 1919, § 3959; 1964, c. 621.

Va. Code § 56-458

§ 56-458. Right to erect lines parallel to railroads; occupation of roads, streets, etc.; location of same.A. Every telegraph company and every telephone company incorporated by this or any other state, or by the United States, may construct, maintain and operate its line along and parallel to any of the railroads of the Commonwealth, and shall have authority to occupy and use the public parks, roads, works, turnpikes, streets, avenues and alleys in any of the counties, with the consent of the board of supervisors or other governing authority thereof, or in any incorporated city or town, with the consent of the council thereof, and the waterways within this Commonwealth, for the erection of poles and wires, or cables, or the laying of underground conduits, portions of which they may lease, rent, or hire to other like companies; provided, however, that if the road or street be in the State Highway System or the secondary system of state highways, the consent of the board of supervisors or other governing authority of any county shall not be necessary, but a permit for such occupation and use shall first be obtained from the Commonwealth Transportation Board. B. No locality or the Commonwealth Transportation Board shall impose any fees on a certificated provider of telecommunications service for the use of public rights-of-way except in the manner prescribed in § 56-468.1; provided, however, the provisions of § 56-468.1 shall not apply to providers of commercial mobile radio services. C. No locality or the Commonwealth Transportation Board shall impose on certificated providers of telecommunications service, whether by franchise, ordinance or other means, any restrictions or requirements concerning the use of the public rights-of-way (including but not limited to the permitting process; notice, time and location of excavations and repair work; enforcement of the statewide building code; and inspections), which are (i) unfair or unreasonable or (ii) any greater than those imposed on the following users of the public rights-of-way: all providers of telecommunications services and nonpublic providers of cable television, electric, natural gas, water and sanitary sewer services. For purposes of this subsection, "restrictions or requirements concerning the use of the public rights-of-way" shall not include any existing franchise fee or the Public Rights-of-Way Use Fee. D. Notwithstanding any other provision of law, any permit or other permission required by a locality pursuant to a franchise, ordinance, or other permission to use the public rights-of-way or by the Commonwealth Transportation Board of a certificated provider of telecommunications services to use the public rights-of-way shall be granted or denied within forty-five days from submission and, if denied, accompanied by a written explanation of the reasons the permit was denied and the actions required to cure the denial. E. No locality receiving directly or indirectly a Public Rights-of-Way Use Fee or the Commonwealth Transportation Board shall require a certificated provider of telecommunications services to provide in-kind services or physical assets as a condition of consent to use public rights-of-way or easements, or in lieu of the Public Rights-of-Way Use Fee. This shall not limit the ability of localities, their authorities or commissions which provide utility services, or the Commonwealth Transportation Board to enter into voluntary pole attachment, conduit occupancy or conduit construction agreements with certificated providers of telecommunications service. Any locality, other than a city or town electing to continue to enforce an existing franchise, ordinance or other form of consent under subsection J of § 56-468.1, or the Commonwealth Transportation Board may continue to use pole attachments and conduits utilized as of December 31, 1997. Any pole attachment or conduit occupancy fees charged by certificated providers of telecommunications services for this use shall be waived for facilities in place as of December 31, 1997, and shall be waived for future extensions in cities with populations between 60,000 and 70,000, so long as the locality or the Commonwealth Transportation Board continues to use these facilities on such poles or in such conduits solely for their internal communications needs. The fee waiver is for the occupancy fees only, does not cover any relocation, rearrangement or other make-ready costs, and does not apply to any county, city or town that has obtained a certificate pursuant to § 56-265.4:4. Code 1919, § 4035; 1926, p. 907; 1997, cc. 474, 515; 1998, cc. 742, 758; 2002, cc. 479, 489; 2006, c. 780.

Va. Code § 56-46.1

§ 56-46.1. Commission to consider environmental, economic, and improvements in service reliability factors in approving construction of electrical utility facilities; approval required for construction of certain electrical transmission lines; notice and hearings.A. Whenever the Commission is required to approve the construction of any electrical utility facility, it shall give consideration to the effect of that facility on the environment and establish such conditions as may be desirable or necessary to minimize adverse environmental impact. In order to avoid duplication of governmental activities, any valid permit or approval required for an electric generating plant and associated facilities issued or granted by a federal, state, or local governmental entity charged by law with responsibility for issuing permits or approvals regulating environmental impact and mitigation of adverse environmental impact or for other specific public interest issues such as building codes, transportation plans, and public safety, whether such permit or approval is granted prior to or after the Commission's decision, shall be deemed to satisfy the requirements of this section with respect to all matters that (i) are governed by the permit or approval or (ii) are within the authority of, and were considered by, the governmental entity in issuing such permit or approval, and the Commission shall impose no additional conditions with respect to such matters. Nothing in this section shall affect the ability of the Commission to keep the record of a case open. Nothing in this section shall affect any right to appeal such permits or approvals in accordance with applicable law. In the case of a proposed facility located in a region that was designated as of July 1, 2001, as serious nonattainment for the one-hour ozone standard as set forth in the federal Clean Air Act, the Commission shall not issue a decision approving such proposed facility that is conditioned upon issuance of any environmental permit or approval. In every proceeding under this subsection, the Commission shall receive and give consideration to all reports that relate to the proposed facility by state agencies concerned with environmental protection; and if requested by any county or municipality in which the facility is proposed to be built, to local comprehensive plans that have been adopted pursuant to Article 3 (§ 15.2-2223 et seq.) of Chapter 22 of Title 15.2. Additionally, the Commission (a) shall consider the effect of the proposed facility on economic development within the Commonwealth, including but not limited to furtherance of the economic and job creation objectives of the Commonwealth Clean Energy Policy set forth in § 45.2-1706.1, and (b) shall consider any improvements in service reliability that may result from the construction of such facility. B. Subject to the provisions of subsection J, no electrical transmission line of 138 kilovolts or more shall be constructed unless the State Corporation Commission shall, after at least 30 days' advance notice by (i) publication in a newspaper or newspapers of general circulation in the counties and municipalities through which the line is proposed to be built, (ii) written notice to the governing body of each such county and municipality, and (iii) causing to be sent a copy of the notice by first class mail to all owners of property within the route of the proposed line, as indicated on the map or sketch of the route filed with the Commission, which requirement shall be satisfied by mailing the notice to such persons at such addresses as are indicated in the land books maintained by the commissioner of revenue, director of finance or treasurer of the county or municipality, approve such line. Such notices shall include a written description of the proposed route the line is to follow, as well as a map or sketch of the route including a digital geographic information system (GIS) map provided by the public utility showing the location of the proposed route. The Commission shall make GIS maps provided under this subsection available to the public on the Commission's website. Such notices shall be in addition to the advance notice to the chief administrative officer of the county or municipality required pursuant to § 15.2-2202. As a condition to approval the Commission shall determine that the line is needed and that the corridor or route chosen for the line will avoid or reasonably minimize adverse impact to the greatest extent reasonably practicable on the scenic assets, historic and cultural resources recorded with the Department of Historic Resources, cultural resources identified by federally recognized Tribal Nations in the Commonwealth, and environment of the area concerned. To assist the Commission in this determination, as part of the application for Commission approval of the line, the applicant shall summarize its efforts to avoid or reasonably minimize adverse impact to the greatest extent reasonably practicable on the scenic assets, historic resources recorded with the Department of Historic Resources, and environment of the area concerned. In making the determinations about need, corridor or route, and method of installation, the Commission shall verify the applicant's load flow modeling, contingency analyses, and reliability needs presented to justify the new line and its proposed method of installation. If the local comprehensive plan of an affected county or municipality designates corridors or routes for electric transmission lines and the line is proposed to be constructed outside such corridors or routes, in any hearing the county or municipality may provide adequate evidence that the existing planned corridors or routes designated in the plan can adequately serve the needs of the company. Additionally, the Commission shall consider, upon the request of the governing body of any county or municipality in which the line is proposed to be constructed, (a) the costs and economic benefits likely to result from requiring the underground placement of the line and (b) any potential impediments to timely construction of the line. C. If, prior to such approval, any interested party shall request a public hearing, the Commission shall, as soon as reasonably practicable after such request, hold such hearing or hearings at such place as may be designated by the Commission. In any hearing, the public service company shall provide adequate evidence that existing rights-of-way cannot adequately serve the needs of the company. If, prior to such approval, written requests therefor are received from the governing body of any county or municipality through which the line is proposed to be built or from 20 or more interested parties, the Commission shall hold at least one hearing in the area that would be affected by construction of the line, for the purpose of receiving public comment on the proposal. If any hearing is to be held in the area affected, the Commission shall direct that a copy of the transcripts of any previous hearings held in the case be made available for public inspection at a convenient location in the area for a reasonable time before such local hearing. D. As used in this section, unless the context requires a different meaning: "Environment" or "environmental" shall be deemed to include in meaning "historic," as well as a consideration of the probable effects of the line on the health and safety of the persons in the area concerned. "Interested parties" includes the governing bodies of any counties or municipalities through which the line is proposed to be built and persons residing or owning property in each such county or municipality. "Public utility" means a public utility as defined in § 56-265.1. "Qualifying facilities" means a cogeneration or small power production facility that meets the criteria of 18 C.F.R. Part 292. "Reasonably accommodate requests to wheel or transmit power" means: 1. That the applicant will make available to new electric generation facilities constructed after January 9, 1991, qualifying facilities and other nonutilities, a minimum of one-fourth of the total megawatts of the additional transmission capacity created by the proposed line, for the purpose of wheeling to public utility purchasers the power generated by such qualifying facilities and other nonutility facilities which are awarded a power purchase contract by a public utility purchaser in compliance with applicable state law or regulations governing bidding or capacity acquisition programs for the purchase of electric capacity from nonutility sources, provided that the obligation of the applicant will extend only to those requests for wheeling service made within the 12 months following certification by the State Corporation Commission of the transmission line and with effective dates for commencement of such service within the 12 months following completion of the transmission line; and 2. That the wheeling service offered by the applicant, pursuant to subdivision 1, will reasonably further the purposes of the Public Utilities Regulatory Policies Act of 1978 (P. L. 95-617), as demonstrated by submitting to the Commission, with its application for approval of the line, the cost methodologies, terms, conditions, and dispatch and interconnection requirements the applicant intends, subject to any applicable requirements of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, to include in its agreements for such wheeling service. E. In the event that, at any time after the giving of the notice required in subsection B, it appears to the Commission that consideration of a route or routes significantly different from the route described in the notice is desirable, the Commission shall cause notice of the new route or routes to be published and mailed in accordance with subsection B. The Commission shall thereafter comply with the provisions of this section with respect to the new route or routes to the full extent necessary to give affected localities, federally recognized Tribal Nations in the Commonwealth, and interested parties in the newly affected areas the same protection afforded to affected localities and interested parties affected by the route described in the original notice. F. Approval of a transmission line pursuant to this section shall be deemed to satisfy the requirements of § 15.2-2232 and local zoning ordinances with respect to such transmission line. G. The Commission shall enter into a memorandum of agreement with the Department of Environmental Quality regarding the coordination of their reviews of the environmental impact of electric generating plants and associated facilities. If the proposed plants or associated facilities are in a locality identified by the Ombudsman for Tribal Consultation pursuant to subdivision B 2 of § 2.2-401.01, such consultation information shall be included in the memorandum of agreement. H. An applicant that is required to obtain (i) a certificate of public convenience and necessity from the Commission for any electric generating facility, electric transmission line, natural or manufactured gas transmission line as defined in 49 C.F.R. § 192.3, or natural or manufactured gas storage facility (hereafter, an energy facility) and (ii) an environmental permit for the energy facility that is subject to issuance by any agency or board within the Secretariat of Natural and Historic Resources, may request a pre-application planning and review process. In any such request to the Commission or the Secretariat of Natural and Historic Resources, the applicant shall identify the proposed energy facility for which it requests the pre-application planning and review process. The Commission, the Department of Environmental Quality, the Marine Resources Commission, the Department of Wildlife Resources, the Department of Historic Resources, the Department of Conservation and Recreation, and other appropriate agencies of the Commonwealth shall participate in the pre-application planning and review process. Participation in such process shall not limit the authority otherwise provided by law to the Commission or other agencies or boards of the Commonwealth. The Commission and other participating agencies and boards of the Commonwealth may invite federal and local governmental entities charged by law with responsibility for issuing permits or approvals and potentially impacted federally recognized Tribal Nations in the Commonwealth to participate in the pre-application planning and review process. Through the pre-application planning and review process, the applicant, the Commission, participating agencies and boards of the Commonwealth, and potentially impacted federally recognized Tribal Nations in the Commonwealth shall identify the potential impacts and approvals that may be required and shall develop a plan that will provide for an efficient and coordinated review of the proposed energy facility. The plan shall include (a) a list of the permits or other approvals likely to be required based on the information available, (b) a specific plan and preliminary schedule for the different reviews, (c) a plan for coordinating those reviews and the related public comment process, and (d) designation of points of contact, either within each agency or for the Commonwealth as a whole, to facilitate this coordination. The plan shall be made readily available to the public and shall be maintained on a dedicated website to provide current information on the status of each component of the plan and each approval process including opportunities for public comment. I. The provisions of this section shall not apply to the construction and operation of a small renewable energy project, as defined in § 10.1-1197.5, by a utility regulated pursuant to this title for which the Department of Environmental Quality has issued a permit by rule pursuant to Article 5 (§ 10.1-1197.5 et seq.) of Chapter 11.1 of Title 10.1. J. Approval under this section shall not be required for any transmission line for which a certificate of public convenience and necessity is not required pursuant to subdivision A of § 56-265.2. 1972, c. 652; 1973, c. 307; 1974, c. 498; 1983, c. 438; 1984, cc. 287, 562; 1985, c. 282; 1991, cc. 90, 148; 1996, c. 254; 2001, c. 758; 2002, c. 483; 2007, cc. 756, 761, 776, 825; 2009, cc. 808, 854; 2011, cc. 236, 243; 2012, cc. 54, 284; 2016, cc. 192, 276; 2020, cc. 450, 958; 2021, Sp. Sess. I, c. 327; 2024, c. 830.

Va. Code § 56-46.2

§ 56-46.2. Construction of electrical transmission lines.The construction of all overhead electrical transmission lines shall adhere to the standards set forth in the National Electrical Safety Code. The Commission shall, upon receipt of a written complaint concerning the lack of compliance with these standards in the construction of a particular transmission line, investigate the situation and, if appropriate, exercise its powers granted under § 12.1-12 to enforce adherence to the standards. 1985, c. 187.

Va. Code § 56-46.3

§ 56-46.3. Foreign utility companies; penalties.A. The provisions of the Public Utility Holding Company Act of 2005 (PUHCA), which is set out at § 1261 et seq. of the Energy Policy Act of 2005, stipulate that certain exemptions afforded a foreign utility company (FUCO) under PUHCA are not applicable unless every state commission having jurisdiction over the retail electric or gas rates of a public utility company that is an associate company or an affiliate of a company (other than a public utility company that is an associate company or an affiliate of a registered holding company under PUHCA) has certified to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) that it has the authority and resources to protect ratepayers subject to its jurisdiction and that it intends to exercise its authority. B. Upon application to the Commission by any person that (i) is an affiliated interest of a public service company, as such terms are defined in Chapter 4 (§ 56-76 et seq.) of this title, (ii) proposes to invest in or acquire a specific FUCO, and (iii) is not a registered holding company under PUHCA, and subject to the proviso contained herein, the Commission shall have the authority to impose upon, and require of, the applicant, the public service company, and any other "affiliated interests" of such public service company, such terms, conditions, limitations, restrictions, undertakings and commitments as the Commission deems necessary to protect the public interest from any adverse effects attributable to such proposed FUCO investment or acquisition, including such provisions for the enforcement thereof as the Commission shall deem necessary; and, upon doing so, may certify to the SEC that the Commission has the authority and resources to protect the ratepayers of such public service company subject to its jurisdiction and that it intends to exercise its authority; provided, however, that such applicant, the public service company, and such other affiliated interests of such public service company shall have furnished to the Commission, prior to delivery of said certification to the SEC, and in the manner prescribed by the Commission, a written statement accepting all such terms, conditions, limitations, restrictions, undertakings and commitments, as the Commission shall have so specified. C. The Commission shall have the power to enforce the terms, conditions, limitations, restrictions, undertakings and commitments upon which said certification was based, including the power to penalize for and enjoin the violation or attempted violation thereof, and to issue mandatory injunctions requiring such actions as may be in the public interest to remedy any such violation or attempted violation. Any person committing any such violation or attempted violation, or failing or refusing to obey any order or injunction of the Commission issued under this section, may be fined by the Commission such sum, not exceeding $100,000, as the Commission may deem proper, and each day's continuance of such condition shall be a separate offense. 1997, c. 110; 2014, c. 192. Chapter 2. Creation and Powers of Public Service Corporations. §§ 56-47, 56-48. Repealed.Repealed by Acts 1956, c. 438.

Va. Code § 56-462

§ 56-462. Franchise to occupy parks, streets, etc.; imposition of terms, conditions, etc., as to use of streets, etc., and construction thereon.A. No incorporated city or town shall grant to any such telegraph or telephone corporation the right to erect its poles, wires, or cables, or to lay its conduits upon or beneath its parks, streets, avenues, or alleys until such company shall have first obtained, in the manner prescribed by the laws of this Commonwealth, the franchise to occupy the same. Any city or town may impose upon any such corporation any terms and conditions consistent herewith and supplemental hereto, as to the occupation and use of its parks, streets, avenues, and alleys, and as to the construction and maintenance of the facilities of such company along, over, or under the same, that the city or town may deem expedient and proper. The Department of Transportation may also impose upon any such company any terms, rules, regulations, requirements, restrictions and conditions consistent herewith and supplemental hereto, as to the occupation and use of roads and streets in either state highway system, and as to the construction, operation or maintenance of the works along, over, or under the same, which the Department may deem expedient and proper, but not in conflict, in incorporated cities and towns, with any vested contractual rights of any such company with such city or town. B. No locality or the Department of Transportation shall impose any fees on a certificated provider of telecommunications service for the use of public rights-of-way except in the manner prescribed in § 56-468.1; however, the provisions of § 56-468.1 shall not apply to providers of commercial mobile radio services. C. No locality or the Department of Transportation shall impose on certificated providers of telecommunications service, whether by franchise, ordinance or other means, any restrictions or requirements concerning the use of the public rights-of-way (including but not limited to the permitting process; notice, time and location of excavations and repair work; enforcement of the statewide building code; and inspections), which are (i) unfair or unreasonable or (ii) any greater than those imposed on the following users of the public rights-of-way: all providers of telecommunications services and nonpublic providers of cable television, electric, natural gas, water and sanitary sewer services. For purposes of this subsection, "restrictions or requirements concerning the use of the public rights-of-way" shall not include any existing franchise fee or the Public Rights-of-Way Use Fee. D. Notwithstanding any other provision of law, any permit or other permission required by a locality pursuant to a franchise, ordinance, or other permission to use the public rights-of-way or by the Department of Transportation of a certificated provider of telecommunications services to use the public rights-of-way shall be granted or denied within 45 days from submission and, if denied, accompanied by a written explanation of the reasons the permit was denied and the actions required to cure the denial. E. No locality receiving directly or indirectly a Public Rights-of-Way Use Fee or the Department of Transportation shall require a certificated provider of telecommunications services to provide in-kind services or physical assets as a condition of consent to use public rights-of-way or easements, or in lieu of the Public Rights-of-Way Use Fee. This shall not limit the ability of localities, their authorities or commissions which provide utility services, or the Department of Transportation to enter into voluntary pole attachment, conduit occupancy or conduit construction agreements with certificated providers of telecommunications service. Any locality, other than a city or town electing to continue to enforce an existing franchise, ordinance or other form of consent under subsection J of § 56-468.1, or the Department of Transportation may continue to use pole attachments and conduits utilized as of December 31, 1997. Any pole attachment or conduit occupancy fees for this use shall be waived for facilities in place as of December 31, 1997, and shall be waived for future extensions in cities with populations between 60,000 and 70,000, so long as the locality or the Department of Transportation continues to use these facilities on such poles or in such conduits solely for their internal communications needs. The fee waiver is for the occupancy fees only, does not cover any relocation, rearrangement or other make-ready costs, and does not apply to any county, city or town that has obtained a certificate pursuant to § 56-265.4:4. Code 1919, § 4038; 1926, p. 909; 1971, Ex. Sess., c. 40; 1997, cc. 474, 515; 1998, cc. 742, 758; 2002, cc. 479, 489; 2006, c. 780; 2013, cc. 585, 646.

Va. Code § 56-466.1

§ 56-466.1. Pole attachments; cable television systems and telecommunications service providers.A. As used in this section: "Cable television system" means any system licensed, franchised or certificated pursuant to Article 1.2 (§ 15.2-2108.19 et seq.) of Chapter 21 of Title 15.2 that transmits television signals, for distribution to subscribers of its services for a fee, by means of wires or cables connecting its distribution facilities with its subscriber's television receiver or other equipment connecting to the subscriber's television receiver, and not by transmission of television signals through the air. "Electric cooperative" means a utility services cooperative formed under or subject to Article 1 (§ 56-231.15 et seq.) of Chapter 9.1. "Existing attacher" means any entity with equipment on a utility pole. "National electrical safety standards" means standards provided in the National Electrical Safety Code. "New attacher" means a cable television system or telecommunications service provider requesting a new pole attachment. "Pole attachment" means any attachment by a cable television system or provider of telecommunications service to a pole, duct, conduit, right-of-way or similar facility owned or controlled by a public utility. "Public utility" has the same meaning ascribed thereto in § 56-232 but shall not include any utility that is regulated pursuant to 47 U.S.C. § 224. "Rearrangement" means work necessitated solely by and at the request of a telecommunications service provider or cable television system to, on, or in an existing pole, duct, conduit, right-of-way, or similar facility owned or controlled by a public utility that is necessary to make such pole, duct, conduit, right-of-way, or similar facility usable for a pole attachment. "Rearrangement" shall include replacement, necessitated solely by and at the request of a telecommunications service provider or cable television system, of the existing pole, duct, conduit, right-of-way, or similar facility if the existing pole, duct, conduit, right-of-way, or similar facility does not contain adequate surplus space or excess capacity and cannot be rearranged so as to create the adequate surplus space or excess capacity required for a pole attachment. "Red-tagged pole" means a pole owned or controlled by a public utility that (i) is designated for replacement for any reason unrelated to a lack of capacity to accommodate a new attacher's request for attachment or (ii) would have needed to be replaced at the time of replacement even if the new attachment was not made. "Telecommunications service provider" means any public service corporation or public service company that holds a certificate of public convenience and necessity to furnish local exchange telephone service or interexchange telephone service. B. Upon request by a telecommunications service provider or cable television system to a public utility, both the public utility and the telecommunications service provider or cable television system shall negotiate in good faith to arrive at a mutually agreeable contract for attachments to the public utility's poles by the telecommunications service provider or cable television system. The terms of such contract shall comply with the requirements of this section. C. After entering into a contract for attachments to its poles by any telecommunications service provider or cable television system, a public utility shall permit, upon reasonable terms and conditions and the payment of just and reasonable annual charges and the reasonable, actual cost of any required rearrangement, the attachment of any wire, cable, facility, or apparatus to its poles or pedestals, or the placement of any wire, cable, facility, or apparatus in conduit or duct space owned or controlled by it, by such telecommunications service provider or cable television system that is authorized by law to construct and maintain the attachment, provided that the attachment does not interfere, obstruct, or delay the service and operation of the public utility or create a safety hazard. D. Notwithstanding the provisions of subsection C, a public utility providing electric utility service may deny access by a telecommunications service provider or cable television system to any pole, duct, conduit, right-of-way, or similar facility owned or controlled, in whole or in part, by such public utility, provided such denial is made on a nondiscriminatory basis on grounds of insufficient capacity or reasons of safety, reliability, or generally applicable engineering principles. Insufficient capacity shall not exist if a rearrangement can be accomplished consistent with prevailing electric safety and utility standards as determined by the Commission. In making such determination, the Commission shall consider national electrical safety standards, the public interest relating to expanding broadband access in the Commonwealth, the impact to ratepayers, and other relevant considerations as determined by the Commission. E. This section shall not apply to any pole attachments regulated pursuant to 47 U.S.C. § 224. F. A public utility shall establish and adhere to pole attachment practices and procedures that comply with the requirements of this section. G. In processing requests for access to a public utility's poles, such public utility shall adhere to the following practices and shall incorporate the following provisions into its terms and conditions governing pole attachments: 1. a. A public utility shall review a new attacher's attachment request for completeness before reviewing such request on its merits. A new attacher's attachment request shall be considered complete for the purposes of this subdivision if such request provides the public utility with the information necessary, according to such public utility's procedures as specified in a master services agreement or in requirements made publicly available by such public utility at the time such request is submitted, for such public utility to begin to survey the affected poles. (1) A public utility shall determine within 15 business days after receiving a new attacher's attachment request whether such request is complete for the purposes of subdivision a and shall notify such new attacher of such determination and, if such request is determined to be incomplete, the reasons for such determination. If such public utility does not respond within 15 business days after the receipt of such request, or if such public utility rejects such request as incomplete without specifying the reasons for such determination, then such request shall be deemed complete for the purposes of subdivision a. (2) A new attacher's attachment request that was previously determined to be incomplete may be resubmitted, and such resubmission shall only be required to address the reasons for such determination specified by the public utility. Such resubmitted request shall be deemed complete for the purposes of subdivision a within seven business days after its resubmission unless the public utility notifies the new attacher of unaddressed reasons that such resubmission remains incomplete and how such resubmission fails to address such reasons. A new attacher may repeat the resubmission procedure described in this subdivision (2) as necessary until the attachment request is determined to be complete for the purposes of subdivision a so long as such new attacher makes a bona fide attempt with each resubmission to correct the attachment request according to the reasons for such determination of incompleteness. b. A public utility shall respond to a new attacher's complete attachment request either by (i) granting access or (ii) consistent with subsection D, denying access within 75 days after the receipt of such request. c. (1) Within 75 days of receiving a complete attachment request, a public utility shall complete a survey of the affected poles. (2) A public utility shall permit the new attacher and any existing attachers to the affected poles to be present for any field inspection conducted as part of such public utility's survey pursuant to subdivision (1). A public utility shall use commercially reasonable efforts to provide such new and existing attachers at least five business days' advance notice of such field inspection and shall provide in such notice the time, date, and location of such survey and the name of the contractor performing such survey, if applicable. Any attacher attending such field inspection shall do so at its own risk and expense. 2. If a new attacher's request for access is not denied, a public utility shall present to such new attacher a detailed, itemized estimate, on a pole-by-pole basis, if requested, of charges to perform all necessary rearrangement within 20 days after providing the response required by subdivision 1. If the new attacher requests an estimate on such pole-by-pole basis and the public utility incurs fixed costs that are not reasonably calculable on a pole-by-pole basis, such public utility may present charges on a per-job basis rather than on a pole-by-pole basis for such fixed cost charges. The public utility shall provide documentation sufficient to determine the basis of all estimated charges, including any projected material, labor, and other related costs that form the basis of such estimate. a. A public utility may withdraw an outstanding estimate of charges to perform rearrangement work beginning 30 days after the estimate is presented. A new attacher may accept a valid estimate and pay such charges at any time after receiving such estimate except if such estimate is withdrawn. b. After a public utility completes rearrangement, if the cost of the work performed differs from the estimate, such public utility shall provide the new attacher a detailed, itemized final invoice of the actual rearrangement charges incurred, on a pole-by-pole basis, if requested, to accommodate the new attachment. If the new attacher requests an invoice on such pole-by-pole basis and the public utility incurs fixed costs that are not reasonably calculable on a pole-by-pole basis, such public utility may present charges on a per-job basis rather than on a pole-by-pole basis for such fixed cost charges. The public utility shall provide documentation sufficient to determine the basis of all charges, including material, labor, and other related costs that form the basis of such estimate. 3. Upon a public utility's receipt of payment pursuant to subdivision 2 a, such public utility shall immediately notify in writing all known existing attachers that may be affected by such rearrangement. Such notice shall: a. Specify the details and location of such rearrangement; b. Set a completion date for such rearrangement that is no later than 95 days after such notice is sent; c. Provide that any entity with an existing attachment may modify such attachment consistent with the specified rearrangement before the date of such rearrangement; and d. Provide the name, telephone number, and email address of a contact person for more information about the rearrangement procedure. Upon providing such notice, a public utility shall provide the new attacher with a copy of any such notice, the contact information of any existing attachers, and any address to which such public utility sent such notice. The new attacher shall be responsible for coordinating with existing attachers to encourage the completion of rearrangement by the completion date specified in such notice. 4. A public utility shall complete any rearrangement by the completion date provided in the notice described in subdivision 3. 5. a. A public utility may deviate from the time limits specified in this section before offering an estimate of charges if the parties involved have no agreement specifying the rates, terms, and conditions of attachment. b. A public utility may deviate from the time limits specified in this subsection during performance of a rearrangement for good and sufficient cause, as defined by the Commission, that renders it unfeasible for such public utility to complete rearrangement within such time limits. A public utility making such deviation shall immediately notify in writing the new attacher and affected existing attachers, and such notice shall identify the affected poles and include a detailed explanation of the reason for such deviation and a new completion date. No such deviation shall occur for a period longer than necessary to complete rearrangement of the affected poles, and such public utility shall resume rearrangement without discrimination upon returning to routine operations. 6. If the pole attachment request of a telecommunications service provider or cable television system would cause the aggregate number of attachments or attachment requests by all attachers to exceed the lesser of 300 poles per month or 0.5 percent of the total poles owned by a public utility in any given month, then such public utility shall promptly notify such new attacher and shall negotiate in good faith to contract with a mutually agreed upon third-party entity to perform all necessary work that such public utility would otherwise perform, within a reasonable timeframe and in accordance with the cost allocation principles set forth in this section. In negotiating for a reasonable timeframe for the performance of work, the parties involved shall use their best efforts to comply with the timeframes established in subdivisions 1, 2, and 3. All work performed by a contracted entity under this subdivision shall be subject to the oversight of the public utility, which may only assess the new attacher for the actual, reasonable costs of such oversight. 7. Notwithstanding any other provision of law, a public utility subject to this section shall not apportion to a telecommunications service provider or cable television system the cost of replacing a red-tagged pole, provided that such public utility may apportion to a telecommunications service provider or cable television system the incremental cost of a taller or stronger pole that is necessitated solely by the new facilities of such telecommunications service provider or cable television system. H. The Commission is authorized to enforce the requirements of this section and to determine just and reasonable rates, and terms and conditions of service, excluding safety and debt collection, for attachments to electric cooperative poles by telecommunications service providers or cable television systems if, following good faith negotiations to do so, the parties cannot reach agreement thereon; however, the Commission shall not determine rates or terms and conditions for any existing agreement until it expires or is terminated pursuant to its own terms. The terms of an expired or terminated agreement shall continue to govern while good faith negotiations or Commission review pursuant to this section are pending. Such determinations shall be made in accordance with the following: 1. Just and reasonable pole attachment rates and terms and conditions of service to be determined by the Commission shall include, without limitation, rearrangement and make-ready costs, pole replacement costs, and all other costs directly related to pole attachments and maintenance, replacement, and inspection of poles or pole attachments, and right of way maintenance essential to pole attachments, provided, however, that cost recovery for rearrangement, make-ready, and pole replacement addressed in terms and conditions shall not also be included in annual rental rates; 2. In determining pole attachment rates, terms, and conditions, the Commission shall consider (i) any effect of such rates, terms, and conditions on the deployment or utilization, or both, of broadband and other telecommunications services, (ii) the interests of electric cooperatives' members, and (iii) the overall public interest; 3. The Commission may develop and utilize alternative forms of dispute resolution for purposes of addressing disputes (i) arising under this subsection and (ii) falling within the scope of the Commission's authority established hereunder; 4. The Commission shall resolve disputes (i) involving pole access, including the allocation of rearrangement costs, within 90 days and (ii) concerning all other matters arising under this section within 120 days, provided, however, that either period may be extended by Commission order for an additional period not to exceed 60 days; 5. The Commission is authorized to assess reasonable application fees to recover appropriate Commission costs of proceedings arising under this subsection; and 6. The Commission is authorized to develop, if necessary, rules and regulations, including a definition of good faith negotiations, to implement this section. 2001, c. 76; 2006, cc. 73, 76; 2012, cc. 545, 674; 2024, cc. 799, 822.

Va. Code § 56-466.2

§ 56-466.2. Undergrounding existing overhead distribution lines; relocation of facilities of cable operator.When an investor-owned incumbent electric utility proposes to improve electric service reliability pursuant to clause (iv) of subdivision A 6 of § 56-585.1 by installing new underground facilities to replace the utility's existing overhead distribution tap lines, if the utility owns the poles from which the existing overhead distribution tap lines are to be relocated and any cable operator of a cable television system, as those terms are defined in § 15.2-2108.19, has also attached its facilities to such poles, the utility shall provide written notice to the cable operator of the utility's intention to relocate the overhead distribution tap lines not less than 90 days prior to relocating the utility's overhead distribution lines. The cable operator shall notify the utility within 45 days of the notice of relocation whether the cable operator will relocate its facilities underground or request to remain overhead in accordance with the provisions set forth herein. If the cable operator elects to relocate its facilities underground, in such notice the cable operator may request that the utility use commercially reasonable efforts to negotiate a common shared underground easement for the facilities to be located underground of the utility and the cable operator. The cable operator shall be responsible to negotiate any additional easements that it may require. If the cable operator elects to relocate its facilities underground, the cable operator may participate with the utility in a joint relocation of the overhead lines to underground or may engage its own contractors to undertake its relocation work if it deems it appropriate to do so. The utility shall not abandon or remove the poles that the utility owns until the cable operator completes the relocation or removal of its facilities or 90 days after the completion of the relocation of the utility overhead distribution lines, whichever first occurs. If the cable operator does not elect to relocate its facilities underground and requests to maintain its facilities overhead, the utility may either (i) convey such poles "as-is" and "where-is" to the cable operator at its depreciated cost less the estimated cost of removal, provided that the cable operator may legally retain the poles that the utility intends to abandon and assumes all liability for the poles conveyed or (ii) retain ownership of its poles and allow the cable operator's existing overhead facilities to remain attached, in which case the utility shall maintain the pole in accordance with prudent utility standards, provided that the cable operator shall continue to pay its pole attachment fees and otherwise comply with its contractual obligations pursuant to the applicable pole attachment agreement. In all cases, the cable operator shall be responsible for all costs related to the relocation or maintenance of its facilities. In instances in which an investor-owned incumbent electric utility continues to own and maintain its utility poles after the overhead distribution lines of the utility formerly on such poles have been placed underground pursuant to the foregoing provisions, then for purposes of any agreement or ordinance with respect to a cable franchise under § 15.2-2108.20 or 15.2-2108.21, the utility shall not be deemed to have converted to underground. 2017, c. 583; 2018, c. 296.

Va. Code § 56-468.1

§ 56-468.1. (Contingent expiration -- see Editor's note) Public Rights-of-Way Use Fee.A. As used in this article: "Access lines" are defined to include residence and business telephone lines and other switched (packet or circuit) lines connecting the customer premises to the public switched telephone network for the transmission of outgoing voice-grade telecommunications services. Centrex, PBX, or other multistation telecommunications services will incur a Public Rights-of-Way Use Fee on every line or trunk (Network Access Registrar or PBX trunk) that allows simultaneous unrestricted outward dialing to the public switched network. ISDN Primary Rate Interface services will be charged five Public Rights-of-Way Use Fees for every ISDN Primary Rate Interface network facility established by the customer. Other channelized services in which each voice-grade channel is controlled by the telecommunications service provider shall be charged one fee for each line that allows simultaneous unrestricted outward dialing to the public switched telephone network. Access lines do not include local, state, and federal government lines; access lines used to provide service to users as part of the Virginia Universal Service Plan; interstate and intrastate dedicated WATS lines; special access lines; off-premises extensions; official lines internally provided and used by providers of telecommunications service for administrative, testing, intercept, and verification purposes; and commercial mobile radio service. "Cable operator" and "cable system" have the same meanings as contained in subsection A of § 15.2-2108.1:1. "Centrex" means a business telephone service offered by a local exchange company from a local central office; a normal single line telephone service with added custom calling features including but not limited to intercom, call forwarding, and call transfer. "ISDN Primary Rate Interface" means digital communications service containing 24 bearer channels, each of which is a full 64,000 bits-per-second. "Locality" has the same meaning as contained in § 15.2-102. "Network Access Register" means a central office register associated with Centrex service that is required in order to complete a call involving access to the public switched telephone network outside the confines of that Centrex company. Network Access Register may be incoming, outgoing, or two-way. "New installation of telecommunications facilities" or "new installation" includes the construction of new pole lines and new conduit systems, and the burying of new cables in existing public rights-of-way. New installation does not include adding new cables to existing pole lines and conduit systems. "PBX" means public branch exchange and is telephone switching equipment owned by the customer and located on the customer's premises. "PBX trunk" means a connection of the customer's PBX switch to the central office. "Provider of local telecommunications service" means a public service corporation or locality holding a certificate issued by the State Corporation Commission to provide local exchange telephone service and any other person who provides local telephone services to the public for a fee, other than a CMRS provider as that term is defined in § 56-484.12. "Provider of telecommunications service" means a public service corporation or locality holding a certificate issued by the State Corporation Commission to provide local exchange or interexchange telephone service to the public for a fee and any other person who provides local or long distance telephone services to the public for a fee, other than a CMRS provider as that term is defined in § 56-484.12. "Public highway" means, for purposes of computing the Public Rights-of-Way Use Fee, the centerline mileage of highways and streets which are part of the primary state highway system as defined in § 33.2-100, the secondary state highway system as defined in §§ 33.2-100 and 33.2-324, the highways of those cities and certain towns defined in § 33.2-319 and the highways and streets maintained and operated by counties which have withdrawn or elect to withdraw from the secondary system of state highways under the provisions of § 11 of Chapter 415 of the Acts of Assembly of 1932 and which have not elected to return. "Subscriber" means a person who receives video programming, as defined in 47 U.S.C. § 522(20), distributed by a cable operator, as defined in subsection A of § 15.2-2108.1:1, and does not further distribute it. B. 1. Notwithstanding any other provisions of law, there is hereby established a Public Rights-of-Way Use Fee to replace any and all fees of general application (except for zoning, subdivision, site plan and comprehensive plan fees of general application) otherwise chargeable to a provider of telecommunications service by the Commonwealth Transportation Board or a locality in connection with a permit for such occupation and use granted in accordance with § 56-458 or § 56-462. Cities and towns whose public streets and roads are not maintained by the Virginia Department of Transportation, and any county that has withdrawn or elects to withdraw from the secondary system of state highways under the provisions of § 11 of Chapter 415 of the Acts of Assembly of 1932, may impose the Public Rights-of-Way Use Fee on the ultimate end-users of local telecommunications service only by local ordinance. Localities, their authorities or commissions, and the Commonwealth Transportation Board may allow providers of telecommunications services and cable operators to use their electric poles or electric conduits in exchange for payment of a fee. 2. The Public Rights-of-Way Use Fee established by this section is hereby imposed on all cable operators that use the public rights-of-way. C. The amount of the Public Rights-of-Way Use Fee shall be calculated annually by the Department of Transportation (VDOT), based on the calculations described in subsection D of this section. In no year shall the amount of the fee be less than $0.50 per access line per month. D. The annual rate of the Public Rights-of-Way Use Fee shall be calculated by multiplying the number of public highway miles in the Commonwealth by a highway mileage rate (as defined in subsection E of this section), and by adding the number of feet of new installations in the Commonwealth (multiplied by $1 per foot), and dividing this sum by the total number of access lines in the Commonwealth. The monthly rate shall be this annual rate divided by 12. E. The annual multiplier per mile is $425 per mile beginning July 1, 2001 and thereafter. F. The data used for the calculation in subsection D shall be based on the following information and schedule: (i) all providers of telecommunications services shall remit to VDOT by December 1 of each year data indicating the number of feet of new installations made during the one-year period ending September 30 of that year, which shall be auditable by affected localities, and the number of access lines as of September 30 of that year, which shall be auditable by affected localities; and (ii) the public highway mileage from the most recently published VDOT report. By the following January 15, VDOT shall calculate the Public Rights-of-Way Use Fee to be used in the fiscal year beginning the next ensuing July 1 and report it to all affected localities and providers of local telecommunications services. G. A provider of local telecommunications service shall collect the Public Rights-of-Way Use Fee on a per access line basis and the cable operator shall collect the Public Rights-of-Way Use Fee on a per subscriber basis by adding the fee to each ultimate end user's monthly bill for local telecommunications service or cable service. A company providing both local telecommunications service and cable service to the same ultimate end user may collect only one Public Rights-of-Way Use Fee from that ultimate end user based on (i) the local telecommunications service if the locality in which the ultimate end user resides has imposed a Public Rights-of-Way Use Fee on local telecommunications service or (ii) cable service if the locality in which the subscriber resides has not imposed a Public Rights-of-Way Use Fee on local telecommunications service. The Public Rights-of-Way Use Fee shall, when billed, be stated as a distinct item separate and apart from the monthly charge for local telecommunications service and cable service. Until the ultimate end user pays the Public Rights-of-Way Use Fee to the local telecommunications service provider or cable operator, the Public Rights-of-Way Use Fee shall constitute a debt of the consumer to the locality, VDOT, or the Department of Taxation, as may be applicable. If any ultimate end user or subscriber refuses to pay the Public Rights-of-Way Use Fee, the local telecommunications service provider or cable operator shall notify the locality, VDOT, or the Department of Taxation, as appropriate. All fees collected in accordance with the provisions of this section shall be deemed to be held in trust by the local telecommunications service provider and the cable operator until remitted to the locality, VDOT, or the Department of Taxation, as applicable. H. Within two months after the end of each calendar quarter, each provider of local telecommunications service shall remit the amount of Public Rights-of-Way Use Fees it has billed to ultimate end users during such preceding quarter, as follows: 1. The provider of local telecommunications service shall remit directly to the applicable locality all Public Rights-of-Way Use Fees billed in (i) cities; (ii) towns whose public streets and roads are not maintained by VDOT; and (iii) any county that has withdrawn or elects to withdraw from the secondary system of state highways under the provisions of § 11 of Chapter 415 of the Acts of Assembly of 1932 and that has elected not to return, provided, however, that such counties shall use a minimum of 10% of the Public Rights-of-Way Use Fees they receive for transportation construction or maintenance purposes. Any city currently subject to § 15.2-3530 shall use a minimum of 90% of the Public Rights-of-Way Use Fees it receives for transportation construction or maintenance purposes. 2. The Public Rights-of-Way Use Fees billed in all other counties shall be remitted by each provider of local telecommunications service to VDOT. VDOT shall allocate the total amount received from providers to the construction improvement program of the secondary system of state highways. Within such allocation to the secondary system, VDOT shall apportion the amounts so received among the several counties, other than those described in clause (iii) of subdivision 1, on the basis of population, with each county being credited a share of the total equal to the proportion that its population bears to the total population of all such counties. For purposes of this section the term "population" shall mean either population according to the latest United States census or the latest population estimate of the Weldon Cooper Center for Public Service of the University of Virginia, whichever is more recent. Such allocation and apportionment of Public Rights-of-Way Use Fees shall be in addition to, and not in lieu of, any other allocation of funds to such secondary system and apportionment to counties thereof provided by law. I. The Public Rights-of-Way Use Fee billed by a cable operator shall be remitted to the Department of Taxation for deposit into the Communication Sales and Use Tax Trust Fund by the twentieth day of the month following the billing of the fee. J. Any locality with a franchise agreement, ordinance implementing a franchise agreement or other form of consent allowing the use of the public rights-of-way by a provider of local telecommunications service, existing prior to July 1, 1998, or any city or town with an ordinance or code section imposing a franchise fee or charge on a provider of local telecommunications service in effect as of February 1, 1997, may elect to continue enforcing such existing franchise, ordinance or code section or other form of consent in lieu of receiving the Public Rights-of-Way Use Fee; provided, however, that such city or town does not (i) discriminate among telecommunications service providers and (ii) adopt any additional rights-of-way management practices that do not comply with §§ 56-458 C and 56-462 C. The Public Rights-of-Way Use Fee shall not be imposed in any such locality. Any locality electing to adopt the Public Rights-of-Way Use Fee by ordinance shall notify all affected providers of local telecommunications service no later than March 15 preceding the fiscal year. Such notice shall be in writing and sent by certified mail from such locality to the registered agent of the affected provider or providers of local telecommunications service. 1998, cc. 742, 758; 2002, cc. 479, 489; 2006, c. 780.

Va. Code § 56-484.26

§ 56-484.26. Definitions.As used in this chapter, unless the context requires a different meaning: "Antenna" means communications equipment that transmits or receives electromagnetic radio signals used in the provision of any type of wireless communications services. "Co-locate" means to install, mount, maintain, modify, operate, or replace a wireless facility on, under, within, or adjacent to a base station, building, existing structure, utility pole, or wireless support structure. "Co-location" has a corresponding meaning. "Department" means the Department of Transportation. "Districtwide permit" means a permit granted by the Department to a wireless services provider or wireless infrastructure provider that allows the permittee to use the rights-of-way under the Department's jurisdiction to install or maintain small cell facilities on existing structures in one of the Commonwealth's nine construction districts. A districtwide permit allows the permittee to perform multiple occurrences of activities necessary to install or maintain small cell facilities on non-limited access right-of-way without obtaining a single use permit for each occurrence. The central office permit manager shall be responsible for the issuance of all districtwide permits. The Department may authorize districtwide permits covering multiple districts. "Existing structure" means any structure that is installed or approved for installation at the time a wireless services provider or wireless infrastructure provider provides notice to a locality or the Department of an agreement with the owner of the structure to co-locate equipment on that structure. "Existing structure" includes any structure that is currently supporting, designed to support, or capable of supporting the attachment of wireless facilities, including towers, buildings, utility poles, light poles, flag poles, signs, and water towers. "Micro-wireless facility" means a small cell facility that is not larger in dimension than 24 inches in length, 15 inches in width, and 12 inches in height and that has an exterior antenna, if any, not longer than 11 inches. "Small cell facility" means a wireless facility that meets both of the following qualifications: (i) each antenna is located inside an enclosure of no more than six cubic feet in volume, or, in the case of an antenna that has exposed elements, the antenna and all of its exposed elements could fit within an imaginary enclosure of no more than six cubic feet and (ii) all other wireless equipment associated with the facility has a cumulative volume of no more than 28 cubic feet, or such higher limit as is established by the Federal Communications Commission. The following types of associated equipment are not included in the calculation of equipment volume: electric meter, concealment, telecommunications demarcation boxes, ground-based enclosures, back-up power systems, grounding equipment, power transfer switches, cut-off switches, and vertical cable runs for the connection of power and other services. "Utility pole" means a structure owned, operated, or owned and operated by a public utility, local government, or the Commonwealth that is designed specifically for and used to carry lines, cables, or wires for communications, cable television, or electricity. "Water tower" means a water storage tank, or a standpipe or an elevated tank situated on a support structure, originally constructed for use as a reservoir or facility to store or deliver water. "Wireless facility" means equipment at a fixed location that enables wireless services between user equipment and a communications network, including (i) equipment associated with wireless services, such as private, broadcast, and public safety services, as well as unlicensed wireless services and fixed wireless services, such as microwave backhaul, and (ii) radio transceivers, antennas, coaxial, or fiber-optic cable, regular and backup power supplies, and comparable equipment, regardless of technological configuration. "Wireless infrastructure provider" means any person, including a person authorized to provide telecommunications service in the state, that builds or installs transmission equipment, wireless facilities, or wireless support structures, but that is not a wireless services provider. "Wireless services" means (i) "personal wireless services" as defined in 47 U.S.C. § 332(c)(7)(C)(i); (ii) "personal wireless service facilities" as defined in 47 U.S.C. § 332(c)(7)(C)(ii), including commercial mobile services as defined in 47 U.S.C. § 332(d), provided to personal mobile communication devices through wireless facilities; and (iii) any other fixed or mobile wireless service, using licensed or unlicensed spectrum, provided using wireless facilities. "Wireless services provider" means a provider of wireless services. "Wireless support structure" means a freestanding structure, such as a monopole, tower, either guyed or self-supporting, or suitable existing structure or alternative structure designed to support or capable of supporting wireless facilities. "Wireless support structure" does not include any telephone or electrical utility pole or any tower used for the distribution or transmission of electrical service. 2017, c. 835.

Va. Code § 56-484.29

§ 56-484.29. Access to locality rights-of-way for installation and maintenance of small cell facilities on existing structures.A. Upon application by a wireless services provider or wireless infrastructure provider, a locality may issue a permit granting access to the public rights-of-way it operates and maintains to install and maintain small cell facilities on existing structures. Such a permit shall grant access to all rights-of-way in the locality for the purpose of installing small cell facilities on existing structures, provided that the wireless services provider or wireless infrastructure provider (i) has permission from the owner of the structure to co-locate equipment on that structure and (ii) provides notice of the agreement and co-location to the locality. The locality shall approve or disapprove any such requested permit within 60 days of receipt of the complete application. Within 10 days after receipt of an application and a valid electronic mail address for the applicant, the locality shall notify the applicant by electronic mail whether the application is incomplete and specify any missing information; otherwise, the application shall be deemed complete. Any disapproval shall be in writing and accompanied by an explanation for the disapproval. The 60-day period may be extended by the locality in writing for a period not to exceed an additional 30 days. The permit request shall be deemed approved if the locality fails to act within the initial 60 days or an extended 30-day period. No such permit shall be required for providers of telecommunications services and nonpublic providers of cable television, electric, natural gas, water, and sanitary sewer services that, as of July 1, 2017, already have facilities lawfully occupying the public rights-of-way under the locality's jurisdiction. B. Localities shall not impose any fee for the use of the rights-of-way, except for zoning, subdivision, site plan, and comprehensive plan fees of general application, on a wireless services provider or wireless infrastructure provider to attach or co-locate small cell facilities on an existing structure in the right-of-way. However, a locality may prescribe and charge a reasonable fee not to exceed $250 for processing a permit application under subsection A. C. Localities shall not impose any fee or require any application or permit for the installation, placement, maintenance, or replacement of micro-wireless facilities that are suspended on cables or lines that are strung between existing utility poles in compliance with national safety codes. However, the locality may require a single use permit if such activities (i) involve working within the highway travel lane or require closure of a highway travel lane; (ii) disturb the pavement, shoulder, roadway, or ditch line; (iii) include placement on limited access rights-of-way; or (iv) require any specific precautions to ensure the safety of the traveling public or the protection of public infrastructure or the operation thereof, and either were not authorized in or will be conducted in a time, place, or manner that is inconsistent with terms of the existing permit for that facility or the structure upon which it is attached. 2017, c. 835.

Va. Code § 56-484.31

§ 56-484.31. Attachment of small cell facilities on government-owned structures.A. If the Commonwealth or a locality agrees to permit a wireless services provider or a wireless infrastructure provider to attach small cell facilities to government-owned structures, both the government entity and the wireless services or wireless infrastructure provider shall negotiate in good faith to arrive at a mutually agreeable contract terms and conditions. B. The rates, terms, and conditions for such agreement shall be just and reasonable, cost-based, nondiscriminatory, and competitively neutral, and shall comply with all applicable state and federal laws. However, rates for attachments to government-owned buildings may be based on fair market value. C. For utility poles owned by a locality or the Commonwealth that support aerial cables used for video, communications, or electric service, the parties shall comply with the process for make-ready work under 47 U.S.C. § 224 and implementing regulations. The good faith estimate of the government entity owning or controlling the utility pole for any make-ready work necessary to enable the utility pole to support the requested co-location shall include pole replacement if necessary. D. For utility poles owned by a locality or the Commonwealth that do not support aerial cables used for video, communications, or electric service, the government entity owning or controlling the utility pole shall provide a good faith estimate for any make-ready work necessary to enable the utility pole to support the requested co-location, including pole replacement, if necessary, within 60 days after receipt of a complete application. Make-ready work, including any pole replacement, shall be completed within 60 days of written acceptance of the good faith estimate by the wireless services provider or a wireless infrastructure provider. E. The government entity owning or controlling the utility pole shall not require more make-ready work than required to meet applicable codes or industry standards. Charges for make-ready work, including any pole replacement, shall not exceed actual costs or the amount charged to other wireless services providers, providers of telecommunications services, and nonpublic providers of cable television and electric services for similar work and shall not include consultants' fees or expenses. F. The annual recurring rate to co-locate a small cell facility on a government-owned utility pole shall not exceed the actual, direct, and reasonable costs related to the wireless services provider's or wireless infrastructure provider's use of space on the utility pole. In any controversy concerning the appropriateness of the rate, the government entity owning or controlling the utility pole shall have the burden of proving that the rates are reasonably related to the actual, direct, and reasonable costs incurred for use of space on the utility pole for such period. G. This section shall not apply to utility poles, structures, or property of an electric utility owned or operated by a municipality or other political subdivision. 2017, c. 835.

Va. Code § 56-484.7

§ 56-484.7:4. Revocation of Commission approval.The Commission may revoke its approval of a petition under § 56-484.7:1 no earlier than five years after such approval if it finds (i) that the factors described in § 56-484.7:2 on which the approval was based no longer exist or are no longer being satisfied, or (ii) that the petitioner has not made satisfactory progress toward making generally available the qualifying communications services specified in the petition. If the Commission finds that such approval should be revoked, it shall determine a date by which the county, city, town, electric commission or board, or authority shall cease to offer such qualifying communications services. In determining such date the Commission shall allow a reasonable time for the entity to offer its equipment, infrastructure and other assets related to such qualifying communications services for sale at fair market value, which shall be deemed to be no less than the amount of the indebtedness, for such equipment, infrastructure and other assets related to such qualifying communications services. The provisions of this section shall not apply to the use of telecommunications equipment and services for intragovernmental purposes as specified in § 15.2-1500. 2002, cc. 479, 489; 2003, c. 711. Article 6. Wireless Enhanced Public Safety Telephone Service Act. §§ 56-484.8 through 56-484.11. Repealed.Repealed by Acts 2000, c. 1064. Article 7. Enhanced Public Safety Telephone Services Act.

Va. Code § 56-487

§ 56-487. Definitions.The following terms, whenever used or referred to in this chapter, shall have the following meanings, unless a different meaning appears from the context: (1) "Cooperative" shall mean a telephone corporation formed under this chapter. (2) "Municipality" shall mean any city or incorporated town of the Commonwealth. (3) "Person" shall mean and include natural persons, firms, associations, cooperatives, corporations, business trusts, partnerships and bodies politic. (4) "Telephone service" shall mean and include service over wire or cable lines, including voice carrier, service by voice carrier system over electric distribution and transmission lines, service over radio circuits, and any other service involving the transmission of voice, video or data between fixed points. (5) "Acquire" shall mean and include construct, acquire by purchase, lease, devise, gift or the exercise of the power of eminent domain, or other mode of acquisition. (6) "System" shall mean and include any plant, works, system, facilities, or properties, or any part or parts thereof, together with all appurtenances thereto, used or useful in connection with the transmission of voice, video or data. (7) "Obligations" shall mean and include bonds, interim certificates or receipts, notes, debentures, and all other evidences of indebtedness either issued or the payment thereof assumed by a cooperative. (8) "Federal agency" shall mean and include the United States of America, the President of the United States of America, and any and all other authorities, agencies, and instrumentalities of the United States of America, heretofore or hereafter created. (9) "Improve" shall mean and include construct, reconstruct, improve, replace, extend, enlarge, alter, better or repair. (10) "Board" shall mean the board of directors of a cooperative formed under this chapter. (11) "Member" shall mean and include each person admitted to membership in the cooperative pursuant to law or its bylaws. 1950, p. 588; 1956, c. 434; 1996, c. 708.

Va. Code § 56-509

§ 56-509. Uninterrupted functioning and operation of essential public utilities.The continuous, uninterrupted, and proper functioning and operation of public utilities engaged in the business of furnishing water, light, heat, gas, electric power, transportation, communication, or any one or more of them to the people of Virginia are hereby declared to be essential to the public welfare, health, and safety. It is contrary to the public policy of the Commonwealth to permit any substantial impairment or suspension of the operation of any such utility, and it is the duty of the Commonwealth to exercise all available means and every power at its command to prevent the same so as to protect its citizens from any dangers, perils, calamities, or catastrophes that would result therefrom. Further, such utilities are declared to be of vital public interest, and as such, it is necessary that impairment or suspension of the operation of any such utility for any reason be prevented to the extent and by the means hereafter provided. 1952, c. 696; 2022, c. 234.

Va. Code § 56-523

§ 56-523. Definitions.The words "utilities" or "public utilities" when used in this chapter shall be construed to mean any person, partnership, association or corporation, engaged in the business of furnishing electric power, water, light, heat, gas, transportation or communication, or any one or more of them, to the people of Virginia. "Net income" with respect to operation of a utility by the Commonwealth shall be construed to mean the gross revenues derived from such operation after deducting therefrom: (1) The costs of operation and maintenance of the utility, (2) The amount of depreciation during the time of such operation based on the amount allowed in the utility's federal income tax return, (3) Federal, state, and local taxes which would be payable by the utility, if the properties were operated by it, (4) Interest on the indebtedness of the utility, and (5) Payments for the cost of insurance. All of such items shall be prorated on an annual basis in proportion to the time the plant is operated by the Commonwealth. 1952, c. 696.

Va. Code § 56-575.1

§ 56-575.1. Definitions.As used in this chapter, unless the context requires a different meaning: "Affected jurisdiction" means any county, city or town in which all or a portion of a qualifying project is located. "Appropriating body" means the body responsible for appropriating or authorizing funding to pay for a qualifying project. "Commission" means the State Corporation Commission. "Comprehensive agreement" means the comprehensive agreement between the private entity and the responsible public entity required by § 56-575.9. "Develop" or "development" means to plan, design, develop, finance, lease, acquire, install, construct, or expand. "Interim agreement" means an agreement between a private entity and a responsible public entity that provides for phasing of the development or operation, or both, of a qualifying project. Such phases may include, but are not limited to, design, planning, engineering, environmental analysis and mitigation, financial and revenue analysis, or any other phase of the project that constitutes activity on any part of the qualifying project. "Lease payment" means any form of payment, including a land lease, by a public entity to the private entity for the use of a qualifying project. "Material default" means any default by the private entity in the performance of its duties under subsection E of § 56-575.8 that jeopardizes adequate service to the public from a qualifying project. "Operate" means to finance, maintain, improve, equip, modify, repair, or operate. "Private entity" means any natural person, corporation, general partnership, limited liability company, limited partnership, joint venture, business trust, public benefit corporation, non-profit entity, or other business entity. "Public entity" means the Commonwealth and any agency or authority thereof, any county, city or town and any other political subdivision of the Commonwealth, any public body politic and corporate, or any regional entity that serves a public purpose. "Qualifying project" means (i) any education facility, including, but not limited to a school building, any functionally related and subordinate facility and land to a school building (including any stadium or other facility primarily used for school events), and any depreciable property provided for use in a school facility that is operated as part of the public school system or as an institution of higher education; (ii) any building or facility that meets a public purpose and is developed or operated by or for any public entity; (iii) any improvements, together with equipment, necessary to enhance public safety and security of buildings to be principally used by a public entity; (iv) utility and telecommunications and other communications infrastructure; (v) a recreational facility; (vi) technology infrastructure, services, and applications, including, but not limited to, telecommunications, automated data processing, word processing and management information systems, and related information, equipment, goods and services; (vii) any services designed to increase the productivity or efficiency of the responsible public entity through the use of technology or other means, (viii) any technology, equipment, or infrastructure designed to deploy wireless broadband services to schools, businesses, or residential areas; (ix) any improvements necessary or desirable to any unimproved locally- or state-owned real estate; or (x) any solid waste management facility as defined in § 10.1-1400 that produces electric energy derived from solid waste. "Responsible public entity" means a public entity that has the power to develop or operate the applicable qualifying project. "Revenues" means all revenues, income, earnings, user fees, lease payments, or other service payments arising out of or in connection with supporting the development or operation of a qualifying project, including without limitation, money received as grants or otherwise from the United States of America, from any public entity, or from any agency or instrumentality of the foregoing in aid of such facility. "Service contract" means a contract entered into between a public entity and the private entity pursuant to § 56-575.5. "Service payments" means payments to the private entity of a qualifying project pursuant to a service contract. "State" means the Commonwealth of Virginia. "User fees" mean the rates, fees or other charges imposed by the private entity of a qualifying project for use of all or a portion of such qualifying project pursuant to the comprehensive agreement pursuant to § 56-575.9. 2002, c. 571; 2003, c. 1034; 2005, cc. 618, 865; 2007, cc. 649, 764; 2008, cc. 273, 731; 2009, cc. 754, 762.

Va. Code § 56-575.18

§ 56-575.18. Auditor of Public Accounts.The Auditor of Public Accounts shall periodically review interim and comprehensive agreements entered into pursuant to this chapter to ensure compliance with the provisions of this chapter. Copies of the agreements and supporting documents must be electronically filed with the Auditor of Public Accounts. Electronic agreements shall be made available in the online database maintained pursuant to § 30-133. 2007, c. 764; 2009, c. 762. Chapter 23. Virginia Electric Utility Regulation Act.

Va. Code § 56-576

§ 56-576. Definitions.As used in this chapter: "Affiliate" means any person that controls, is controlled by, or is under common control with an electric utility. "Aggregator" means a person that, as an agent or intermediary, (i) offers to purchase, or purchases, electric energy or (ii) offers to arrange for, or arranges for, the purchase of electric energy, for sale to, or on behalf of, two or more retail customers not controlled by or under common control with such person. The following activities shall not, in and of themselves, make a person an aggregator under this chapter: (i) furnishing legal services to two or more retail customers, suppliers or aggregators; (ii) furnishing educational, informational, or analytical services to two or more retail customers, unless direct or indirect compensation for such services is paid by an aggregator or supplier of electric energy; (iii) furnishing educational, informational, or analytical services to two or more suppliers or aggregators; (iv) providing default service under § 56-585; (v) engaging in activities of a retail electric energy supplier, licensed pursuant to § 56-587, which are authorized by such supplier's license; and (vi) engaging in actions of a retail customer, in common with one or more other such retail customers, to issue a request for proposal or to negotiate a purchase of electric energy for consumption by such retail customers. "Business park" means a land development containing a minimum of 100 contiguous acres classified as a Tier 4 site under the Virginia Economic Development Partnership's Business Ready Sites Program that is developed and constructed by a locality, an industrial development authority, or a similar political subdivision of the Commonwealth created pursuant to § 15.2-4903 or other act of the General Assembly, in order to promote business development. "Combined heat and power" means a method of using waste heat from electrical generation to offset traditional processes, space heating, air conditioning, or refrigeration. "Commission" means the State Corporation Commission. "Community in which a majority of the population are people of color" means a U.S. Census tract where more than 50 percent of the population comprises individuals who identify as belonging to one or more of the following groups: Black, African American, Asian, Pacific Islander, Native American, other non-white race, mixed race, Hispanic, Latino, or linguistically isolated. "Cooperative" means a utility formed under or subject to Chapter 9.1 (§ 56-231.15 et seq.). "Covered entity" means a provider in the Commonwealth of an electric service not subject to competition but does not include default service providers. "Covered transaction" means an acquisition, merger, or consolidation of, or other transaction involving stock, securities, voting interests or assets by which one or more persons obtains control of a covered entity. "Curtailment" means inducing retail customers to reduce load during times of peak demand so as to ease the burden on the electrical grid. "Customer choice" means the opportunity for a retail customer in the Commonwealth to purchase electric energy from any supplier licensed and seeking to sell electric energy to that customer. "Demand response" means measures aimed at shifting time of use of electricity from peak-use periods to times of lower demand by inducing retail customers to curtail electricity usage during periods of congestion and higher prices in the electrical grid. "Distribute," "distributing," or "distribution of" electric energy means the transfer of electric energy through a retail distribution system to a retail customer. "Distributor" means a person owning, controlling, or operating a retail distribution system to provide electric energy directly to retail customers. "Electric distribution grid transformation project" means a project associated with electric distribution infrastructure, including related data analytics equipment, that is designed to accommodate or facilitate the integration of utility-owned or customer-owned renewable electric generation resources with the utility's electric distribution grid or to otherwise enhance electric distribution grid reliability, electric distribution grid security, customer service, or energy efficiency and conservation, including advanced metering infrastructure; intelligent grid devices for real time system and asset information; automated control systems for electric distribution circuits and substations; communications networks for service meters; intelligent grid devices and other distribution equipment; distribution system hardening projects for circuits, other than the conversion of overhead tap lines to underground service, and substations designed to reduce service outages or service restoration times; physical security measures at key distribution substations; cyber security measures; energy storage systems and microgrids that support circuit-level grid stability, power quality, reliability, or resiliency or provide temporary backup energy supply; electrical facilities and infrastructure necessary to support electric vehicle charging systems; LED street light conversions; and new customer information platforms designed to provide improved customer access, greater service options, and expanded access to energy usage information. "Electric utility" means any person that generates, transmits, or distributes electric energy for use by retail customers in the Commonwealth, including any investor-owned electric utility, cooperative electric utility, or electric utility owned or operated by a municipality. "Electrification" means measures that (i) electrify space heating, water heating, cooling, drying, cooking, industrial processes, and other building and industrial end uses that would otherwise be served by onsite, nonelectric fuels, provided that the electrification measures reduce site energy consumption; (ii) to the maximum extent practical, seek to combine with federally authorized customer rebates for heat pump technology; and (iii) for those measures that provide measurable and verifiable energy savings to low-income customers or elderly customers, to the maximum extent practical, seek to combine with either contemporaneously installed measures or previously installed measures that are or were provided under federally funded weatherization programs or state-provided, locality-provided, or utility-provided energy efficiency programs. "Energy efficiency program" means a program that reduces the total amount of energy that is required for the same process or activity implemented after the expiration of capped rates but does not include electrification of any process or activity primarily fueled by natural gas. Energy efficiency programs include equipment, physical, or program change designed to produce measured and verified reductions in the amount of site energy required to perform the same function and produce the same or a similar outcome. Energy efficiency programs may include (i) electrification; (ii) programs that result in improvements in lighting design, heating, ventilation, and air conditioning systems, appliances, building envelopes, and industrial and commercial processes; (iii) measures, such as the installation of advanced meters, implemented or installed by utilities, that reduce fuel use or losses of electricity and otherwise improve internal operating efficiency in generation, transmission, and distribution systems; and (iv) customer engagement programs that result in measurable and verifiable energy savings that lead to efficient use patterns and practices. Energy efficiency programs include demand response, combined heat and power and waste heat recovery, curtailment, or other programs that are designed to reduce site energy consumption so long as they reduce the total amount of site energy that is required for the same process or activity. Utilities shall be authorized to install and operate such advanced metering technology and equipment on a customer's premises; however, nothing in this chapter establishes a requirement that an energy efficiency program be implemented on a customer's premises and be connected to a customer's wiring on the customer's side of the inter-connection without the customer's expressed consent. Electricity consumption increases that result from Commission-approved electrification measures shall not be considered as a reduction in energy savings under the energy savings requirements set forth in subsection B of § 56-596.2. Utilities may apply verified total site energy reductions that are attributable to Commission-approved electrification measures to the energy savings requirements set forth in subsection B of § 56-596.2, subject to a conversion of British thermal unit-based energy savings to an equivalent kilowatt-hour-based energy savings, which conversion shall be subject to Commission approval. "Generate," "generating," or "generation of" electric energy means the production of electric energy. "Generator" means a person owning, controlling, or operating a facility that produces electric energy for sale. "Geothermal electric generating resource" means an electric generating unit that is powered by geothermal energy as defined in § 45.2-2000. "Geothermal heating and cooling system" means a system that: 1. Exchanges thermal energy from groundwater or a shallow ground source to generate thermal energy through an electric geothermal heat pump or a system of electric geothermal heat pumps interconnected with any geothermal extraction facility that is (i) a closed loop or a series of closed loop systems in which fluid is permanently confined within a pipe or tubing and does not come in contact with the outside environment or (ii) an open loop system in which ground or surface water is circulated in an environmentally safe manner directly into the facility and returned to the same aquifer or surface water source; 2. Meets or exceeds the current federal Energy Star product specification standards; 3. Replaces or displaces less efficient space or water heating systems, regardless of fuel type; 4. Replaces or displaces less efficient space cooling systems that do not meet federal Energy Star product specification standards; and 5. Does not feed electricity back to the grid. "Historically economically disadvantaged community" means (i) a community in which a majority of the population are people of color or (ii) a low-income geographic area. "Incremental annual savings" means the total combined kilowatt-hour savings achieved by electric utility energy efficiency and demand response programs and measures in the program year in which they are installed. "Incumbent electric utility" means each electric utility in the Commonwealth that, prior to July 1, 1999, supplied electric energy to retail customers located in an exclusive service territory established by the Commission. "Independent system operator" means a person that may receive or has received, by transfer pursuant to this chapter, any ownership or control of, or any responsibility to operate, all or part of the transmission systems in the Commonwealth. "In the public interest," for purposes of assessing energy efficiency programs prior to the 2029 program year, describes an energy efficiency program if the Commission determines that the net present value of the benefits exceeds the net present value of the costs as determined by not less than any three of the following four tests: (i) the Total Resource Cost Test; (ii) the Utility Cost Test (also referred to as the Program Administrator Test); (iii) the Participant Test; and (iv) the Ratepayer Impact Measure Test. Such determination shall include an analysis of all four tests, and a program or portfolio of programs shall be approved if the net present value of the benefits exceeds the net present value of the costs as determined by not less than any three of the four tests. For programs proposed for the 2029 program year and all subsequent years, the Commission shall establish targets pursuant to subdivision B 4 of § 56-596.2, and a program shall be approved if the Commission determines it is cost-effective pursuant to applicable Commission regulations and that the net present value of the benefits exceeds the net present value of the costs as determined by the Total Resource Cost Test. If the Commission determines that an energy efficiency program or portfolio of programs is not in the public interest, its final order shall include all work product and analysis conducted by the Commission's staff in relation to that program, including testimony relied upon by the Commission's staff, that has bearing upon the Commission's decision. If the Commission reduces the proposed budget for a program or portfolio of programs, its final order shall include an analysis of the impact such budget reduction has upon the cost-effectiveness of such program or portfolio of programs. An order by the Commission (a) finding that a program or portfolio of programs is not in the public interest or (b) reducing the proposed budget for any program or portfolio of programs shall adhere to existing protocols for extraordinarily sensitive information. In addition, an energy efficiency program may be deemed to be "in the public interest" if the program (1) provides measurable and verifiable energy savings to low-income customers or elderly customers or (2) is a pilot program of limited scope, cost, and duration, that is intended to determine whether a new or substantially revised program or technology would be cost-effective. "Low-income geographic area" means any locality, or community within a locality, that has a median household income that is not greater than 80 percent of the local median household income, or any area in the Commonwealth designated as a qualified opportunity zone by the U.S. Secretary of the Treasury via his delegation of authority to the Internal Revenue Service. "Low-income utility customer" means any person or household whose income is no more than 80 percent of the median income of the locality in which the customer resides. The median income of the locality is determined by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. "Measured and verified" means a process determined pursuant to methods accepted for use by utilities and industries to measure, verify, and validate energy savings and peak demand savings. This may include the protocol established by the United States Department of Energy, Office of Federal Energy Management Programs, Measurement and Verification Guidance for Federal Energy Projects, measurement and verification standards developed by the American Society of Heating, Refrigeration and Air Conditioning Engineers (ASHRAE), or engineering-based estimates of energy and demand savings associated with specific energy efficiency measures, as determined by the Commission. "Municipality" means a city, county, town, authority, or other political subdivision of the Commonwealth. "New underground facilities" means facilities to provide underground distribution service. "New underground facilities" includes underground cables with voltages of 69 kilovolts or less, pad-mounted devices, connections at customer meters, and transition terminations from existing overhead distribution sources. "Peak-shaving" means measures aimed solely at shifting time of use of electricity from peak-use periods to times of lower demand by inducing retail customers to curtail electricity usage during periods of congestion and higher prices in the electrical grid. "Percentage of Income Payment Program (PIPP) eligible utility customer" means any person or household whose income does not exceed 150 percent of the federal poverty level. "Person" means any individual, corporation, partnership, association, company, business, trust, joint venture, or other private legal entity, and the Commonwealth or any municipality. "Previously developed project site" means any property, including related buffer areas, if any, that has been previously disturbed or developed for non-single-family residential, non-agricultural, or non-silvicultural use, regardless of whether such property currently is being used for any purpose. "Previously developed project site" includes a brownfield as defined in § 10.1-1230 or any parcel that has been previously used (i) for a retail, commercial, or industrial purpose; (ii) as a parking lot; (iii) as the site of a parking lot canopy or structure; (iv) for mining, which is any lands affected by coal mining that took place before August 3, 1977, or any lands upon which extraction activities have been permitted by the Department of Energy under Title 45.2; (v) for quarrying; or (vi) as a landfill. "Qualified waste heat resource" means (i) exhaust heat or flared gas from an industrial process that does not have, as its primary purpose, the production of electricity and (ii) a pressure drop in any gas for an industrial or commercial process. "Renewable energy" means energy derived from sunlight, wind, falling water, biomass, sustainable or otherwise, (the definitions of which shall be liberally construed), energy from waste, landfill gas, municipal solid waste, wave motion, tides, geothermal heating and cooling systems, and geothermal electric generating resources and does not include energy derived from coal, oil, natural gas, or nuclear power. "Renewable energy" also includes the proportion of the thermal or electric energy from a facility that results from the co-firing of biomass. "Renewable energy" does not include waste heat from fossil-fired facilities or electricity generated from pumped storage but includes run-of-river generation from a combined pumped-storage and run-of-river facility. "Renewable thermal energy" means the thermal energy output from (i) a renewable-fueled combined heat and power generation facility that is (a) constructed, or renovated and improved, after January 1, 2012, (b) located in the Commonwealth, and (c) utilized in industrial processes other than the combined heat and power generation facility or (ii) a solar energy system, certified to the OG-100 standard of the Solar Ratings and Certification Corporation or an equivalent certification body, that (a) is constructed, or renovated and improved, after January 1, 2013, (b) is located in the Commonwealth, and (c) heats water or air for residential, commercial, institutional, or industrial purposes. "Renewable thermal energy equivalent" means the electrical equivalent in megawatt hours of renewable thermal energy calculated by dividing (i) the heat content, measured in British thermal units (BTUs), of the renewable thermal energy at the point of transfer to a residential, commercial, institutional, or industrial process by (ii) the standard conversion factor of 3.413 million BTUs per megawatt hour. "Renovated and improved facility" means a facility the components of which have been upgraded to enhance its operating efficiency. "Retail customer" means any person that purchases retail electric energy for its own consumption at one or more metering points or nonmetered points of delivery located in the Commonwealth. "Retail electric energy" means electric energy sold for ultimate consumption to a retail customer. "Revenue reductions related to energy efficiency programs" means reductions in the collection of total non-fuel revenues, previously authorized by the Commission to be recovered from customers by a utility, that occur due to measured and verified decreased consumption of electricity caused by energy efficiency programs approved by the Commission and implemented by the utility, less the amount by which such non-fuel reductions in total revenues have been mitigated through other program-related factors, including reductions in variable operating expenses. "Rooftop solar installation" means a distributed electric generation facility, storage facility, or generation and storage facility utilizing energy derived from sunlight, with a rated capacity of not less than 50 kilowatts, that is installed on the roof structure of an incumbent electric utility's commercial or industrial class customer, including host sites on commercial buildings, multifamily residential buildings, school or university buildings, and buildings of a church or religious body. "Solar energy system" means a system of components that produces heat or electricity, or both, from sunlight. "Supplier" means any generator, distributor, aggregator, broker, marketer, or other person who offers to sell or sells electric energy to retail customers and is licensed by the Commission to do so, but it does not mean a generator that produces electric energy exclusively for its own consumption or the consumption of an affiliate. "Supply" or "supplying" electric energy means the sale of or the offer to sell electric energy to a retail customer. "Total annual energy savings" means (i) the total combined kilowatt-hour savings achieved by electric utility energy efficiency and demand response programs and measures installed in that program year, as well as savings still being achieved by measures and programs implemented in prior years, or (ii) savings attributable to newly installed combined heat and power facilities, including waste heat-to-power facilities, and any associated reduction in transmission line losses, provided that biomass is not a fuel and the total efficiency, including the use of thermal energy, for eligible combined heat and power facilitates must meet or exceed 65 percent and have a nameplate capacity rating of less than 25 megawatts. "Transmission of," "transmit," or "transmitting" electric energy means the transfer of electric energy through the Commonwealth's interconnected transmission grid from a generator to either a distributor or a retail customer. "Transmission system" means those facilities and equipment that are required to provide for the transmission of electric energy. "Waste heat to power" means a system that generates electricity through the recovery of a qualified waste heat resource. 1999, c. 411; 2000, c. 991; 2001, c. 421; 2007, cc. 888, 933; 2008, cc. 272, 883; 2009, cc. 748, 824; 2012, cc. 46, 200, 210, 821; 2013, c. 494; 2014, cc. 212, 548; 2018, c. 296; 2019, cc. 535, 741; 2020, cc. 1193, 1194, 1225; 2021, Sp. Sess. I, cc. 308, 532; 2022, c. 216; 2024, cc. 597, 607, 794, 818; 2025, c. 714.

Va. Code § 56-577

§ 56-577. Schedule for transition to retail competition; Commission authority; exemptions; pilot programs.A. Retail competition for the purchase and sale of electric energy shall be subject to the following provisions: 1. Each incumbent electric utility owning, operating, controlling, or having an entitlement to transmission capacity shall join or establish a regional transmission entity, which entity may be an independent system operator, to which such utility shall transfer the management and control of its transmission system, subject to the provisions of § 56-579. 2. The generation of electric energy shall be subject to regulation as specified in this chapter. 3. Subject to the provisions of subdivisions 4 and 5, only individual retail customers of electric energy within the Commonwealth, regardless of customer class, whose demand during the most recent calendar year exceeded five megawatts but did not exceed one percent of the customer's incumbent electric utility's peak load during the most recent calendar year unless such customer had noncoincident peak demand in excess of 90 megawatts in calendar year 2006 or any year thereafter, shall be permitted to purchase electric energy from any supplier of electric energy licensed to sell retail electric energy within the Commonwealth, except for any incumbent electric utility other than the incumbent electric utility serving the exclusive service territory in which such a customer is located, subject to the following conditions: a. If such customer does not purchase electric energy from licensed suppliers, such customer shall purchase electric energy from its incumbent electric utility. b. Except as provided in subdivision 4, the demands of individual retail customers may not be aggregated or combined for the purpose of meeting the demand limitations of this provision, any other provision of this chapter to the contrary notwithstanding. For the purposes of this section, each noncontiguous site will nevertheless constitute an individual retail customer even though one or more such sites may be under common ownership of a single person. c. If such customer does purchase electric energy from licensed suppliers after the expiration or termination of capped rates, it shall not thereafter be entitled to purchase electric energy from the incumbent electric utility without giving five years' advance written notice of such intention to such utility, except where such customer demonstrates to the Commission, after notice and opportunity for hearing, through clear and convincing evidence that its supplier has failed to perform, or has anticipatorily breached its duty to perform, or otherwise is about to fail to perform, through no fault of the customer, and that such customer is unable to obtain service at reasonable rates from an alternative supplier. If, as a result of such proceeding, the Commission finds it in the public interest to grant an exemption from the five-year notice requirement, such customer may thereafter purchase electric energy at the costs of such utility, as determined by the Commission pursuant to subdivision 3 d hereof, for the remainder of the five-year notice period, after which point the customer may purchase electric energy from the utility under rates, terms and conditions determined pursuant to § 56-585.1. However, such customer shall be allowed to individually purchase electric energy from the utility under rates, terms, and conditions determined pursuant to § 56-585.1 if, upon application by such customer, the Commission finds that neither such customer's incumbent electric utility nor retail customers of such utility that do not choose to obtain electric energy from alternate suppliers will be adversely affected in a manner contrary to the public interest by granting such petition. In making such determination, the Commission shall take into consideration, without limitation, the impact and effect of any and all other previously approved petitions of like type with respect to such incumbent electric utility. Any customer that returns to purchase electric energy from its incumbent electric utility, before or after expiration of the five-year notice period, shall be subject to minimum stay periods equal to those prescribed by the Commission pursuant to subdivision C 1. d. The costs of serving a customer that has received an exemption from the five-year notice requirement under subdivision 3 c hereof shall be the market-based costs of the utility, including (i) the actual expenses of procuring such electric energy from the market, (ii) additional administrative and transaction costs associated with procuring such energy, including, but not limited to, costs of transmission, transmission line losses, and ancillary services, and (iii) a reasonable margin as determined pursuant to the provisions of subdivision A 2 of § 56-585.1. The methodology established by the Commission for determining such costs shall ensure that neither utilities nor other retail customers are adversely affected in a manner contrary to the public interest. 4. Two or more individual nonresidential retail customers of electric energy within the Commonwealth, whose individual demand during the most recent calendar year did not exceed five megawatts, may petition the Commission for permission to aggregate or combine their demands, for the purpose of meeting the demand limitations of subdivision 3, so as to become qualified to purchase electric energy from any supplier of electric energy licensed to sell retail electric energy within the Commonwealth under the conditions specified in subdivision 3. The Commission may, after notice and opportunity for hearing, approve such petition if it finds that: a. Neither such customers' incumbent electric utility nor retail customers of such utility that do not choose to obtain electric energy from alternate suppliers will be adversely affected in a manner contrary to the public interest by granting such petition. In making such determination, the Commission shall take into consideration, without limitation, the impact and effect of any and all other previously approved petitions of like type with respect to such incumbent electric utility; and b. Approval of such petition is consistent with the public interest. If such petition is approved, all customers whose load has been aggregated or combined shall thereafter be subject in all respects to the provisions of subdivision 3 and shall be treated as a single, individual customer for the purposes of said subdivision. In addition, the Commission shall impose reasonable periodic monitoring and reporting obligations on such customers to demonstrate that they continue, as a group, to meet the demand limitations of subdivision 3. If the Commission finds, after notice and opportunity for hearing, that such group of customers no longer meets the above demand limitations, the Commission may revoke its previous approval of the petition, or take such other actions as may be consistent with the public interest. 5. Individual retail customers of electric energy within the Commonwealth, regardless of customer class, shall be permitted: a. To purchase electric energy provided 100 percent from renewable energy from any supplier of electric energy licensed to sell retail electric energy within the Commonwealth, other than any incumbent electric utility that is not the incumbent electric utility serving the exclusive service territory in which such a customer is located, if the incumbent electric utility serving the exclusive service territory does not offer an approved tariff for electric energy provided 100 percent from renewable energy; and b. To continue purchasing renewable energy pursuant to the terms of a power purchase agreement in effect on the date there is filed with the Commission a tariff for the incumbent electric utility that serves the exclusive service territory in which the customer is located to offer electric energy provided 100 percent from renewable energy, for the duration of such agreement. 6. To the extent that an incumbent electric utility has elected as of February 1, 2019, the Fixed Resource Requirement alternative as a Load Serving Entity in the PJM Region and continues to make such election and is therefore required to obtain capacity for all load and expected load growth in its service area, any customer of a utility subject to that requirement that purchases energy pursuant to subdivision 3 or 4 from a supplier licensed to sell retail electric energy within the Commonwealth shall continue to pay its incumbent electric utility for the non-fuel generation capacity and transmission related costs incurred by the incumbent electric utility in order to meet the customer's capacity obligations, pursuant to the incumbent electric utility's standard tariff that has been approved by and is on file with the Commission. In the case of such customer, the advance written notice period established in subdivisions 3 c and d shall be three years. This subdivision shall not apply to the customers of licensed suppliers that (i) had an agreement with a licensed supplier entered into before February 1, 2019, or (ii) had aggregation petitions pending before the Commission prior to January 1, 2019, unless and until any customer referenced in clause (i) or (ii) has returned to purchase electric energy from its incumbent electric utility, pursuant to the provisions of subdivision 3 or 4, and is receiving electric energy from such incumbent electric utility. 7. A tariff for one or more classes of residential customers filed with the Commission for approval by a cooperative on or after July 1, 2010, shall be deemed to offer a tariff for electric energy provided 100 percent from renewable energy if it provides undifferentiated electric energy and the cooperative retires a quantity of renewable energy certificates equal to 100 percent of the electric energy provided pursuant to such tariff. A tariff for one or more classes of nonresidential customers filed with the Commission for approval by a cooperative on or after July 1, 2012, shall be deemed to offer a tariff for electric energy provided 100 percent from renewable energy if it provides undifferentiated electric energy and the cooperative retires a quantity of renewable energy certificates equal to 100 percent of the electric energy provided pursuant to such tariff. For purposes of this section, "renewable energy certificate" means, with respect to cooperatives, a tradable commodity or instrument issued by a regional transmission entity or affiliate or successor thereof in the United States that validates the generation of electricity from renewable energy sources or that is certified under a generally recognized renewable energy certificate standard. One renewable energy certificate equals 1,000 kWh or one MWh of electricity generated from renewable energy. A cooperative offering electric energy provided 100 percent from renewable energy pursuant to this subdivision that involves the retirement of renewable energy certificates shall disclose to its retail customers who express an interest in purchasing energy pursuant to such tariff (i) that the renewable energy is comprised of the retirement of renewable energy certificates, (ii) the identity of the entity providing the renewable energy certificates, and (iii) the sources of renewable energy being offered. B. The Commission shall promulgate such rules and regulations as may be necessary to implement the provisions of this section. C. 1. By January 1, 2002, the Commission shall promulgate regulations establishing whether and, if so, for what minimum periods, customers who request service from an incumbent electric utility pursuant to subsection D of § 56-582 or a default service provider, after a period of receiving service from other suppliers of electric energy, shall be required to use such service from such incumbent electric utility or default service provider, as determined to be in the public interest by the Commission. 2. Subject to (i) the availability of capped rate service under § 56-582, and (ii) the transfer of the management and control of an incumbent electric utility's transmission assets to a regional transmission entity after approval of such transfer by the Commission under § 56-579, retail customers of such utility (a) purchasing such energy from licensed suppliers and (b) otherwise subject to minimum stay periods prescribed by the Commission pursuant to subdivision 1, shall nevertheless be exempt from any such minimum stay obligations by agreeing to purchase electric energy at the market-based costs of such utility or default providers after a period of obtaining electric energy from another supplier. Such costs shall include (i) the actual expenses of procuring such electric energy from the market, (ii) additional administrative and transaction costs associated with procuring such energy, including, but not limited to, costs of transmission, transmission line losses, and ancillary services, and (iii) a reasonable margin. The methodology of ascertaining such costs shall be determined and approved by the Commission after notice and opportunity for hearing and after review of any plan filed by such utility to procure electric energy to serve such customers. The methodology established by the Commission for determining such costs shall be consistent with the goals of (a) promoting the development of effective competition and economic development within the Commonwealth as provided in subsection A of § 56-596, and (b) ensuring that neither incumbent utilities nor retail customers that do not choose to obtain electric energy from alternate suppliers are adversely affected. 3. Notwithstanding the provisions of subsection D of § 56-582 and subsection C of § 56-585, however, any such customers exempted from any applicable minimum stay periods as provided in subdivision 2 shall not be entitled to purchase retail electric energy thereafter from their incumbent electric utilities, or from any distributor required to provide default service under subsection B of § 56-585, at the capped rates established under § 56-582, unless such customers agree to satisfy any minimum stay period then applicable while obtaining retail electric energy at capped rates. 4. The Commission shall promulgate such rules and regulations as may be necessary to implement the provisions of this subsection, which rules and regulations shall include provisions specifying the commencement date of such minimum stay exemption program. 1999, c. 411; 2001, c. 748; 2003, cc. 795, 990; 2004, c. 827; 2007, cc. 888, 933; 2010, cc. 326, 397; 2019, c. 833.

Va. Code § 56-577.1

§ 56-577.1. Electric utilities; retail competition; pilot program.A. The Commission shall conduct a pilot program under which two or more nonresidential customers that, as of February 25, 2019, had filed applications seeking to aggregate their load pursuant to subdivision A 4 of § 56-577 within the service territory of a Phase II Utility, as that term is defined in subsection A of § 56-585.1, shall be permitted to purchase electric energy from any supplier of electric energy licensed to sell electric energy within the Commonwealth, subject to the following terms, conditions, and restrictions: 1. A pilot program shall be conducted within the certified service territory of the Phase II Utility in which such nonresidential customers are located. 2. The aggregated load participating in the pilot program shall not exceed 200 megawatts. 3. All customers participating in the pilot program shall be subject in all respects to the provisions of subdivision A 3 of § 56-577, with participation in this pilot program being deemed to satisfy subdivision A 4 of § 56-577 and with the load set forth in each application being treated as a single, individual customer for purposes of said subdivision, and shall submit an annual report to the Commission by March 31 each year to demonstrate that, for the preceding calendar year, such load continued to meet the demand limitations of subdivision A 3 of § 56-577. B. The Commission shall review the pilot program established pursuant to subsection A in 2022. 2020, c. 796.

Va. Code § 56-578

§ 56-578. Nondiscriminatory access to transmission and distribution system.A. All distributors shall have the obligation to connect any retail customer, including those using distributed generation, located within its service territory to those facilities of the distributor that are used for delivery of retail electric energy, subject to Commission rules and regulations and approved tariff provisions relating to connection of service. B. Except as otherwise provided in this chapter, every distributor shall provide distribution service within its service territory on a basis which is just, reasonable, and not unduly discriminatory to suppliers of electric energy, including distributed generation, as the Commission may determine. The distribution services provided to each supplier of electric energy shall be comparable in quality to those provided by the distribution utility to itself or to any affiliate. C. The Commission shall establish interconnection standards to ensure transmission and distribution safety and reliability, which standards shall not be inconsistent with nationally recognized standards acceptable to the Commission. In adopting standards pursuant to this subsection, the Commission shall seek to prevent barriers to new technology and shall not make compliance unduly burdensome and expensive. The Commission shall determine questions about the ability of specific equipment to meet interconnection standards. D. The Commission shall consider developing expedited permitting processes for small generation facilities of fifty megawatts or less. The Commission shall also consider developing a standardized permitting process and interconnection arrangements for those power systems less than 500 kilowatts which have demonstrated approval from a nationally recognized testing laboratory acceptable to the Commission. E. Upon the separation and deregulation of the generation function and services of incumbent electric utilities, the Commission shall retain jurisdiction over utilities' electric transmission function and services, to the extent not preempted by federal law. Nothing in this section shall impair the Commission's authority under §§ 56-46.1, 56-46.2, and 56-265.2 with respect to the construction of electric transmission facilities. 1999, c. 411; 2007, cc. 888, 933.

Va. Code § 56-579

§ 56-579. Regional transmission entities.A. As set forth in § 56-577, each incumbent electric utility owning, operating, controlling, or having an entitlement to transmission capacity shall join or establish a regional transmission entity, which hereafter may be referred to as "RTE," to which such utility shall transfer the management and control of its transmission assets, subject to the following: 1. No such incumbent electric utility shall transfer to any person any ownership or control of, or any responsibility to operate, any portion of any transmission system located in the Commonwealth prior to July 1, 2004, and without obtaining, following notice and hearing, the prior approval of the Commission, as hereinafter provided. However, each incumbent electric utility shall file an application for approval pursuant to this section by July 1, 2003, and shall transfer management and control of its transmission assets to a regional transmission entity by January 1, 2005, subject to Commission approval as provided in this section. 2. The Commission shall develop rules and regulations under which any such incumbent electric utility owning, operating, controlling, or having an entitlement to transmission capacity within the Commonwealth, may transfer all or part of such control, ownership or responsibility to an RTE, upon such terms and conditions that the Commission determines will: a. Promote: (1) Practices for the reliable planning, operating, maintaining, and upgrading of the transmission systems and any necessary additions thereto; and (2) Policies for the pricing and access for service over such systems that are safe, reliable, efficient, not unduly discriminatory and consistent with the orderly development of competition in the Commonwealth; b. Be consistent with lawful requirements of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission; c. Be effectuated on terms that fairly compensate the transferor; d. Generally promote the public interest, and are consistent with (i) ensuring that consumers' needs for economic and reliable transmission are met and (ii) meeting the transmission needs of electric generation suppliers both within and without this Commonwealth, including those that do not own, operate, control or have an entitlement to transmission capacity. B. The Commission shall also adopt rules and regulations, with appropriate public input, establishing elements of regional transmission entity structures essential to the public interest, which elements shall be applied by the Commission in determining whether to authorize transfer of ownership or control from an incumbent electric utility to a regional transmission entity. C. The Commission shall, to the fullest extent permitted under federal law, participate in any and all proceedings concerning regional transmission entities furnishing transmission services within the Commonwealth, before the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission. Such participation may include such intervention as is permitted state utility regulators under Federal Energy Regulatory Commission rules and procedures. D. Nothing in this section shall be deemed to abrogate or modify: 1. The Commission's authority over transmission line or facility construction, enlargement or acquisition within this Commonwealth, as set forth in Chapter 10.1 (§ 56-265.1 et seq.) of this title; 2. The laws of this Commonwealth concerning the exercise of the right of eminent domain by a public service corporation pursuant to the provisions of Article 5 (§ 56-257 et seq.) of Chapter 10 of this title; or 3. The Commission's authority over retail electric energy sold to retail customers within the Commonwealth by licensed suppliers of electric service, including necessary reserve requirements, all as specified in § 56-587. E. For purposes of this section, transmission capacity shall not include capacity that is primarily operated in a distribution function, as determined by the Commission, taking into consideration any binding federal precedents. F. Any request to the Commission for approval of such transfer of ownership or control of or responsibility for transmission facilities shall include a study of the comparative costs and benefits thereof, which study shall analyze the economic effects of the transfer on consumers, including the effects of transmission congestion costs. The Commission may approve such a transfer if it finds, after notice and hearing, that the transfer satisfies the conditions contained in this section. G. The Commission shall report annually to the Commission on Electric Utility Regulation its assessment of the practices and policies of the RTE. Such report shall set forth actions taken by the Commission regarding requests for the approval of any transfer of ownership or control of transmission facilities to an RTE, including a description of the economic effects of such proposed transfers on consumers. 1999, c. 411; 2001, c. 576; 2003, cc. 885, 990; 2007, cc. 888, 933; 2008, c. 883.

Va. Code § 56-580

§ 56-580. Transmission and distribution of electric energy.A. Subject to the provisions of § 56-585.1, the Commission shall continue to regulate pursuant to this title the distribution of retail electric energy to retail customers in the Commonwealth and, to the extent not prohibited by federal law, the transmission of electric energy in the Commonwealth. B. The Commission shall continue to regulate, to the extent not prohibited by federal law, the reliability, quality and maintenance by transmitters and distributors of their transmission and retail distribution systems. C. The Commission shall develop codes of conduct governing the conduct of incumbent electric utilities and affiliates thereof when any such affiliates provide, or control any entity that provides, generation, distribution, or transmission services, to the extent necessary to prevent impairment of competition. Nothing in this chapter shall prevent an incumbent electric utility from offering metering options to its customers. D. The Commission shall permit the construction and operation of electrical generating facilities in Virginia upon a finding that such generating facility and associated facilities (i) will have no material adverse effect upon reliability of electric service provided by any regulated public utility, (ii) are required by the public convenience and necessity, if a petition for such permit is filed after July 1, 2007, and if they are to be constructed and operated by any regulated utility whose rates are regulated pursuant to § 56-585.1, and (iii) are not otherwise contrary to the public interest. In review of a petition for a certificate to construct and operate a generating facility described in this subsection, the Commission shall give consideration to the effect of the facility and associated facilities on the environment and establish such conditions as may be desirable or necessary to minimize adverse environmental impact as provided in § 56-46.1, unless exempt as a small renewable energy project for which the Department of Environmental Quality has issued a permit by rule pursuant to Article 5 (§ 10.1-1197.5 et seq.) of Chapter 11.1 of Title 10.1. In order to avoid duplication of governmental activities, any valid permit or approval required for an electric generating plant and associated facilities issued or granted by a federal, state or local governmental entity charged by law with responsibility for issuing permits or approvals regulating environmental impact and mitigation of adverse environmental impact or for other specific public interest issues such as building codes, transportation plans, and public safety, whether such permit or approval is prior to or after the Commission's decision, shall be deemed to satisfy the requirements of this section with respect to all matters that (i) are governed by the permit or approval or (ii) are within the authority of, and were considered by, the governmental entity in issuing such permit or approval, and the Commission shall impose no additional conditions with respect to such matters. Nothing in this section shall affect the ability of the Commission to keep the record of a case open. Nothing in this section shall affect any right to appeal such permits or approvals in accordance with applicable law. In the case of a proposed facility located in a region that was designated as of July 1, 2001, as serious nonattainment for the one-hour ozone standard as set forth in the federal Clean Air Act, the Commission shall not issue a decision approving such proposed facility that is conditioned upon issuance of any environmental permit or approval. The Commission shall complete any proceeding under this section, or under any provision of the Utility Facilities Act (§ 56-265.1 et seq.), involving an application for a certificate, permit, or approval required for the construction or operation by a public utility of a small renewable energy project as defined in § 10.1-1197.5, within nine months following the utility's submission of a complete application therefore. Small renewable energy projects as defined in § 10.1-1197.5 are in the public interest and in determining whether to approve such project, the Commission shall liberally construe the provisions of this title. E. Nothing in this section shall impair the distribution service territorial rights of incumbent electric utilities, and incumbent electric utilities shall continue to provide distribution services within their exclusive service territories as established by the Commission. Subject to the provisions of § 56-585.1, the Commission shall continue to exercise its existing authority over the provision of electric distribution services to retail customers in the Commonwealth including, but not limited to, the authority contained in Chapters 10 (§ 56-232 et seq.) and 10.1 (§ 56-265.1 et seq.) of this title. F. Nothing in this chapter shall impair the exclusive territorial rights of an electric utility owned or operated by a municipality as of July 1, 1999, or by an authority created by a governmental unit exempt from the referendum requirement of § 15.2-5403. Nor shall any provision of this chapter apply to any such electric utility unless (i) that municipality or that authority created by a governmental unit exempt from the referendum requirement of § 15.2-5403 elects to have this chapter apply to that utility or (ii) that utility, directly or indirectly, sells, offers to sell or seeks to sell electric energy to any retail customer eligible to purchase electric energy from any supplier in accordance with § 56-577 if that retail customer is outside the geographic area that was served by such municipality as of July 1, 1999, except (a) any area within the municipality that was served by an incumbent public utility as of that date but was thereafter served by an electric utility owned or operated by a municipality or by an authority created by a governmental unit exempt from the referendum requirement of § 15.2-5403 pursuant to the terms of a franchise agreement between the municipality and the incumbent public utility, or (b) where the geographic area served by an electric utility owned or operated by a municipality is changed pursuant to mutual agreement between the municipality and the affected incumbent public utility in accordance with § 56-265.4:1. If an electric utility owned or operated by a municipality as of July 1, 1999, or by an authority created by a governmental unit exempt from the referendum requirement of § 15.2-5403 is made subject to the provisions of this chapter pursuant to clause (i) or (ii) of this subsection, then in such event the provisions of this chapter applicable to incumbent electric utilities shall also apply to any such utility, mutatis mutandis. G. The applicability of all provisions of this chapter except § 56-594 to any investor-owned incumbent electric utility supplying electric service to retail customers on January 1, 2003, whose service territory assigned to it by the Commission is located entirely within Dickenson, Lee, Russell, Scott, and Wise Counties shall be suspended effective July 1, 2003, so long as such utility does not provide retail electric services in any other service territory in any jurisdiction to customers who have the right to receive retail electric energy from another supplier. During any such suspension period, the utility's rates shall be (i) its capped rates established pursuant to § 56-582 for the duration of the capped rate period established thereunder, and (ii) determined thereafter by the Commission on the basis of such utility's prudently incurred costs pursuant to Chapter 10 (§ 56-232 et seq.) of this title. H. The expiration date of any certificates granted by the Commission pursuant to subsection D, for which applications were filed with the Commission prior to July 1, 2002, shall be extended for an additional two years from the expiration date that otherwise would apply. 1999, c. 411; 2000, c. 991; 2001, cc. 738, 748, 755; 2002, c. 483; 2003, c. 719; 2004, cc. 262, 827; 2006, cc. 811, 819, 929, 941; 2007, cc. 877, 888, 933; 2009, cc. 808, 854.

Va. Code § 56-581

§ 56-581. Regulation of rates subject to Commission's jurisdiction.A. The Commission shall regulate the rates of investor-owned incumbent electric utilities for the transmission of electric energy, to the extent not prohibited by federal law, and for the generation of electric energy and the distribution of electric energy to retail customers pursuant to this section and § 56-585.1. B. In any proceeding to review base rates for a Phase I Utility that commences after July 1, 2023, if the Commission determines in its sole discretion that the utility's existing base rates will, on a going-forward basis, either produce (i) revenues in excess of the utility's authorized rate of return or (ii) revenues below the utility's authorized rate of return, then, notwithstanding any provision of law governing rate proceedings, the Commission shall order any reductions or increases, as applicable and necessary, to such base rates that it deems appropriate to ensure the resulting base rates (a) are just and reasonable and (b) provide the utility an opportunity to recover its costs of providing services over the rate period ending on December 31 of the year of the utility's succeeding review and earn a fair rate of return authorized pursuant to the provisions governing such review proceeding. Such determination shall be limited to the Phase I Utility's base rates and shall not consider the costs or revenues recovered in any rate adjustment clause authorized pursuant to this chapter. C. In any proceeding to review base rates for a Phase II Utility that commences after July 1, 2023, if the Commission determines in its sole discretion that the utility's existing base rates will, on a going-forward basis, either produce (i) revenues in excess of the utility's authorized rate of return or (ii) revenues below the utility's authorized rate of return, then, notwithstanding any provision of subdivision A 8 of § 56-585.1, the Commission shall order any reductions or increases, as applicable and necessary, to such base rates that it deems appropriate to ensure the resulting base rates (a) are just and reasonable and (b) provide the utility an opportunity to recover its costs of providing services over the rate period ending on December 31 of the year of the utility's succeeding review and earn a fair rate of return on its base rates as determined in subdivision A 2 of § 56-585.1. Such determination shall be limited to the Phase II Utility's base rates and shall not consider the costs or revenues recovered in any rate adjustment clause authorized pursuant to subdivision A 6 of § 56-585.1 that has not been combined with the utility's base rates. The Commission shall use the most recently ended 12-month test period, along with normalization of nonrecurring test period costs and annualized adjustments for future costs, as the basis for determining the appropriateness of any rate adjustment. In any such filing to review base rates, a Phase II Utility shall separately project future costs over each 12-month period ending on December 31 of the year of the utility's succeeding review or rate periods. The Commission may, to the extent it finds such action aligns with the utility's projected cost of service, direct that any reduction or increase to the utility's rates for generation and distribution services be implemented on a staggered basis at the commencement and midpoint of the succeeding review or rate period. D. Beginning July 1, 1999, and thereafter, no cooperative that was a member of a power supply cooperative on January 1, 1999, shall be obligated to file any rate rider as a consequence of an increase or decrease in the rates, other than fuel costs, of its wholesale supplier, nor must any adjustment be made to such cooperative's rates as a consequence thereof. E. Except for the provision of default services under § 56-585 or emergency services in § 56-586, nothing in this chapter shall authorize the Commission to regulate the rates or charges for electric service to the Commonwealth and its municipalities. F. As used in this section: "Base rates" means rates for generation and distribution services. "Phase I Utility" has the same meaning as provided in subdivision A 1 of § 56-585.1. "Phase II Utility" has the same meaning as provided in subdivision A 1 of § 56-585.1. 1999, c. 411; 2000, c. 991; 2007, cc. 888, 933; 2023, cc. 497, 498, 757, 775.

Va. Code § 56-582

§ 56-582. Rate caps.A. The Commission shall establish capped rates, effective January 1, 2001, for each service territory of every incumbent utility as follows: 1. Capped rates shall be established for customers purchasing bundled electric transmission, distribution and generation services from an incumbent electric utility. 2. Capped rates for electric generation services, only, shall also be established for the purpose of effecting customer choice for those retail customers authorized under this chapter to purchase generation services from a supplier other than the incumbent utility during this period. 3. The capped rates established under this section shall be the rates in effect for each incumbent utility as of the effective date of this chapter, or rates subsequently placed into effect pursuant to a rate application filed by an incumbent electric utility with the Commission prior to January 1, 2001, and subsequently approved by the Commission, and made by an incumbent electric utility that is not currently bound by a rate case settlement adopted by the Commission that extends in its application beyond January 1, 2002. If such rate application is filed, the rates proposed therein shall go into effect on January 1, 2001, but such rates shall be interim in nature and subject to refund until such time as the Commission has completed its investigation of such application. Any amount of the rates found excessive by the Commission shall be subject to refund with interest, as may be ordered by the Commission. The Commission shall act upon such applications prior to January 1, 2002. Such rate application and the Commission's approval shall give due consideration, on a forward-looking basis, to the justness and reasonableness of rates to be effective for a period of time ending as late as July 1, 2007. The capped rates established under this section, which include rates, tariffs, electric service contracts, and rate programs (including experimental rates, regardless of whether they otherwise would expire), shall be such rates, tariffs, contracts, and programs of each incumbent electric utility, provided that experimental rates and rate programs may be closed to new customers upon application to the Commission. Such capped rates shall also include rates for new services where, subsequent to January 1, 2001, rate applications for any such rates are filed by incumbent electric utilities with the Commission and are thereafter approved by the Commission. In establishing such rates for new services, the Commission may use any rate method that promotes the public interest and that is fairly compensatory to any utilities requesting such rates. B. The Commission may adjust such capped rates in connection with the following: (i) utilities' recovery of fuel and purchased power costs pursuant to § 56-249.6, and, if applicable, in accordance with the terms of any Commission order approving the divestiture of generation assets pursuant to § 56-590, (ii) any changes in the taxation by the Commonwealth of incumbent electric utility revenues, (iii) any financial distress of the utility beyond its control, (iv) with respect to cooperatives that were not members of a power supply cooperative on January 1, 1999, and as long as they do not become members, their cost of purchased wholesale power and discounts from capped rates to match the cost of providing distribution services, (v) with respect to cooperatives that were members of a power supply cooperative on January 1, 1999, their recovery of fuel costs, through the wholesale power cost adjustment clauses of their tariffs pursuant to § 56-231.33, and (vi) with respect to incumbent electric utilities that were not, as of the effective date of this chapter, bound by a rate case settlement adopted by the Commission that extended in its application beyond January 1, 2002, the Commission shall adjust such utilities' capped rates, not more than once in any 12-month period, for the timely recovery of their incremental costs for transmission or distribution system reliability and compliance with state or federal environmental laws or regulations to the extent such costs are prudently incurred on and after July 1, 2004. Any adjustments pursuant to § 56-249.6 and clause (i) of this subsection by an incumbent electric utility that transferred all of its generation assets to an affiliate with the approval of the Commission pursuant to § 56-590 prior to January 1, 2002, shall be effective only on and after July 1, 2007. Notwithstanding the provisions of § 56-249.6, the Commission may authorize tariffs that include incentives designed to encourage an incumbent electric utility to reduce its fuel costs by permitting retention of a portion of cost savings resulting from fuel cost reductions or by other methods determined by the Commission to be fair and reasonable to the utility and its customers. C. A utility may petition the Commission to terminate the capped rates to all customers any time after January 1, 2004, and such capped rates may be terminated upon the Commission finding of an effectively competitive market for generation services within the service territory of that utility. If its capped rates, as established and adjusted from time to time pursuant to subsections A and B, are continued after January 1, 2004, an incumbent electric utility that is not, as of the effective date of this chapter, bound by a rate case settlement adopted by the Commission that extends in its application beyond January 1, 2002, may petition the Commission, during the period January 1, 2004, through June 30, 2007, for approval of a one-time change in its rates, and if the capped rates are continued after July 1, 2007, such incumbent electric utility may at any time after July 1, 2007, petition the Commission for approval of a one-time change in its rates. Any change in rates pursuant to this subsection by an incumbent electric utility that divested its generation assets with approval of the Commission pursuant to § 56-590 prior to January 1, 2002, shall be in accordance with the terms of any Commission order approving such divestiture. Any petition for changes to capped rates filed pursuant to this subsection shall be governed by the provisions of Chapter 10 (§ 56-232 et seq.) of this title. D. Until the expiration or termination of capped rates as provided in this section, the incumbent electric utility, consistent with the functional separation plan implemented under § 56-590, shall make electric service available at capped rates established under this section to any customer in the incumbent electric utility's service territory, including any customer that, until the expiration or termination of capped rates, requests such service after a period of utilizing service from another supplier. E. During the period when capped rates are in effect for an incumbent electric utility, such utility may file with the Commission a plan describing the method used by such utility to assure full funding of its nuclear decommissioning obligation and specifying the amount of the revenues collected under either the capped rates, as provided in this section, or the wires charges, as provided in former § 56-583, that are dedicated to funding such nuclear decommissioning obligation under the plan. The Commission shall approve the plan upon a finding that the plan is not contrary to the public interest. F. The capped rates established pursuant to this section shall expire on December 31, 2008, unless sooner terminated by the Commission pursuant to the provisions of subsection C; however, rates after the expiration or termination of capped rates shall equal capped rates until such rates are changed pursuant to other provisions of this title. 1999, c. 411; 2000, cc. 942, 991; 2001, c. 748; 2004, c. 827; 2007, cc. 888, 933; 2008, c. 883.

Va. Code § 56-584

§ 56-584. Stranded costs.Just and reasonable net stranded costs, to the extent that they exceed zero value in total for the incumbent electric utility, shall be recoverable by each incumbent electric utility provided each incumbent electric utility shall only recover its just and reasonable net stranded costs through either capped rates as provided in § 56-582. To the extent not preempted by federal law, the establishment by the Commission of wires charges for any distribution cooperative shall be conditioned upon such cooperative entering into binding commitments by which it will pay to any power supply cooperative of which such distribution cooperative is or was a member, as compensation for such power supply cooperative's stranded costs, all or part of the proceeds of such wires charges, as determined by the Commission. 1999, c. 411; 2007, cc. 888, 933.

Va. Code § 56-585

§ 56-585. Default service.A. The Commission shall, after notice and opportunity for hearing, (i) determine the components of default service and (ii) establish one or more programs making such services available to retail customers requiring them during the availability throughout the Commonwealth of customer choice for all retail customers as established pursuant to § 56-577. For purposes of this chapter, "default service" means service made available under this section to retail customers who (i) do not affirmatively select a supplier, (ii) are unable to obtain service from an alternative supplier, or (iii) have contracted with an alternative supplier who fails to perform. Availability of default service shall expire upon the expiration or termination of capped rates. B. A distributor shall have the obligation and right to be the supplier of default services in its certificated service territory, and shall do so, in a safe and reliable manner, at rates determined pursuant to subsection C; however, the Commission may not require a distributor, or affiliate thereof, to provide any such services outside the territory in which such distributor provides service. C. Until the expiration or termination of capped rates, the rates for default service shall equal the capped rates established pursuant to subdivision A 2 of § 56-582. D. A distribution electric cooperative, or one or more affiliates thereof, shall have the obligation and right to be the supplier of default services in its certificated service territory. A distribution electric cooperative's rates for such default services shall be the capped rate for the duration of the capped rate period. Subsections B and C shall not apply to a distribution electric cooperative or its rates. Such default services, for the purposes of this subsection, shall include the supply of electric energy. 1999, c. 411; 2000, c. 991; 2001, c. 748; 2003, c. 885; 2004, c. 827; 2007, cc. 888, 933.

Va. Code § 56-585.1

§ 56-585.1. Generation, distribution, and transmission rates after capped rates terminate or expire.A. During the first six months of 2009, the Commission shall, after notice and opportunity for hearing, initiate proceedings to review the rates, terms and conditions for the provision of generation, distribution and transmission services of each investor-owned incumbent electric utility. Such proceedings shall be governed by the provisions of Chapter 10 (§ 56-232 et seq.), except as modified herein. In such proceedings the Commission shall determine fair rates of return on common equity applicable to the generation and distribution services of the utility. In so doing, the Commission may use any methodology to determine such return it finds consistent with the public interest, but such return shall not be set lower than the average of the returns on common equity reported to the Securities and Exchange Commission for the three most recent annual periods for which such data are available by not less than a majority, selected by the Commission as specified in subdivision 2 b, of other investor-owned electric utilities in the peer group of the utility, nor shall the Commission set such return more than 300 basis points higher than such average. The peer group of the utility shall be determined in the manner prescribed in subdivision 2 b. The Commission may increase or decrease such combined rate of return by up to 100 basis points based on the generating plant performance, customer service, and operating efficiency of a utility, as compared to nationally recognized standards determined by the Commission to be appropriate for such purposes. In such a proceeding, the Commission shall determine the rates that the utility may charge until such rates are adjusted. If the Commission finds that the utility's combined rate of return on common equity is more than 50 basis points below the combined rate of return as so determined, it shall be authorized to order increases to the utility's rates necessary to provide the opportunity to fully recover the costs of providing the utility's services and to earn not less than such combined rate of return. If the Commission finds that the utility's combined rate of return on common equity is more than 50 basis points above the combined rate of return as so determined, it shall be authorized either (i) to order reductions to the utility's rates it finds appropriate, provided that the Commission may not order such rate reduction unless it finds that the resulting rates will provide the utility with the opportunity to fully recover its costs of providing its services and to earn not less than the fair rates of return on common equity applicable to the generation and distribution services; or (ii) to direct that 60 percent of the amount of the utility's earnings that were more than 50 basis points above the fair combined rate of return for calendar year 2008 be credited to customers' bills, in which event such credits shall be amortized over a period of six to 12 months, as determined at the discretion of the Commission, following the effective date of the Commission's order and be allocated among customer classes such that the relationship between the specific customer class rates of return to the overall target rate of return will have the same relationship as the last approved allocation of revenues used to design base rates. Commencing in 2011, the Commission, after notice and opportunity for hearing, shall conduct reviews of the rates, terms and conditions for the provision of generation, distribution and transmission services by each investor-owned incumbent electric utility, subject to the following provisions: 1. Rates, terms and conditions for each service shall be reviewed separately on an unbundled basis, and such reviews shall be conducted in a single, combined proceeding. Pursuant to subsection A of § 56-585.1:1, the Commission shall conduct a review for a Phase I Utility in 2020, utilizing the three successive 12-month test periods beginning January 1, 2017, and ending December 31, 2019. Thereafter, reviews for a Phase I Utility will be on a triennial basis with subsequent proceedings utilizing the three successive 12-month test periods ending December 31 immediately preceding the year in which such review proceeding is conducted. Pursuant to subsection A of § 56-585.1:1, the Commission shall conduct a review for a Phase II Utility in 2021, utilizing the four successive 12-month test periods beginning January 1, 2017, and ending December 31, 2020, with subsequent reviews on a biennial basis commencing in 2023, with such proceedings utilizing the two successive 12-month test periods ending December 31 immediately preceding the year in which such review proceeding is conducted. For purposes of this section, a Phase I Utility is an investor-owned incumbent electric utility that was, as of July 1, 1999, not bound by a rate case settlement adopted by the Commission that extended in its application beyond January 1, 2002, and a Phase II Utility is an investor-owned incumbent electric utility that was bound by such a settlement. 2. Subject to the provisions of subdivision 6, the fair rate of return on common equity applicable separately to the generation and distribution services of such utility, and for the two such services combined, and for any rate adjustment clauses approved under subdivision 5 or 6, shall be determined by the Commission during each such review, as follows: a. The Commission may use any methodology to determine such return it finds consistent with the public interest. However, for a Phase I Utility, for applications received by the Commission on or after January 1, 2020, such return shall not be set lower than the average of either (i) the returns on common equity reported to the Securities and Exchange Commission for the three most recent annual periods for which such data are available by not less than a majority, selected by the Commission as specified in subdivision 2 b, of other investor-owned electric utilities in the peer group of the utility subject to such triennial review or (ii) the authorized returns on common equity that are set by the applicable regulatory commissions for the same selected peer group, nor shall the Commission set such return more than 150 basis points higher than such average. b. For a Phase I Utility, in selecting such majority of peer group investor-owned electric utilities for applications received by the Commission on or after January 1, 2020, the Commission shall first remove from such group the two utilities within such group that have the lowest reported or authorized, as applicable, returns of the group, as well as the two utilities within such group that have the highest reported or authorized, as applicable, returns of the group, and the Commission shall then select a majority of the utilities remaining in such peer group. In its final order regarding such triennial review, the Commission shall identify the utilities in such peer group it selected for the calculation of such limitation. With respect to a Phase I Utility, for purposes of this subdivision 2, an investor-owned electric utility shall be deemed part of such peer group if (i) its principal operations are conducted in the southeastern United States east of the Mississippi River in either the states of West Virginia or Kentucky or in those states south of Virginia, excluding the state of Tennessee, (ii) it is a vertically-integrated electric utility providing generation, transmission, and distribution services whose facilities and operations are subject to state public utility regulation in the state where its principal operations are conducted, (iii) it had a long-term bond rating assigned by Moody's Investors Service of at least Baa at the end of the most recent test period subject to such review, and (iv) it is not an affiliate of the utility subject to such review or a utility whose fair rate of return on common equity is determined by the Commission. c. The Commission may increase or decrease the utility's combined rate of return for generation and distribution services by up to 50 basis points based on factors that may include reliability, generating plant performance, customer service, and operating efficiency of a utility. Any such adjustment to the combined rate of return for generation and distribution services shall include consideration of nationally recognized standards determined by the Commission to be appropriate for such purposes. d. In any Current Proceeding, the Commission shall determine whether the Current Return has increased, on a percentage basis, above the Initial Return by more than the increase, expressed as a percentage, in the United States Average Consumer Price Index for all items, all urban consumers (CPI-U), as published by the Bureau of Labor Statistics of the United States Department of Labor, since the date on which the Commission determined the Initial Return. If so, the Commission may conduct an additional analysis of whether it is in the public interest to utilize such Current Return for the Current Proceeding then pending. A finding of whether the Current Return justifies such additional analysis shall be made without regard to any enhanced rate of return on common equity awarded pursuant to the provisions of subdivision 6. Such additional analysis shall include, but not be limited to, a consideration of overall economic conditions, the level of interest rates and cost of capital with respect to business and industry, in general, as well as electric utilities, the current level of inflation and the utility's cost of goods and services, the effect on the utility's ability to provide adequate service and to attract capital if less than the Current Return were utilized for the Current Proceeding then pending, and such other factors as the Commission may deem relevant. If, as a result of such analysis, the Commission finds that use of the Current Return for the Current Proceeding then pending would not be in the public interest, then the lower limit imposed by subdivision 2 a on the return to be determined by the Commission for such utility shall be calculated, for that Current Proceeding only, by increasing the Initial Return by a percentage at least equal to the increase, expressed as a percentage, in the United States Average Consumer Price Index for all items, all urban consumers (CPI-U), as published by the Bureau of Labor Statistics of the United States Department of Labor, since the date on which the Commission determined the Initial Return. For purposes of this subdivision: "Current Proceeding" means any proceeding conducted under any provisions of this subsection that require or authorize the Commission to determine a fair combined rate of return on common equity for a utility and that will be concluded after the date on which the Commission determined the Initial Return for such utility. "Current Return" means the minimum fair combined rate of return on common equity required for any Current Proceeding by the limitation regarding a utility's peer group specified in subdivision 2 a. "Initial Return" means the fair combined rate of return on common equity determined for such utility by the Commission on the first occasion after July 1, 2009, under any provision of this subsection pursuant to the provisions of subdivision 2 a. e. In addition to other considerations, in setting the return on equity within the range allowed by this section, the Commission shall strive to maintain costs of retail electric energy that are cost competitive with costs of retail electric energy provided by the other peer group investor-owned electric utilities. f. The determination of such returns shall be made by the Commission on a stand-alone basis, and specifically without regard to any return on common equity or other matters determined with regard to facilities described in subdivision 6. g. If the combined rate of return on common equity earned by the generation and distribution services is no more than 50 basis points above or below the return as so determined or, for any test period commencing after December 31, 2012, for a Phase II Utility and after December 31, 2013, for a Phase I Utility, such return is no more than 70 basis points above or below the return as so determined, such combined return shall not be considered either excessive or insufficient, respectively. However, for any test period commencing after December 31, 2012, for a Phase II Utility, and after December 31, 2013, for a Phase I Utility, if the utility has, during the test period or periods under review, earned below the return as so determined, whether or not such combined return is within 70 basis points of the return as so determined, the utility may petition the Commission for approval of an increase in rates in accordance with the provisions of subdivision 8 a as if it had earned more than 70 basis points below a fair combined rate of return, and such proceeding shall otherwise be conducted in accordance with the provisions of this section. The provisions of this subdivision are subject to the provisions of subdivision 8. h. Any amount of a utility's earnings directed by the Commission to be credited to customers' bills pursuant to this section shall not be considered for the purpose of determining the utility's earnings in any subsequent review. 3. Each such utility shall make a triennial filing by March 31 of every third year, with such filings commencing for a Phase I Utility in 2020, and such filings commencing for a Phase II Utility in 2021 and terminating thereafter. Such filing shall encompass the three successive 12-month test periods ending December 31 immediately preceding the year in which such proceeding is conducted, except that the filing for a Phase II Utility in 2021 shall encompass the four successive 12-month test periods ending December 31, 2020. After 2021, each Phase II Utility shall make a biennial filing by March 31 of every second year, except that the 2023 filing for a Phase II Utility shall be made on or after July 1, 2023. All biennial filings shall encompass the two successive 12-month test periods ending December 31 immediately preceding the year in which such review proceeding is conducted. All such filings shall consist of the schedules contained in the Commission's rules governing utility rate increase applications, and in every such case the filing for each year shall be identified separately and shall be segregated from any other year encompassed by the filing. In a filing under this subdivision that does not result in an overall rate change, a utility may propose an adjustment to one or more tariffs that are revenue neutral to the utility. If the Commission determines that rates should be revised or credits be applied to customers' bills pursuant to subdivision 8 or 10, any rate adjustment clauses previously implemented related to facilities utilizing simple-cycle combustion turbines described in subdivision 6, shall be combined with the utility's costs, revenues, and investments until the amounts that are the subject of such rate adjustment clauses are fully recovered. The Commission shall combine such clauses with the utility's costs, revenues, and investments only after it makes its initial determination with regard to necessary rate revisions or credits to customers' bills, and the amounts thereof, but after such clauses are combined as specified in this paragraph, they shall thereafter be considered part of the utility's costs, revenues, and investments for the purposes of future review proceedings. As of July 1, 2023, a Phase II Utility shall select a subset of rate adjustment clauses previously implemented pursuant to subdivision 5 or 6 having a combined annual revenue requirement, as of July 1, 2023, of at least $350 million and combine such rate adjustment clauses with the utility's costs, revenues, and investments for generation and distribution services. After such rate adjustment clauses are combined as specified in this paragraph, such rate adjustment clauses shall be considered part of the utility's costs, revenues, and investments for the purposes of future biennial review proceedings, and the combination of such rate adjustment clauses shall be specifically subject to audit by the Commission in the utility's 2023 biennial review filing. Notwithstanding the provisions of subsection C of § 56-581, such combination shall not serve as the basis for an increase in a Phase II Utility's rates for generation and distribution services in its 2023 biennial proceeding. 4. The following costs incurred by the utility shall be deemed reasonable and prudent: (i) costs for transmission services provided to the utility by the regional transmission entity of which the utility is a member, as determined under applicable rates, terms and conditions approved by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission; (ii) costs charged to the utility that are associated with demand response programs approved by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission and administered by the regional transmission entity of which the utility is a member; and (iii) costs incurred by the utility to construct, operate, and maintain transmission lines and substations installed in order to provide service to a business park. Upon petition of a utility at any time after the expiration or termination of capped rates, but not more than once in any 12-month period, the Commission shall approve a rate adjustment clause under which such costs, including, without limitation, costs for transmission service; charges for new and existing transmission facilities, including costs incurred by the utility to construct, operate, and maintain transmission lines and substations installed in order to provide service to a business park; administrative charges; and ancillary service charges designed to recover transmission costs, shall be recovered on a timely and current basis from customers. Retail rates to recover these costs shall be designed using the appropriate billing determinants in the retail rate schedules. 5. A utility may at any time, after the expiration or termination of capped rates, but not more than once in any 12-month period, petition the Commission for approval of one or more rate adjustment clauses for the timely and current recovery from customers of the following costs: a. Incremental costs described in clause (vi) of subsection B of § 56-582 incurred between July 1, 2004, and the expiration or termination of capped rates, if such utility is, as of July 1, 2007, deferring such costs consistent with an order of the Commission entered under clause (vi) of subsection B of § 56-582. The Commission shall approve such a petition allowing the recovery of such costs that comply with the requirements of clause (vi) of subsection B of § 56-582; b. Projected and actual costs for the utility to design and operate fair and effective peak-shaving programs or pilot programs. The Commission shall approve such a petition if it finds that the program is in the public interest, provided that the Commission shall allow the recovery of such costs as it finds are reasonable; c. Projected and actual costs for the utility to design, implement, and operate energy efficiency programs or pilot programs. Any such petition shall include a proposed budget for the design, implementation, and operation of the energy efficiency program, including anticipated savings from and spending on each program, and the Commission shall grant a final order on such petitions within eight months of initial filing. The Commission shall only approve such a petition if it finds that the program is in the public interest. If the Commission determines that an energy efficiency program or portfolio of programs is not in the public interest, its final order shall include all work product and analysis conducted by the Commission's staff in relation to that program that has bearing upon the Commission's determination. Such order shall adhere to existing protocols for extraordinarily sensitive information. Energy efficiency pilot programs are in the public interest provided that the pilot program is (i) of limited scope, cost, and duration and (ii) intended to determine whether a new or substantially revised program would be cost-effective. Prior to January 1, 2022, the Commission shall award a margin for recovery on operating expenses for energy efficiency programs and pilot programs, which margin shall be equal to the general rate of return on common equity determined as described in subdivision 2. Beginning January 1, 2022, and thereafter, if the Commission determines that the utility meets in any year the annual energy efficiency standards set forth in § 56-596.2, in the following year, the Commission shall award a margin on energy efficiency program operating expenses in that year, to be recovered through a rate adjustment clause, which margin shall be equal to the general rate of return on common equity determined as described in subdivision 2. If the Commission does not approve energy efficiency programs that, in the aggregate, can achieve the annual energy efficiency standards, the Commission shall award a margin on energy efficiency operating expenses in that year for any programs the Commission has approved, to be recovered through a rate adjustment clause under this subdivision, which margin shall equal the general rate of return on common equity determined as described in subdivision 2. Any margin awarded pursuant to this subdivision shall be applied as part of the utility's next rate adjustment clause true-up proceeding. The Commission shall also award an additional 20 basis points for each additional incremental 0.1 percent in annual savings in any year achieved by the utility's energy efficiency programs approved by the Commission pursuant to this subdivision, beyond the annual requirements set forth in § 56-596.2, provided that the total performance incentive awarded in any year shall not exceed 10 percent of that utility's total energy efficiency program spending in that same year. The Commission shall annually monitor and report to the General Assembly the performance of all programs approved pursuant to this subdivision, including each utility's compliance with the total annual savings required by § 56-596.2, as well as the annual and lifecycle net and gross energy and capacity savings, related emissions reductions, and other quantifiable benefits of each program; total customer bill savings that the programs produce; utility spending on each program, including any associated administrative costs; and each utility's avoided costs and cost-effectiveness results. Notwithstanding any other provision of law, unless the Commission finds in its discretion and after consideration of all in-state and regional transmission entity resources that there is a threat to the reliability or security of electric service to the utility's customers, the Commission shall not approve construction of any new utility-owned generating facilities that emit carbon dioxide as a by-product of combusting fuel to generate electricity unless the utility has already met the energy savings goals identified in § 56-596.2 and the Commission finds that supply-side resources are more cost-effective than demand-side or energy storage resources. As used in this subdivision, "large general service customer" means a customer that has a verifiable history of having used more than one megawatt of demand from a single site. Large general service customers shall be exempt from requirements that they participate in energy efficiency programs if the Commission finds that the large general service customer has, at the customer's own expense, implemented energy efficiency programs that have produced or will produce measured and verified results consistent with industry standards and other regulatory criteria stated in this section. The Commission shall, no later than June 30, 2021, adopt rules or regulations (a) establishing the process for large general service customers to apply for such an exemption, (b) establishing the administrative procedures by which eligible customers will notify the utility, and (c) defining the standard criteria that shall be satisfied by an applicant in order to notify the utility, including means of evaluation measurement and verification and confidentiality requirements. At a minimum, such rules and regulations shall require that each exempted large general service customer certify to the utility and Commission that its implemented energy efficiency programs have delivered measured and verified savings within the prior five years. In adopting such rules or regulations, the Commission shall also specify the timing as to when a utility shall accept and act on such notice, taking into consideration the utility's integrated resource planning process, as well as its administration of energy efficiency programs that are approved for cost recovery by the Commission. Savings from large general service customers shall be accounted for in utility reporting in the standards in § 56-596.2. The notice of nonparticipation by a large general service customer shall be for the duration of the service life of the customer's energy efficiency measures. The Commission may on its own motion initiate steps necessary to verify such nonparticipant's achievement of energy efficiency if the Commission has a body of evidence that the nonparticipant has knowingly misrepresented its energy efficiency achievement. A utility shall not charge such large general service customer for the costs of installing energy efficiency equipment beyond what is required to provide electric service and meter such service on the customer's premises if the customer provides, at the customer's expense, equivalent energy efficiency equipment. In all relevant proceedings pursuant to this section, the Commission shall take into consideration the goals of economic development, energy efficiency and environmental protection in the Commonwealth; d. Projected and actual costs of compliance with renewable energy portfolio standard requirements pursuant to § 56-585.5 that are not recoverable under subdivision 6. The Commission shall approve such a petition allowing the recovery of such costs incurred as required by § 56-585.5, provided that the Commission does not otherwise find such costs were unreasonably or imprudently incurred; e. Projected and actual costs of projects that the Commission finds to be necessary to mitigate impacts to marine life caused by construction of offshore wind generating facilities, as described in § 56-585.1:11, or to comply with state or federal environmental laws or regulations applicable to generation facilities used to serve the utility's native load obligations, including the costs of allowances purchased through a market-based trading program for carbon dioxide emissions. The Commission shall approve such a petition if it finds that such costs are necessary to comply with such environmental laws or regulations; f. Projected and actual costs, not currently in rates, for the utility to design, implement, and operate programs approved by the Commission that accelerate the vegetation management of distribution rights-of-way. No costs shall be allocated to or recovered from customers that are served within the large general service rate classes for a Phase II Utility or that are served at subtransmission or transmission voltage, or take delivery at a substation served from subtransmission or transmission voltage, for a Phase I Utility; and g. Projected and actual costs, not currently in rates, for the utility to design, implement, and operate programs approved by the Commission to provide incentives to (i) low-income, elderly, and disabled individuals or (ii) organizations providing residential services to low-income, elderly, and disabled individuals for the installation of, or access to, equipment to generate electric energy derived from sunlight, provided the low-income, elderly, and disabled individuals, or organizations providing residential services to low-income, elderly, and disabled individuals, first participate in incentive programs for the installation of measures that reduce heating or cooling costs. Any rate adjustment clause approved under subdivision 5 c by the Commission shall remain in effect until the utility exhausts the approved budget for the energy efficiency program. The Commission shall have the authority to determine the duration or amortization period for any other rate adjustment clause approved under this subdivision. 6. To ensure the generation and delivery of a reliable and adequate supply of electricity, to meet the utility's projected native load obligations and to promote economic development, a utility may at any time, after the expiration or termination of capped rates, petition the Commission for approval of a rate adjustment clause for recovery on a timely and current basis from customers of the costs of (i) a coal-fueled generation facility that utilizes Virginia coal and is located in the coalfield region of the Commonwealth as described in § 15.2-6002, regardless of whether such facility is located within or without the utility's service territory, (ii) one or more other generation facilities, (iii) one or more major unit modifications of generation facilities, including the costs of any system or equipment upgrade, system or equipment replacement, or other cost reasonably appropriate to extend the combined operating license for or the operating life of one or more generation facilities utilizing nuclear power, (iv) one or more new underground facilities to replace one or more existing overhead distribution facilities of 69 kilovolts or less located within the Commonwealth, (v) one or more pumped hydroelectricity generation and storage facilities that utilize on-site or off-site renewable energy resources as all or a portion of their power source and such facilities and associated resources are located in the coalfield region of the Commonwealth as described in § 15.2-6002, regardless of whether such facility is located within or without the utility's service territory, or (vi) one or more electric distribution grid transformation projects; however, subject to the provisions of the following sentence, the utility shall not file a petition under clause (iv) more often than annually and, in such petition, shall not seek any annual incremental increase in the level of investments associated with such a petition that exceeds five percent of such utility's distribution rate base, as such rate base was determined for the most recently ended 12-month test period in the utility's latest review proceeding conducted pursuant to subdivision 3 and concluded by final order of the Commission prior to the date of filing of such petition under clause (iv). In all proceedings regarding petitions filed under clause (iv) or (vi), the level of investments approved for recovery in such proceedings shall be in addition to, and not in lieu of, levels of investments previously approved for recovery in prior proceedings under clause (iv) or (vi), as applicable. As of December 1, 2028, any costs recovered by a utility pursuant to clause (iv) shall be limited to any remaining costs associated with conversions of overhead distribution facilities to underground facilities that have been previously approved or are pending approval by the Commission through a petition by the utility under this subdivision. Such a petition concerning facilities described in clause (ii) that utilize nuclear power, facilities described in clause (ii) that are coal-fueled and will be built by a Phase I Utility, or facilities described in clause (i) may also be filed before the expiration or termination of capped rates. A utility that constructs or makes modifications to any such facility, or purchases any facility consisting of at least one megawatt of generating capacity using energy derived from sunlight and located in the Commonwealth and that utilizes goods or services sourced, in whole or in part, from one or more Virginia businesses, shall have the right to recover the costs of the facility, as accrued against income, through its rates, including projected construction work in progress, and any associated allowance for funds used during construction, planning, development and construction or acquisition costs, life-cycle costs, costs related to assessing the feasibility of potential sites for new underground facilities, and costs of infrastructure associated therewith, plus, as an incentive to undertake such projects, an enhanced rate of return on common equity calculated as specified below; however, in determining the amounts recoverable under a rate adjustment clause for new underground facilities, the Commission shall not consider, or increase or reduce such amounts recoverable because of (a) the operation and maintenance costs attributable to either the overhead distribution facilities being replaced or the new underground facilities or (b) any other costs attributable to the overhead distribution facilities being replaced. Notwithstanding the preceding sentence, the costs described in clauses (a) and (b) thereof shall remain eligible for recovery from customers through the utility's base rates for distribution service. A utility filing a petition for approval to construct or purchase a facility consisting of at least one megawatt of generating capacity using energy derived from sunlight and located in the Commonwealth and that utilizes goods or services sourced, in whole or in part, from one or more Virginia businesses may propose a rate adjustment clause based on a market index in lieu of a cost of service model for such facility. A utility seeking approval to construct or purchase a generating facility that emits carbon dioxide shall demonstrate that it has already met the energy savings goals identified in § 56-596.2 and that the identified need cannot be met more affordably through the deployment or utilization of demand-side resources or energy storage resources and that it has considered and weighed alternative options, including third-party market alternatives, in its selection process. The costs of the facility, other than return on projected construction work in progress and allowance for funds used during construction, shall not be recovered prior to the date a facility constructed by the utility and described in clause (i), (ii), (iii), or (v) begins commercial operation, the date the utility becomes the owner of a purchased generation facility consisting of at least one megawatt of generating capacity using energy derived from sunlight and located in the Commonwealth and that utilizes goods or services sourced, in whole or in part, from one or more Virginia businesses, or the date new underground facilities are classified by the utility as plant in service. In any application to construct a new generating facility, the utility shall include, and the Commission shall consider, the social cost of carbon, as determined by the Commission, as a benefit or cost, whichever is appropriate. The Commission shall ensure that the development of new, or expansion of existing, energy resources or facilities does not have a disproportionate adverse impact on historically economically disadvantaged communities. The Commission may adopt any rules it deems necessary to determine the social cost of carbon and shall use the best available science and technology, including the Technical Support Document: Technical Update of the Social Cost of Carbon for Regulatory Impact Analysis Under Executive Order 12866, published by the Interagency Working Group on Social Cost of Greenhouse Gases from the United States Government in August 2016, as guidance. The Commission shall include a system to adjust the costs established in this section with inflation. Such enhanced rate of return on common equity shall be applied to allowance for funds used during construction and to construction work in progress during the construction phase of the facility and shall thereafter be applied to the entire facility during the first portion of the service life of the facility. The first portion of the service life shall be as specified in the table below; however, the Commission shall determine the duration of the first portion of the service life of any facility, within the range specified in the table below, which determination shall be consistent with the public interest and shall reflect the Commission's determinations regarding how critical the facility may be in meeting the energy needs of the citizens of the Commonwealth and the risks involved in the development of the facility. After the first portion of the service life of the facility is concluded, the utility's general rate of return shall be applied to such facility for the remainder of its service life. As used herein, the service life of the facility shall be deemed to begin on the date a facility constructed by the utility and described in clause (i), (ii), (iii), or (v) begins commercial operation, the date the utility becomes the owner of a purchased generation facility consisting of at least one megawatt of generating capacity using energy derived from sunlight and located in the Commonwealth and that utilizes goods or services sourced, in whole or in part, from one or more Virginia businesses, or the date new underground facilities or new electric distribution grid transformation projects are classified by the utility as plant in service, and such service life shall be deemed equal in years to the life of that facility as used to calculate the utility's depreciation expense. Such enhanced rate of return on common equity shall be calculated by adding the basis points specified in the table below to the utility's general rate of return, and such enhanced rate of return shall apply only to the facility that is the subject of such rate adjustment clause. Allowance for funds used during construction shall be calculated for any such facility utilizing the utility's actual capital structure and overall cost of capital, including an enhanced rate of return on common equity as determined pursuant to this subdivision, until such construction work in progress is included in rates. The construction of any facility described in clause (i) or (v) is in the public interest, and in determining whether to approve such facility, the Commission shall liberally construe the provisions of this title. The construction or purchase by a utility of one or more generation facilities with at least one megawatt of generating capacity, and with an aggregate rated capacity that does not exceed 16,100 megawatts, including rooftop solar installations with a capacity of not less than 50 kilowatts, and with an aggregate capacity of 100 megawatts, that use energy derived from sunlight or from onshore wind and are located in the Commonwealth or off the Commonwealth's Atlantic shoreline, regardless of whether any of such facilities are located within or without the utility's service territory, is in the public interest, and in determining whether to approve such facility, the Commission shall liberally construe the provisions of this title. A utility may enter into short-term or long-term power purchase contracts for the power derived from sunlight generated by such generation facility prior to purchasing the generation facility. The replacement of any subset of a utility's existing overhead distribution tap lines that have, in the aggregate, an average of nine or more total unplanned outage events-per-mile over a preceding 10-year period with new underground facilities in order to improve electric service reliability is in the public interest. In determining whether to approve petitions for rate adjustment clauses for such new underground facilities that meet this criteria, and in determining the level of costs to be recovered thereunder, the Commission shall liberally construe the provisions of this title. The conversion of any such facilities on or after September 1, 2016, is deemed to provide local and system-wide benefits and to be cost beneficial, and the costs associated with such new underground facilities are deemed to be reasonably and prudently incurred and, notwithstanding the provisions of subsection C or D, shall be approved for recovery by the Commission pursuant to this subdivision, provided that the total costs associated with the replacement of any subset of existing overhead distribution tap lines proposed by the utility with new underground facilities, exclusive of financing costs, shall not exceed an average cost per customer of $20,000, with such customers, including those served directly by or downline of the tap lines proposed for conversion, and, further, such total costs shall not exceed an average cost per mile of tap lines converted, exclusive of financing costs, of $750,000. A utility shall, without regard for whether it has petitioned for any rate adjustment clause pursuant to clause (vi), petition the Commission, not more than once annually, for approval of a plan for electric distribution grid transformation projects. Any plan for electric distribution grid transformation projects shall include both measures to facilitate integration of distributed energy resources and measures to enhance physical electric distribution grid reliability and security. In ruling upon such a petition, the Commission shall consider whether the utility's plan for such projects, and the projected costs associated therewith, are reasonable and prudent. Such petition shall be considered on a stand-alone basis without regard to the other costs, revenues, investments, or earnings of the utility; without regard to whether the costs associated with such projects will be recovered through a rate adjustment clause under this subdivision or through the utility's rates for generation and distribution services; and without regard to whether such costs will be the subject of a customer credit offset, as applicable, pursuant to subdivision 8 d. The Commission's final order regarding any such petition for approval of an electric distribution grid transformation plan shall be entered by the Commission not more than six months after the date of filing such petition. The Commission shall likewise enter its final order with respect to any petition by a utility for a certificate to construct and operate a generating facility or facilities utilizing energy derived from sunlight, pursuant to subsection D of § 56-580, within six months after the date of filing such petition. The basis points to be added to the utility's general rate of return to calculate the enhanced rate of return on common equity, and the first portion of that facility's service life to which such enhanced rate of return shall be applied, shall vary by type of facility, as specified in the following table: aType of Generation FacilityBasis PointsFirst Portion of Service Life bNuclear-powered200Between 12 and 25 years cCarbon capture compatible, clean-coal powered200Between 10 and 20 years dRenewable powered, other than landfill gas powered200Between 5 and 15 years eCoalbed methane gas powered150Between 5 and 15 years fLandfill gas powered200Between 5 and 15 years gConventional coal or combined-cycle combustion turbine100Between 10 and 20 years Only those facilities as to which a rate adjustment clause under this subdivision has been previously approved by the Commission, or as to which a petition for approval of such rate adjustment clause was filed with the Commission, on or before January 1, 2013, shall be entitled to the enhanced rate of return on common equity as specified in the above table during the construction phase of the facility and the approved first portion of its service life. Thirty percent of all costs of such a facility utilizing nuclear power that the utility incurred between July 1, 2007, and December 31, 2013, and all of such costs incurred after December 31, 2013, may be deferred by the utility and recovered through a rate adjustment clause under this subdivision at such time as the Commission provides in an order approving such a rate adjustment clause. The remaining 70 percent of all costs of such a facility that the utility incurred between July 1, 2007, and December 31, 2013, shall not be deferred for recovery through a rate adjustment clause under this subdivision; however, such remaining 70 percent of all costs shall be recovered ratably through existing base rates as determined by the Commission in the test periods under review in the utility's next review filed after July 1, 2014. Thirty percent of all costs of a facility utilizing energy derived from offshore wind that the utility incurred between July 1, 2007, and December 31, 2013, and all of such costs incurred after December 31, 2013, may be deferred by the utility and recovered through a rate adjustment clause under this subdivision at such time as the Commission provides in an order approving such a rate adjustment clause. The remaining 70 percent of all costs of such a facility that the utility incurred between July 1, 2007, and December 31, 2013, shall not be deferred for recovery through a rate adjustment clause under this subdivision; however, such remaining 70 percent of all costs shall be recovered ratably through existing base rates as determined by the Commission in the test periods under review in the utility's next review filed after July 1, 2014. In connection with planning to meet forecasted demand for electric generation supply and assure the adequate and sufficient reliability of service, consistent with § 56-598, planning and development activities for a new utility-owned and utility-operated generating facility or facilities utilizing energy derived from sunlight or from onshore or offshore wind are in the public interest. Notwithstanding any provision of Chapter 296 of the Acts of Assembly of 2018, construction, purchasing, or leasing activities for a new utility-owned and utility-operated generating facility or facilities utilizing energy derived from sunlight or from onshore wind with an aggregate capacity of 16,100 megawatts, including rooftop solar installations with a capacity of not less than 50 kilowatts, and with an aggregate capacity of 100 megawatts, together with a utility-owned and utility-operated generating facility or facilities utilizing energy derived from offshore wind with an aggregate capacity of not more than 3,000 megawatts, are in the public interest. Additionally, energy storage facilities with an aggregate capacity of 2,700 megawatts are in the public interest. To the extent that a utility elects to recover the costs of any such new generation or energy storage facility or facilities through its rates for generation and distribution services and does not petition and receive approval from the Commission for recovery of such costs through a rate adjustment clause described in clause (ii), the Commission shall, upon the request of the utility in a review proceeding, provide for a customer credit reinvestment offset, as applicable, pursuant to subdivision 8 d with respect to all costs deemed reasonable and prudent by the Commission in a proceeding pursuant to subsection D of § 56-580 or in a review proceeding. Electric distribution grid transformation projects are in the public interest. To the extent that a utility elects to recover the costs of such electric distribution grid transformation projects through its rates for generation and distribution services, and does not petition and receive approval from the Commission for recovery of such costs through a rate adjustment clause described in clause (vi), the Commission shall, upon the request of the utility in a review proceeding, provide for a customer credit reinvestment offset, as applicable, pursuant to subdivision 8 d with respect to all costs deemed reasonable and prudent by the Commission in a proceeding for approval of a plan for electric distribution grid transformation projects pursuant to subdivision 6 or in a review proceeding. Neither generation facilities described in clause (ii) that utilize simple-cycle combustion turbines nor new underground facilities shall receive an enhanced rate of return on common equity as described herein, but instead shall receive the utility's general rate of return during the construction phase of the facility and, thereafter, for the entire service life of the facility. No rate adjustment clause for new underground facilities shall allocate costs to, or provide for the recovery of costs from, customers that are served within the large power service rate class for a Phase I Utility and the large general service rate classes for a Phase II Utility. New underground facilities are hereby declared to be ordinary extensions or improvements in the usual course of business under the provisions of § 56-265.2. As used in this subdivision, a generation facility is (1) "coalbed methane gas powered" if the facility is fired at least 50 percent by coalbed methane gas, as such term is defined in § 45.2-1600, produced from wells located in the Commonwealth, and (2) "landfill gas powered" if the facility is fired by methane or other combustible gas produced by the anaerobic digestion or decomposition of biodegradable materials in a solid waste management facility licensed by the Waste Management Board. A landfill gas powered facility includes, in addition to the generation facility itself, the equipment used in collecting, drying, treating, and compressing the landfill gas and in transmitting the landfill gas from the solid waste management facility where it is collected to the generation facility whe

Va. Code § 56-585.3

§ 56-585.3. Regulation of cooperative rates after rate caps.A. After the expiration or termination of capped rates, the rates, terms and conditions of distribution electric cooperatives subject to Article 1 (§ 56-231.15 et seq.) of Chapter 9.1 shall be regulated in accordance with the provisions of Chapters 9.1 (§ 56-231.15 et seq.) and 10 (§ 56-232 et seq.), as modified by the following provisions: 1. Except for energy related cost (fuel cost), the Commission shall not require any cooperative to adjust, modify, or revise its rates, by means of riders or otherwise, to reflect changes in wholesale power cost which occurred during the capped rate period, other than in a general rate proceeding; 2. Each cooperative may, without Commission approval or the requirement of any filing other than as provided in this subdivision, upon an affirmative resolution of its board of directors, increase or decrease all classes of its rates for distribution services at any time, provided, however, that such adjustments will not effect a cumulative net increase or decrease in excess of five percent in such rates in any three-year period. Such adjustments will not affect or be limited by any existing fuel or wholesale power cost adjustment provisions. The cooperative will promptly file any such revised rates with the Commission for informational purposes; 3. Each cooperative may, without Commission approval, upon an affirmative resolution of its board of directors, make any adjustment to its terms and conditions that does not affect the cooperative's revenues from the distribution or supply of electric energy. In addition, a cooperative may make such adjustments to any pass-through of third-party service charges and fees, and to any fees, charges and deposits set out in Schedule F of such cooperative's Terms and Conditions filed as of January 1, 2007. The cooperative will promptly file any such amended terms and conditions with the Commission for informational purposes; 4. Each cooperative may, without Commission approval or the requirement of any filing other than as provided in this subdivision, upon an affirmative resolution of its board of directors, make any adjustment to its rates reasonably calculated to collect any or all of the fixed costs of owning and operating its electric distribution system, including without limitation, such costs as are identified as customer-related costs in a cost of service study, through a new or modified fixed monthly charge, rather than through volumetric charges associated with the use of electric energy or demand, or to rebalance among any of the fixed monthly charge, distribution demand, and distribution energy; however, such adjustments shall be revenue neutral based on the cooperative's determination of the proper intra-class allocation of the revenues produced by its then current rates. If a rate class contains a supply demand charge, the cooperative may rebalance its rate for electricity supply service pursuant to this subdivision. The cooperative may elect, but is not required, to implement such adjustments through incremental changes over the course of up to three years. The cooperative shall file promptly revised tariffs reflecting any such adjustments with the Commission for informational purposes; 5. A cooperative may, at any time after the expiration or termination of capped rates, petition the Commission for approval of one or more rate adjustment clauses for the timely and current recovery from customers of the costs described in subdivisions A 5 b and e of § 56-585.1; 6. A cooperative that is not a current member of a utility aggregation cooperative may at any time petition the Commission for approval of one or more rate adjustment clauses for the timely and current recovery of cost from customers of (i) one or more generation facilities, (ii) one or more major unit modifications of generation facilities, or (iii) one or more pumped hydroelectricity generation and storage facilities. A cooperative seeking a rate adjustment clause pursuant to this subdivision shall have the right, after notice and the opportunity for a hearing, to recover the costs of a facility described in clauses (i), (ii), or (iii) in a rate adjustment clause including construction work in progress and allowance for funds during construction, planning, and development costs of infrastructure associated therewith. The costs of the facility other than projected construction work in progress and allowance for funds used during construction shall not be recovered prior to the date that the facility either (a) begins commercial operation or (b) comes under the ownership of the cooperative. For the purposes of this subdivision, the cooperative's cost of capital shall be recoverable in such a rate adjustment clause and shall be set as either the cooperative's long-term cost of debt or most recent rate of return authorized by the Commission in a rate proceeding. In any proceeding conducted pursuant to this subdivision, the Commission shall consider that all costs expended and revenues recovered arising out of the procurement of generation resources pursuant to this subdivision will inure to the benefit of the general membership of the cooperative. Nothing in this subdivision shall relieve a cooperative from any requirement to obtain a certificate of public convenience and necessity for purposes of constructing generation in the Commonwealth. The Commission's final order regarding any petition filed pursuant to this subdivision shall be entered not more than nine months after the date of filing of such petition. If such petition is approved, the order shall direct that the applicable rate adjustment clause be applied to customers' bills not more than 60 days after the date of the order. Any petition filed pursuant to this subdivision shall be considered by the Commission on a stand-alone basis without regard to the other costs, revenues, investments, or earnings of the cooperative. Any costs incurred by a cooperative prior to the filing of such petition, or during the consideration thereof by the Commission, that are proposed for recovery in such petition, shall be deferred on the books and records of the cooperative until the Commission's final order in the matter, or until the implementation of any applicable approved rate adjustment clause, whichever is later; 7. A cooperative may adopt any other cooperative's voluntary rate, voluntary program (including a pilot program), or voluntary tariff, and cost recovery therefor, by submitting the same to the Commission for administrative approval. The staff of the Commission shall have the authority to approve such administrative filing notwithstanding any other provision of law; and 8. A cooperative may, without approval of the Commission or the requirement of any filing other than as provided in this subsection, upon an affirmative resolution of its board of directors, approve any voluntary tariff, and cost recovery therefor, and shall promptly file any such tariff with the Commission for informational purposes. B. None of the adjustments described in subdivisions A 2 through A 5 will apply to the rates paid by any customer that takes service by means of dedicated distribution facilities and had noncoincident peak demand in excess of 90 megawatts in calendar year 2006. C. Nothing in this section shall be deemed to grant to a cooperative any authority to amend or adjust any terms and conditions of service or agreements regarding pole attachments or the use of the cooperative's poles or conduits. 2007, cc. 888, 933; 2009, cc. 401, 824; 2019, cc. 625, 742, 763; 2022, cc. 363, 364.

Va. Code § 56-585.4

§ 56-585.4. Net energy metering transition provisions for electric cooperatives.Distribution electric cooperatives subject to Article 1 (§ 56-231.15 et seq.) of Chapter 9.1 shall be regulated in accordance with the provisions of Chapters 9.1 (§ 56-231.15 et seq.) and 10 (§ 56-232 et seq.), as amended by relevant sections of this chapter and by the following provisions: 1. Notwithstanding anything to the contrary in this title, each cooperative may, without Commission approval or the requirement of any filing other than as provided in this subdivision, upon the adoption by its board of directors of a resolution so providing, make adjustments in the cooperative's rates, terms, conditions, and rate schedules governing net energy metering as provided in this section by electing to subject itself to the provisions of this section. The cooperative promptly shall (i) file such resolution and notice with the Commission for informational purposes and (ii) place a notice of its board of directors' adoption of such resolution (the Cooperative Net Energy Metering Transition Notice) on the cooperative's website. The Cooperative Net Energy Metering Transition Notice shall contain an initial election date and a date upon which, for each class of net energy metering customer, the transition shall become effective upon the first to occur of (a) the date the cooperative reaches the cap set forth in subsection F of § 56-594.01 or (b) five years following the date of the initial Cooperative Net Energy Metering Transition Notice. If a cooperative transitions a given class of customers as a result of reaching a cap set forth in subsection F of § 56-594.01, the effectiveness of such transition shall be permanent, regardless of future changes in the cooperative's system peak. A Cooperative Net Energy Metering Transition Notice may be amended and refiled as the cooperative deems appropriate at any time. Any eligible customer-generator as defined in § 56-594 that was interconnected prior to a transition start date enumerated in a Cooperative Net Energy Metering Transition Notice may continue to participate in net energy metering pursuant to the terms of § 56-594.01 until July 1, 2039. 2. After the transition date for a class of customers, any standby charges implemented by the cooperative pursuant to subsection H of § 56-594.01 shall be eliminated and are prohibited. The cooperative may make any necessary changes to rate schedules or terms and conditions and shall promptly file the same with the Commission for informational purposes. 3. Whenever the cooperative's transition date occurs, the cooperative may establish and publish, without Commission approval or the requirement of any filing other than as provided in this subdivision, a new rate schedule or rider for purposes of its new net energy metering program established pursuant to this section and shall promptly file the same with the Commission for informational purposes. 4. The new rate schedule or rider described in subdivision 3 may contain a demand charge or charges for distribution, supply, or both, based upon a customer's monthly, ratcheted, or 60-minute absolute value noncoincident peak demand for customers that were not previously subject to demand charges in each rate class; however, such demand charges shall be revenue neutral based on the cooperative's determination of the proper intra-class allocation of the revenues produced by its then-current rates serving the same rate class of customer. The cooperative shall implement such new demand charge through the provisions of subdivision 5. The cooperative shall file promptly revised tariffs reflecting any such new demand charges with the Commission for informational purposes. The demand charge component of any net energy metering rate class derived from a rate class with a preexisting demand charge shall remain fixed for a period of five years. The fixed monthly customer charge of any net energy metering rate class derived from a preexisting rate class having a fixed monthly customer charge less than or equal to $20 as of the transition date shall not exceed $20 for the duration of the five-year period described in subdivision 5. During the five-year period described in subdivision 5, a cooperative may not increase the monthly customer charge of any net energy metering rate class derived from a preexisting rate class having a fixed monthly customer charge greater than $20 as of the transition date. Demand charges included in a new rate schedule or rider shall apply to net energy metering customers, regardless of whether a customer uses a third-party partial requirements power purchase agreement or not. 5. For purposes of implementing subdivision 4, a cooperative shall, after the published transition date for a given class of customers, close its existing net energy metering rate schedule rider to new customers and open a new tariff pursuant to subdivision 3. Demand charges shall be implemented over a five-year period. In the first year of the five-year period, the demand charges shall be set to zero. In the second year of the five-year period, implementation of the demand rates may begin, and demand charges shall not exceed $0.25 per kilowatt of distribution demand and $0.25 per kilowatt of supply demand. In the third year of the five-year period, the demand charges shall not exceed $0.50 per kilowatt of distribution demand and $0.50 per kilowatt of supply demand. In the fourth year of the five-year period, the demand charges shall not exceed $0.75 per kilowatt of distribution demand and $0.75 per kilowatt of supply demand. In the fifth year of the five-year period, the demand charges shall not exceed $1 per kilowatt of distribution demand and $1 per kilowatt of supply demand. Following the expiration of the five-year period, the cooperative is authorized to rebalance its rates. In any filing for informational purposes, the cooperative shall clearly set forth to the Commission the schedule for the five-year period. 6. After the transition date for a given class of customers, the following caps, which shall be in lieu of the caps established by subsection F of § 56-594.01, shall apply to net energy metering for that class of customer. The caps shall be calculated as described in subsection F of § 56-594.01 except that the caps shall be adjusted as follows, expressed in alternating current nameplate capacity of the generators: three percent of system peak for residential customers, four percent of system peak for not-for-profit and nonjurisdictional customers, and two percent for other nonresidential customers. 7. After the transition date for a given class of customers, only the following restrictions shall apply to the capacity of a net energy metering electrical generating facility: a. For nonresidential customers, the maximum capacity shall not exceed the least of: (1) 1.2 megawatts alternating current; (2) One percent of the cooperative's system peak calculated according to the methodology described in subsection F of § 56-594.01; or (3) The expected annual energy consumption based on the previous 12 months of billing history or an annualized calculation of billing history if 12 months of billing history is not available; and b. For residential customers, the maximum capacity shall not exceed 125 percent of the expected annual energy consumption based on the previous 12 months of billing history or an annualized calculation of billing history if 12 months of billing history is not available. 8. After the transition date for a given class of customers, third-party partial requirements power purchase agreements entered into with registered providers shall be permitted for that class of customer pursuant to subsection K of § 56-594.01. 2019, cc. 742, 763.

Va. Code § 56-585.5

§ 56-585.5. Generation of electricity from renewable and zero carbon sources.A. As used in this section: "Accelerated renewable energy buyer" means a commercial or industrial customer of a Phase I or Phase II Utility, irrespective of generation supplier, with an aggregate load over 25 megawatts in the prior calendar year, that enters into arrangements pursuant to subsection G, as certified by the Commission. "Aggregate load" means the combined electrical load associated with selected accounts of an accelerated renewable energy buyer with the same legal entity name as, or in the names of affiliated entities that control, are controlled by, or are under common control of, such legal entity or are the names of affiliated entities under a common parent. "Control" has the same meaning as provided in § 56-585.1:11. "Elementary or secondary" has the same meaning as provided in § 22.1-1. "Falling water" means hydroelectric resources, including run-of-river generation from a combined pumped-storage and run-of-river facility. "Falling water" does not include electricity generated from pumped-storage facilities. "Low-income qualifying projects" means a project that provides a minimum of 50 percent of the respective electric output to low-income utility customers as that term is defined in § 56-576. "Phase I Utility" has the same meaning as provided in subdivision A 1 of § 56-585.1. "Phase II Utility" has the same meaning as provided in subdivision A 1 of § 56-585.1. "Previously developed project site" means any property, including related buffer areas, if any, that has been previously disturbed or developed for non-single-family residential, nonagricultural, or nonsilvicultural use, regardless of whether such property currently is being used for any purpose. "Previously developed project site" includes a brownfield as defined in § 10.1-1230 or any parcel that has been previously used (i) for a retail, commercial, or industrial purpose; (ii) as a parking lot; (iii) as the site of a parking lot canopy or structure; (iv) for mining, which is any lands affected by coal mining that took place before August 3, 1977, or any lands upon which extraction activities have been permitted by the Department of Energy under Title 45.2; (v) for quarrying; or (vi) as a landfill. "Total electric energy" means total electric energy sold to retail customers in the Commonwealth service territory of a Phase I or Phase II Utility, other than accelerated renewable energy buyers, by the incumbent electric utility or other retail supplier of electric energy in the previous calendar year, excluding an amount equivalent to the annual percentages of the electric energy that was supplied to such customer from nuclear generating plants located within the Commonwealth in the previous calendar year, provided such nuclear units were operating by July 1, 2020, or from any zero-carbon electric generating facilities not otherwise RPS eligible sources and placed into service in the Commonwealth after July 1, 2030. "Zero-carbon electricity" means electricity generated by any generating unit that does not emit carbon dioxide as a by-product of combusting fuel to generate electricity. B. 1. By December 31, 2024, except for any coal-fired electric generating units (i) jointly owned with a cooperative utility or (ii) owned and operated by a Phase II Utility located in the coalfield region of the Commonwealth that co-fires with biomass, any Phase I and Phase II Utility shall retire all generating units principally fueled by oil with a rated capacity in excess of 500 megawatts and all coal-fired electric generating units operating in the Commonwealth. 2. By December 31, 2045, except for biomass-fired electric generating units that do not co-fire with coal, each Phase I and II Utility shall retire all other electric generating units located in the Commonwealth that emit carbon as a by-product of combusting fuel to generate electricity. 3. A Phase I or Phase II Utility may petition the Commission for relief from the requirements of this subsection on the basis that the requirement would threaten the reliability or security of electric service to customers. The Commission shall consider in-state and regional transmission entity resources and shall evaluate the reliability of each proposed retirement on a case-by-case basis in ruling upon any such petition. C. Each Phase I and Phase II Utility shall participate in a renewable energy portfolio standard program (RPS Program) that establishes annual goals for the sale of renewable energy to all retail customers in the utility's service territory, other than accelerated renewable energy buyers pursuant to subsection G, regardless of whether such customers purchase electric supply service from the utility or from suppliers other than the utility. To comply with the RPS Program, each Phase I and Phase II Utility shall procure and retire Renewable Energy Certificates (RECs) originating from renewable energy standard eligible sources (RPS eligible sources). For purposes of complying with the RPS Program from 2021 to 2024, a Phase I and Phase II Utility may use RECs from any renewable energy facility, as defined in § 56-576, provided that such facilities are located in the Commonwealth or are physically located within the PJM Interconnection, LLC (PJM) region. However, at no time during this period or thereafter may any Phase I or Phase II Utility use RECs from (i) renewable thermal energy, (ii) renewable thermal energy equivalent, or (iii) biomass-fired facilities that are outside the Commonwealth. From compliance year 2025 and all years after, each Phase I and Phase II Utility may only use RECs from RPS eligible sources for compliance with the RPS Program. In order to qualify as RPS eligible sources, such sources must be (a) electric-generating resources that generate electric energy derived from solar or wind located in the Commonwealth or off the Commonwealth's Atlantic shoreline or in federal waters and interconnected directly into the Commonwealth or physically located within the PJM region; (b) falling water resources located in the Commonwealth or physically located within the PJM region that were in operation as of January 1, 2020, that are owned by a Phase I or Phase II Utility or for which a Phase I or Phase II Utility has entered into a contract prior to January 1, 2020, to purchase the energy, capacity, and renewable attributes of such falling water resources; (c) non-utility-owned resources from falling water that (1) are less than 65 megawatts, (2) began commercial operation after December 31, 1979, or (3) added incremental generation representing greater than 50 percent of the original nameplate capacity after December 31, 1979, provided that such resources are located in the Commonwealth or are physically located within the PJM region; (d) waste-to-energy or landfill gas-fired generating resources located in the Commonwealth and in operation as of January 1, 2020, provided that such resources do not use waste heat from fossil fuel combustion; (e) geothermal heating and cooling systems located in the Commonwealth; (f) geothermal electric generating resources located in the Commonwealth or physically located within the PJM region; or (g) biomass-fired facilities in operation in the Commonwealth and in operation as of January 1, 2023, that (1) supply no more than 10 percent of their annual net electrical generation to the electric grid or no more than 15 percent of their annual total useful energy to any entity other than the manufacturing facility to which the generating source is interconnected and are fueled by forest-product manufacturing residuals, including pulping liquor, bark, paper recycling residuals, biowastes, or biomass, as described in subdivisions A 1, 2, and 4 of § 10.1-1308.1, provided that biomass as described in subdivision A 1 of § 10.1-1308.1 results from harvesting in accordance with best management practices for the sustainable harvesting of biomass developed and enforced by the State Forester pursuant to § 10.1-1105, or (2) are owned by a Phase I or Phase II Utility, have less than 52 megawatts capacity, and are fueled by forest-product manufacturing residuals, biowastes, or biomass, as described in subdivisions A 1, 2, and 4 of § 10.1-1308.1, provided that biomass as described in subdivision A 1 of § 10.1-1308.1 results from harvesting in accordance with best management practices for the sustainable harvesting of biomass developed and enforced by the State Forester pursuant to § 10.1-1105. Regardless of any future maintenance, expansion, or refurbishment activities, the total amount of RECs that may be sold by any RPS eligible source using biomass in any year shall be no more than the number of megawatt hours of electricity produced by that facility in 2022; however, in no year may any RPS eligible source using biomass sell RECs in excess of the actual megawatt-hours of electricity generated by such facility that year. In order to comply with the RPS Program, each Phase I and Phase II Utility may use and retire the environmental attributes associated with any existing owned or contracted solar, wind, falling water, or biomass electric generating resources in operation, or proposed for operation, in the Commonwealth or solar, wind, or falling water resources physically located within the PJM region, with such resource qualifying as a Commonwealth-located resource for purposes of this subsection, as of January 1, 2020, provided that such renewable attributes are verified as RECs consistent with the PJM-EIS Generation Attribute Tracking System. 1. The RPS Program requirements shall be a percentage of the total electric energy sold in the previous calendar year and shall be implemented in accordance with the following schedule: aPhase I UtilitiesPhase II Utilities bYearRPS Program Requirement YearRPS Program Requirement

c20216% 202114%

d20227% 202217%

e20238% 202320%

f202410% 202423%

g202514% 202526%

h202617%

202629%

i202720% 202732%

j202824% 202835%

k202927% 202938%

l203030% 203041%

m203133% 203145%

n203236% 203249%

o203339% 203352%

p203442% 203455%

q203545% 203559%

r203653% 203663%

s203753% 203767%

t203857% 203871%

u203961% 203975%

v204065% 204079%

w204168% 204183%

x204271% 204287%

y204374% 204391%

z204477% 204495%

aa204580% 2045 and thereafter 100%

ab204684%

ac204788%

ad204892%

ae204996%

af2050 and thereafter 100%

1. A Phase II Utility shall meet one percent of the RPS Program requirements in any given compliance year with solar, wind, or anaerobic digestion resources of one megawatt or less located in the Commonwealth, with not more than 3,000 kilowatts at any single location or at contiguous locations owned by the same entity or affiliated entities and, to the extent that low-income qualifying projects are available, then no less than 25 percent of such one percent shall be composed of low-income qualifying projects. To the extent that low-income qualifying projects are not available and projects located on or adjacent to public elementary or secondary schools are available, the remainder of no less than 25 percent of such one percent shall be composed of projects located on or adjacent to public elementary or secondary schools. A project located on or adjacent to a public elementary or secondary school shall have a contractual relationship with such school in order to qualify for the provisions of this section.
2. Beginning with the 2025 compliance year and thereafter, at least 75 percent of all RECs used by a Phase II Utility in a compliance period shall come from RPS eligible resources located in the Commonwealth.
3. Any Phase I or Phase II Utility may apply renewable energy sales achieved or RECs acquired in excess of the sales requirement for that RPS Program to the sales requirements for RPS Program requirements in the year in which it was generated and the five calendar years after the renewable energy was generated or the RECs were created. To the extent that a Phase I or Phase II Utility procures RECs for RPS Program compliance from resources the utility does not own, the utility shall be entitled to recover the costs of such certificates at its election pursuant to § 56-249.6 or subdivision A 5 d of § 56-585.1.
4. Energy from a geothermal heating and cooling system is eligible for inclusion in meeting the requirements of the RPS Program. RECs from a geothermal heating and cooling system are created based on the amount of energy, converted from BTUs to kilowatt-hours, that is generated by a geothermal heating and cooling system for space heating and cooling or water heating. The Commission shall determine the form and manner in which such RECs are verified. D. Each Phase I or Phase II Utility shall petition the Commission for necessary approvals to procure zero-carbon electricity generating capacity as set forth in this subsection and energy storage resources as set forth in subsection E. To the extent that a Phase I or Phase II Utility constructs or acquires new zero-carbon generating facilities or energy storage resources, the utility shall petition the Commission for the recovery of the costs of such facilities, at the utility's election, either through its rates for generation and distribution services or through a rate adjustment clause pursuant to subdivision A 6 of § 56-585.1. All costs not sought for recovery through a rate adjustment clause pursuant to subdivision A 6 of § 56-585.1 associated with generating facilities provided by sunlight or onshore or offshore wind are also eligible to be applied by the utility as a customer credit reinvestment offset as provided in subdivision A 8 of § 56-585.1. Costs associated with the purchase of energy, capacity, or environmental attributes from facilities owned by the persons other than the utility required by this subsection shall be recovered by the utility either through its rates for generation and distribution services or pursuant to § 56-249.6.
5. Each Phase I Utility shall petition the Commission for necessary approvals to construct, acquire, or enter into agreements to purchase the energy, capacity, and environmental attributes of 600 megawatts of generating capacity using energy derived from sunlight or onshore wind. a. By December 31, 2023, each Phase I Utility shall petition the Commission for necessary approvals to construct, acquire, or enter into agreements to purchase the energy, capacity, and environmental attributes of at least 200 megawatts of generating capacity located in the Commonwealth using energy derived from sunlight or onshore wind, and 35 percent of such generating capacity procured shall be from the purchase of energy, capacity, and environmental attributes from solar or onshore wind facilities owned by persons other than the utility, with the remainder, in the aggregate, being from construction or acquisition by such Phase I Utility. b. By December 31, 2027, each Phase I Utility shall petition the Commission for necessary approvals to construct, acquire, or enter into agreements to purchase the energy, capacity, and environmental attributes of at least 200 megawatts of additional generating capacity located in the Commonwealth using energy derived from sunlight or onshore wind, and 35 percent of such generating capacity procured shall be from the purchase of energy, capacity, and environmental attributes from solar or onshore wind facilities owned by persons other than the utility, with the remainder, in the aggregate, being from construction or acquisition by such Phase I Utility. c. By December 31, 2030, each Phase I Utility shall petition the Commission for necessary approvals to construct, acquire, or enter into agreements to purchase the energy, capacity, and environmental attributes of at least 200 megawatts of additional generating capacity located in the Commonwealth using energy derived from sunlight or onshore wind, and 35 percent of such generating capacity procured shall be from the purchase of energy, capacity, and environmental attributes from solar or onshore wind facilities owned by persons other than the utility, with the remainder, in the aggregate, being from construction or acquisition by such Phase I Utility. d. Nothing in this subdivision 1 shall prohibit such Phase I Utility from constructing, acquiring, or entering into agreements to purchase the energy, capacity, and environmental attributes of more than 600 megawatts of generating capacity located in the Commonwealth using energy derived from sunlight or onshore wind, provided the utility receives approval from the Commission pursuant to §§ 56-580 and 56-585.1.
6. By December 31, 2035, each Phase II Utility shall petition the Commission for necessary approvals to (i) construct, acquire, or enter into agreements to purchase the energy, capacity, and environmental attributes of 16,100 megawatts of generating capacity located in the Commonwealth using energy derived from sunlight or onshore wind, which shall include 1,100 megawatts of solar generation of a nameplate capacity not to exceed three megawatts per individual project and 35 percent of such generating capacity procured shall be from the purchase of energy, capacity, and environmental attributes from solar facilities owned by persons other than a utility, including utility affiliates and deregulated affiliates and (ii) pursuant to § 56-585.1:11, construct or purchase one or more offshore wind generation facilities located off the Commonwealth's Atlantic shoreline or in federal waters and interconnected directly into the Commonwealth with an aggregate capacity of up to 5,200 megawatts. At least 200 megawatts of the 16,100 megawatts shall be placed on previously developed project sites. a. By December 31, 2024, each Phase II Utility shall petition the Commission for necessary approvals to construct, acquire, or enter into agreements to purchase the energy, capacity, and environmental attributes of at least 3,000 megawatts of generating capacity located in the Commonwealth using energy derived from sunlight or onshore wind, and 35 percent of such generating capacity procured shall be from the purchase of energy, capacity, and environmental attributes from solar or onshore wind facilities owned by persons other than the utility, with the remainder, in the aggregate, being from construction or acquisition by such Phase II Utility. b. By December 31, 2027, each Phase II Utility shall petition the Commission for necessary approvals to construct, acquire, or enter into agreements to purchase the energy, capacity, and environmental attributes of at least 3,000 megawatts of additional generating capacity located in the Commonwealth using energy derived from sunlight or onshore wind, and 35 percent of such generating capacity procured shall be from the purchase of energy, capacity, and environmental attributes from solar or onshore wind facilities owned by persons other than the utility, with the remainder, in the aggregate, being from construction or acquisition by such Phase II Utility. c. By December 31, 2030, each Phase II Utility shall petition the Commission for necessary approvals to construct, acquire, or enter into agreements to purchase the energy, capacity, and environmental attributes of at least 4,000 megawatts of additional generating capacity located in the Commonwealth using energy derived from sunlight or onshore wind, and 35 percent of such generating capacity procured shall be from the purchase of energy, capacity, and environmental attributes from solar or onshore wind facilities owned by persons other than the utility, with the remainder, in the aggregate, being from construction or acquisition by such Phase II Utility. d. By December 31, 2035, each Phase II Utility shall petition the Commission for necessary approvals to construct, acquire, or enter into agreements to purchase the energy, capacity, and environmental attributes of at least 6,100 megawatts of additional generating capacity located in the Commonwealth using energy derived from sunlight or onshore wind, and 35 percent of such generating capacity procured shall be from the purchase of energy, capacity, and environmental attributes from solar or onshore wind facilities owned by persons other than the utility, with the remainder, in the aggregate, being from construction or acquisition by such Phase II Utility. e. Nothing in this subdivision 2 shall prohibit such Phase II Utility from constructing, acquiring, or entering into agreements to purchase the energy, capacity, and environmental attributes of more than 16,100 megawatts of generating capacity located in the Commonwealth using energy derived from sunlight or onshore wind, provided the utility receives approval from the Commission pursuant to §§ 56-580 and 56-585.1.
7. Nothing in this section shall prohibit a utility from petitioning the Commission to construct or acquire zero-carbon electricity or from entering into contracts to procure the energy, capacity, and environmental attributes of zero-carbon electricity generating resources in excess of the requirements in subsection B. The Commission shall determine whether to approve such petitions on a stand-alone basis pursuant to §§ 56-580 and 56-585.1, provided that the Commission's review shall also consider whether the proposed generating capacity (i) is necessary to meet the utility's native load, (ii) is likely to lower customer fuel costs, (iii) will provide economic development opportunities in the Commonwealth, and (iv) serves a need that cannot be more affordably met with demand-side or energy storage resources. Each Phase I and Phase II Utility shall, at least once every year, conduct a request for proposals for new solar and wind resources. Such requests shall quantify and describe the utility's need for energy, capacity, or renewable energy certificates. The requests for proposals shall be publicly announced and made available for public review on the utility's website at least 45 days prior to the closing of such request for proposals. The requests for proposals shall provide, at a minimum, the following information: (a) the size, type, and timing of resources for which the utility anticipates contracting; (b) any minimum thresholds that must be met by respondents; (c) major assumptions to be used by the utility in the bid evaluation process, including environmental emission standards; (d) detailed instructions for preparing bids so that bids can be evaluated on a consistent basis; (e) the preferred general location of additional capacity; and (f) specific information concerning the factors involved in determining the price and non-price criteria used for selecting winning bids. A utility may evaluate responses to requests for proposals based on any criteria that it deems reasonable but shall at a minimum consider the following in its selection process: (1) the status of a particular project's development; (2) the age of existing generation facilities; (3) the demonstrated financial viability of a project and the developer; (4) a developer's prior experience in the field; (5) the location and effect on the transmission grid of a generation facility; (6) benefits to the Commonwealth that are associated with particular projects, including regional economic development and the use of goods and services from Virginia businesses; and (7) the environmental impacts of particular resources, including impacts on air quality within the Commonwealth and the carbon intensity of the utility's generation portfolio.
8. In connection with the requirements of this subsection, each Phase I and Phase II Utility shall, commencing in 2020 and concluding in 2035, submit annually a plan and petition for approval for the development of new solar and onshore wind generation capacity. Such plan shall reflect, in the aggregate and over its duration, the requirements of subsection D concerning the allocation percentages for construction or purchase of such capacity. Such petition shall contain any request for approval to construct such facilities pursuant to subsection D of § 56-580 and a request for approval or update of a rate adjustment clause pursuant to subdivision A 6 of § 56-585.1 to recover the costs of such facilities. Such plan shall also include the utility's plan to meet the energy storage project targets of subsection E, including the goal of installing at least 10 percent of such energy storage projects behind the meter. In determining whether to approve the utility's plan and any associated petition requests, the Commission shall determine whether they are reasonable and prudent and shall give due consideration to (i) the RPS and carbon dioxide reduction requirements in this section; (ii) the promotion of new renewable generation and energy storage resources within the Commonwealth, and associated economic development; and (iii) fuel savings projected to be achieved by the plan. Notwithstanding any other provision of this title, the Commission's final order regarding any such petition and associated requests shall be entered by the Commission not more than six months after the date of the filing of such petition.
9. If, in any year, a Phase I or Phase II Utility is unable to meet the compliance obligation of the RPS Program requirements or if the cost of RECs necessary to comply with RPS Program requirements exceeds $45 per megawatt hour, such supplier shall be obligated to make a deficiency payment equal to $45 for each megawatt-hour shortfall for the year of noncompliance, except that the deficiency payment for any shortfall in procuring RECs for solar, wind, or anaerobic digesters located in the Commonwealth shall be $75 per megawatts hour for resources one megawatt and lower. The amount of any deficiency payment shall increase by one percent annually after 2021. A Phase I or Phase II Utility shall be entitled to recover the costs of such payments as a cost of compliance with the requirements of this subsection pursuant to subdivision A 5 d of § 56-585.1. All proceeds from the deficiency payments shall be deposited into an interest-bearing account administered by the Department of Energy. In administering this account, the Department of Energy shall manage the account as follows: (i) 50 percent of total revenue shall be directed to job training programs in historically economically disadvantaged communities; (ii) 16 percent of total revenue shall be directed to energy efficiency measures for public facilities; (iii) 30 percent of total revenue shall be directed to renewable energy programs located in historically economically disadvantaged communities; and (iv) four percent of total revenue shall be directed to administrative costs. For any project constructed pursuant to this subsection or subsection E, a utility shall, subject to a competitive procurement process, procure equipment from a Virginia-based or United States-based manufacturer using materials or product components made in Virginia or the United States, if reasonably available and competitively priced. E. To enhance reliability and performance of the utility's generation and distribution system, each Phase I and Phase II Utility shall petition the Commission for necessary approvals to construct or acquire new, utility-owned energy storage resources.
10. By December 31, 2035, each Phase I Utility shall petition the Commission for necessary approvals to construct or acquire 400 megawatts of energy storage capacity. Nothing in this subdivision shall prohibit a Phase I Utility from constructing or acquiring more than 400 megawatts of energy storage, provided that the utility receives approval from the Commission pursuant to §§ 56-580 and 56-585.1.
11. By December 31, 2035, each Phase II Utility shall petition the Commission for necessary approvals to construct or acquire 2,700 megawatts of energy storage capacity. Nothing in this subdivision shall prohibit a Phase II Utility from constructing or acquiring more than 2,700 megawatts of energy storage, provided that the utility receives approval from the Commission pursuant to §§ 56-580 and 56-585.1.
12. No single energy storage project shall exceed 500 megawatts in size, except that a Phase II Utility may procure a single energy storage project up to 800 megawatts.
13. All energy storage projects procured pursuant to this subsection shall meet the competitive procurement protocols established in subdivision D 3.
14. After July 1, 2020, at least 35 percent of the energy storage facilities placed into service shall be (i) purchased by the public utility from a party other than the public utility or (ii) owned by a party other than a public utility, with the capacity from such facilities sold to the public utility. By January 1, 2021, the Commission shall adopt regulations to achieve the deployment of energy storage for the Commonwealth required in subdivisions 1 and 2, including regulations that set interim targets and update existing utility planning and procurement rules. The regulations shall include programs and mechanisms to deploy energy storage, including competitive solicitations, behind-the-meter incentives, non-wires alternatives programs, and peak demand reduction programs. F. All costs incurred by a Phase I or Phase II Utility related to compliance with the requirements of this section or pursuant to § 56-585.1:11, including (i) costs of generation facilities powered by sunlight or onshore or offshore wind, or energy storage facilities, that are constructed or acquired by a Phase I or Phase II Utility after July 1, 2020, (ii) costs of capacity, energy, or environmental attributes from generation facilities powered by sunlight or onshore or offshore wind, or falling water, or energy storage facilities purchased by the utility from persons other than the utility through agreements after July 1, 2020, and (iii) all other costs of compliance, including costs associated with the purchase of RECs associated with RPS Program requirements pursuant to this section shall be recovered from all retail customers in the service territory of a Phase I or Phase II Utility as a non-bypassable charge, irrespective of the generation supplier of such customer, except (a) as provided in subsection G for an accelerated renewable energy buyer or (b) as provided in subdivision C 3 of § 56-585.1:11, with respect to the costs of an offshore wind generation facility, for a PIPP eligible utility customer or an advanced clean energy buyer or qualifying large general service customer, as those terms are defined in § 56-585.1:11. If a Phase I or Phase II Utility serves customers in more than one jurisdiction, such utility shall recover all of the costs of compliance with the RPS Program requirements from its Virginia customers through the applicable cost recovery mechanism, and all associated energy, capacity, and environmental attributes shall be assigned to Virginia to the extent that such costs are requested but not recovered from any system customers outside the Commonwealth. By September 1, 2020, the Commission shall direct the initiation of a proceeding for each Phase I and Phase II Utility to review and determine the amount of such costs, net of benefits, that should be allocated to retail customers within the utility's service territory which have elected to receive electric supply service from a supplier of electric energy other than the utility, and shall direct that tariff provisions be implemented to recover those costs from such customers beginning no later than January 1, 2021. Thereafter, such charges and tariff provisions shall be updated and trued up by the utility on an annual basis, subject to continuing review and approval by the Commission. G. 1. An accelerated renewable energy buyer may contract with a Phase I or Phase II Utility, or a person other than a Phase I or Phase II Utility, to obtain (i) RECs from RPS eligible resources or (ii) bundled capacity, energy, and RECs from solar or, wind, or zero-carbon electricity generation resources located within the PJM region and initially placed in commercial operation after January 1, 2015, including any contract with a utility for such generation resources that does not allocate the cost of such resources to or recover the cost of such resources from any other customers of the utility that have not voluntarily agreed to pay such cost. Such an accelerated renewable energy buyer may offset all or a portion of its electric load for purposes of RPS compliance through such arrangements. An accelerated renewable energy buyer shall be exempt from the assignment of non-bypassable RPS compliance costs pursuant to subsection F, with the exception of the costs of an offshore wind generating facility pursuant to § 56-585.1:11, based on the amount of RECs obtained pursuant to this subsection in proportion to the customer's total electric energy consumption, on an annual basis. An accelerated renewable energy buyer may also contract with a Phase I or Phase II Utility, or a person other than a Phase I or Phase II Utility, to obtain capacity from energy storage facilities located within the network service area of the utility pursuant to this subsection, provided that the costs of such resources are not recovered from any of the utility's customers who have not voluntarily agreed to pay for such costs. Such accelerated renewable energy buyer shall be exempt from the assignment of non-bypassable RPS Program compliance costs specifically associated with energy storage facilities pursuant to this subsection in proportion to the customer's total capacity demand on an annual basis. An accelerated renewable energy buyer obtaining RECs only shall not be exempt from costs related to procurement of new solar or onshore wind generation capacity, energy, or environmental attributes, or energy storage facilities, by the utility pursuant to subsections D and E, however, an accelerated renewable energy buyer that is a customer of a Phase II Utility and was subscribed, as of March 1, 2020, to a voluntary companion experimental tariff offering of the utility for the purchase of renewable attributes from renewable energy facilities that requires a renewable facilities agreement and the purchase of a minimum of 2,000 renewable attributes annually, shall be exempt from allocation of the net costs related to procurement of new solar or onshore wind generation capacity, energy, or environmental attributes, or energy storage facilities, by the utility pursuant to subsections D and E, based on the amount of RECs associated with the customer's renewable facilities agreements associated with such tariff offering as of that date in proportion to the customer's total electric energy consumption, on an annual basis. To the extent that an accelerated renewable energy buyer contracts for the capacity of new solar or wind generation resources or energy storage facilities pursuant to this subsection, the aggregate amount of such nameplate capacity shall be offset from the utility's procurement requirements pursuant to subsection D. All RECs associated with contracts entered into by an accelerated renewable energy buyer with the utility, or a person other than the utility, for an RPS Program shall not be credited to the utility's compliance with its RPS requirements, and the calculation of the utility's RPS Program requirements shall not include the electric load covered by customers certified as accelerated renewable energy buyers.
15. Each Phase I or Phase II Utility shall certify, and verify as necessary, to the Commission that the accelerated renewable energy buyer has satisfied the exemption requirements of this subsection for each year, or an accelerated renewable energy buyer may choose to certify satisfaction of this exemption by reporting to the Commission individually. The Commission may promulgate such rules and regulations as may be necessary to implement the provisions of this subsection.
16. Provided that no incremental costs associated with any contract between a Phase I or Phase II Utility and an accelerated renewable energy buyer is allocated to or recovered from any other customer of the utility, any such contract with an accelerated renewable energy buyer that is a jurisdictional customer of the utility shall not be deemed a special rate or contract requiring Commission approval pursuant to § 56-235.2.
17. The State Corporation Commission shall ensure that any distribution and transmission costs associated with new energy generation resources procured pursuant to subsection G of § 56-585.5 of the Code of Virginia, as amended by this act, are justly and reasonably allocated. H. No customer of a Phase II Utility with a peak demand in excess of 100 megawatts in 2019 that elected pursuant to subdivision A 3 of § 56-577 to purchase electric energy from a competitive service provider prior to April 1, 2019, shall be allocated any non-bypassable charges pursuant to subsection F for such period that the customer is not purchasing electric energy from the utility, and such customer's electric load shall not be included in the utility's RPS Program requirements. No customer of a Phase I Utility that elected pursuant to subdivision A 3 of § 56-577 to purchase electric energy from a competitive service provider prior to February 1, 2019, shall be allocated any non-bypassable charges pursuant to subsection F for such period that the customer is not purchasing electric energy from the utility, and such customer's electric load shall not be included in the utility's RPS Program requirements. I. In any petition by a Phase I or Phase II Utility for a certificate of public convenience and necessity to construct and operate an electrical generating facility that generates electric energy derived from sunlight submitted pursuant to § 56-580, such utility shall demonstrate that the proposed facility was subject to competitive procurement or solicitation as set forth in subdivision D 3. J. Notwithstanding any contrary provision of law, for the purposes of this section, any falling water generation facility located in the Commonwealth and commencing commercial operations prior to July 1, 2024, shall be considered a renewable energy portfolio standard (RPS) eligible source. K. Nothing in this section shall apply to any entity organized under Chapter 9.1 (§ 56-231.15 et seq.). L. The Commission shall adopt such rules and regulations as may be necessary to implement the provisions of this section, including a requirement that participants verify whether the RPS Program requirements are met in accordance with this section. 2020, cc. 1193, 1194; 2021, Sp. Sess. I, cc. 140, 328, 532; 2023, cc. 732, 803, 804; 2024, cc. 596, 597; 2025, cc. 707, 708, 713, 714.

Va. Code § 56-585.6

§ 56-585.6. Universal service fee; Percentage of Income Payment Program and Fund.A. The Commission shall, after notice and opportunity for hearing, initiate a proceeding to establish the rates, terms, and conditions of a non-bypassable universal service fee to fund the Percentage of Income Payment Program (PIPP). Such universal service fee shall be allocated to retail electric customers of a Phase I and Phase II Utility on the basis of the amount of kilowatt-hours used and be established at such level to adequately address the PIPP's objectives to (i) reduce the energy burden of eligible participants by limiting electric bill payments directly to no more than six percent of the eligible participant's annual household income if the household's heating source is anything other than electricity, and to no more than 10 percent of an eligible participant's annual household income on electricity costs if the household's primary heating source is electricity; (ii) reduce the amount of electricity used by the eligible participant's household through participation in weatherization or energy efficiency programs and energy conservation education programs; and (iii) reduce the amount of energy, regardless of primary heating source, used by the eligible participant's household through participation in weatherization or energy efficiency programs and energy conservation education programs. The annual total cost of any programs implemented pursuant to clauses (i), (ii), and (iii) shall not exceed costs, including administrative costs, in the aggregate of (a) $25 million for any Phase I Utility or (b) $100 million for any Phase II Utility in any rate year in which such program costs are incurred. B. The Commission shall determine the reasonable administrative costs for the investor-owned utility to collect the universal service fee and remit such funds to the Percentage of Income Payment Fund established in subsection E, and any other administrative costs the investor-owned utility may incur in complying with the PIPP, and shall determine the proper recovery mechanism for such costs. A Phase I and Phase II Utility shall not be eligible to earn a rate of return on any equity or costs incurred to comply with the program requirements or implementation. The Commission shall initiate proceedings to provide for an annual true-up of the universal service fee within 60 days of the commencement of the PIPP and on an annual or semiannual basis thereafter. As part of any annual true-up case, each Phase I and Phase II Utility shall report to the Commission any data or forecasting required by the Commission regarding the participation by PIPP participants in utility energy reduction programs. C. The Department of Social Services (the Department), in consultation with, as it deems necessary, the Department of Housing and Community Development, shall adopt rules or establish guidelines for the adoption, implementation, and general administration of the PIPP and the Percentage of Income Payment Fund established in subsection E, consistent with this section. Such rules or guidelines shall include exemptions for terms of program participation or energy use reduction as the Department deems appropriate. The PIPP shall commence no later than one year after the Department publishes such rules or guidelines. Each Phase I and Phase II Utility shall cooperate with the requests of the Department in the implementation and administration of the PIPP. The Commission shall promulgate any rules necessary to ensure that (i) funds collected from each utility's universal service fee are directed to the Percentage of Income Payment Fund and (ii) utilities receive adequate compensation from the Fund, on a timely basis, for all reasonable costs of the PIPP, including costs associated with bill payment credits for eligible customers. D. In carrying out the PIPP's objective of electricity usage reductions, PIPP-eligible customers may, to the extent reasonably possible, utilize existing energy efficiency or related programs approved by the Commission for a Phase I and Phase II Utility and existing and available federal, state, local, or nonprofit programs. The Department may review the needs of PIPP-eligible customers and whether gaps remain in serving such customers that are not already served by existing and available federal, state, local, or nonprofit programs to meet the energy reduction obligations of this section. The Department shall report the results of such analysis and review to the Chairs of the House Committee on Labor and Commerce and the Senate Committee on Commerce and Labor no later than November 1, 2022. E. There is hereby created in the state treasury a special nonreverting fund to be known as the Percentage of Income Payment Fund, referred to in this section as "the Fund." The Fund shall be established on the books of the Comptroller. All funds collected from each Phase I and Phase II Utility's universal service fee shall be paid into the state treasury and credited to the Fund. Interest earned on moneys in the Fund shall remain in the Fund and be credited to it. Any moneys remaining in the Fund, including interest thereon, at the end of each fiscal year shall not revert to the general fund but shall remain in the Fund. Moneys in the Fund shall be used solely for the purposes of implementation and administration of the PIPP, including any associated start-up costs. Expenditures and disbursements from the Fund shall be made by the State Treasurer on warrants issued by the Comptroller upon written request signed by the Commissioner of the Department of Social Services or by order of the Commission in conjunction with a true-up proceeding. 2020, cc. 1193, 1194; 2021, Sp. Sess. I, c. 308.

Va. Code § 56-585.7

§ 56-585.7. On-bill tariff program; electric cooperatives.A. As used in this section: "Cooperative" means a utility consumer services cooperative. "Eligible customer" means a member-consumer receiving service from a cooperative that (i) has asked to participate in the cooperative's on-bill tariff program and (ii) has been determined by the cooperative to be eligible to participate in its on-bill tariff program. "Energy efficiency measures" means any installation, improvement, addition, or equipment approved by the cooperative for purpose of its on-bill tariff program that has the primary purpose of improving the energy efficiency of the premises and reducing its consumption of energy, including heating and air conditioning systems, water heaters, weatherization, insulation, window and door modifications, appliances, and automatic or Internet-connected energy control systems. "Energy efficiency measures" does not include (i) energy conservation measures to improve the energy efficiency of premises constructed within five years prior to an eligible customer's request to participate in an on-bill tariff program or premises that are under initial construction or (ii) the electrification of any process or activity primarily fueled by natural gas. "Energy savings charge" means the charge placed by the cooperative on the monthly billing statement of an eligible customer or subsequent customers in order to recover the costs of the energy efficiency measures installed at the eligible customer's premises. "On-bill tariff agreement" means an agreement between an eligible customer and a cooperative that provides for the terms, conditions, payments, and costs, including financing or capital costs, of the installation of energy efficiency measures at a premises to be paid by or through the cooperative and repaid by the eligible customer or subsequent customer at the same premises by means of an energy savings charge. "On-bill tariff program" means a voluntary tariff program that allows eligible customers (i) to arrange through the cooperative for its provision and installation, including by its chosen vendors, of energy efficiency measures at the customer's premises without an upfront payment and (ii) to pay back over time the cost of the energy efficiency measures through an energy savings charge. "Program costs" means a participating cooperative's (i) identified, projected, and actual costs to design, implement, and operate its on-bill tariff program, including costs to request and evaluate vendor proposals and manage the vendors; (ii) administrative, labor, and marketing charges; (iii) costs of obtaining funds used by the cooperative to pay for the energy efficiency measures; (iv) write-offs for unpaid energy savings charges after reasonable collection efforts; and (v) reasonable margin. B. On or after January 1, 2021, notwithstanding any other provision of law, a cooperative may, without Commission approval, upon an affirmative resolution of its board of directors and without the requirement of any filing other than as required in this subsection, propose, establish, and implement an on-bill tariff program for energy efficiency measures, provided that such program adheres to the provisions of this section. This regulated, tariffed program shall be reviewable by the Commission at the cooperative's next general rate proceeding. A cooperative shall recover the program costs through a new rate schedule established by this section or otherwise through its rates. A cooperative shall file a copy of any such new rate schedule with the Commission for informational purposes. C. At least 120 days prior to making an informational filing as described in subsection B, a cooperative shall conduct a stakeholder process to design the on-bill tariff program collaboratively with interested parties. Such stakeholder process shall be open to the cooperative's membership and invited guests and shall include an opportunity to participate for low-income and middle-income advocates, energy efficiency advocates, affordable housing advocates, and the staff of the Commission. The stakeholder process shall examine and recommend, among other things, appropriate additional consumer safeguards for potential adoption by the cooperative, including oversight of third-party vendors and appropriate methods for notifying customers that vendors are subject to the Virginia Consumer Protection Act (§ 59.1-196 et seq.). The stakeholder process shall allow for remote or electronic participation and may include multiple cooperatives or be coordinated, convened, and facilitated by a group or association of cooperatives. The meetings of the stakeholders may be held anywhere in the Commonwealth. The cooperative shall include documentation concerning the stakeholder process in its informational filing to the Commission. D. A cooperative's on-bill tariff program shall include criteria for selecting eligible customers; limits on the individual and aggregate amounts of energy efficiency measures for each eligible customer; limits on the overall amount available under the on-bill tariff program; generally applicable repayment terms; and qualifications of potential vendors that will market or install energy efficiency measures. Multiple cooperatives may collaborate to create a similar structure for on-bill tariff programs. E. An on-bill tariff agreement shall: 1. Specify that the eligible customer or subsequent customers at the premises shall only be responsible for the payment of the energy savings charge upon satisfactory installation of the energy efficiency measures as set forth in their on-bill tariff agreement; 2. Specify that the cooperative may recover the costs, including financing or capital costs, of installing the energy efficiency measures at an eligible customer's premises through the energy savings charge; 3. Provide for the inclusion of an energy savings charge that is stated as a separate line item on the eligible customer's or subsequent customer's utility bill; 4. Provide that an eligible customer shall enter into an on-bill tariff agreement to participate in the on-bill tariff program; 5. Provide that the cooperative may apply the energy savings charge to the meter or bill of subsequent customers at the premises and that the then-current eligible customer is required to notify the subsequent customer of the on-bill tariff agreement and the energy savings charge; 6. Deem amounts due under the tariff to be amounts owed for regulated electric service and for which an eligible customer is subject to disconnection of service pursuant to the cooperative's existing policies for disconnection; 7. Provide that any loan or financing interest rate or cost of capital, or their equivalent, that is provided to the eligible customer pursuant to an on-bill tariff agreement shall be less than prevailing market rates; 8. Provide that payments for energy-saving charges made by eligible and subsequent customers shall be retained by the cooperative and amounts credited against the appropriate category of program costs; and 9. Result in deemed savings that are reasonably projected, based on the customer's energy utilization and rates at the beginning of the term, to result in lower energy bills for the customer, and that allocate a portion of the gross cost savings resulting from the energy efficiency measures to the eligible customer and the remaining portion to the cooperative to recover the program costs. F. Customers having a grievance or complaints against an on-bill tariff program shall have recourse to the informal and formal procedures of the Commission. 2020, c. 807; 2024, c. 607.

Va. Code § 56-585.8

§ 56-585.8. Biennial rate reviews.A. For the purposes of this section: "Phase I Utility" has the same meaning as provided in subdivision A 1 of § 56-585.1. "Utility" means a Phase I Utility. B. With the first review commencing on March 31, 2024, and on May 31 biennially thereafter, the Commission shall conduct rate reviews of the rates, terms, and conditions for the provision of generation and distribution services by a Phase I Utility that participated in triennial review proceedings in 2020 and 2023, and such Phase I Utility shall no longer be subject to triennial review proceedings pursuant to § 56-585.1. C. In each biennial review, the Commission shall conduct a proceeding to review all rates, terms, and conditions for generation and distribution services with such proceeding utilizing the two successive 12-month test periods ending December 31 immediately preceding the year in which such proceeding is conducted. Such biennial review shall be conducted in a single, combined proceeding, except for review of the following costs, which the utility shall continue to recover and the Commission shall continue to review separately, pursuant to the applicable statutory provisions: costs that are recovered pursuant to (i) § 56-249.6, (ii) subdivisions A 4, 5, and 6 of § 56-585.1, and (iii) § 56-585.6. D. Beginning in 2026, each biennial rate review proceeding shall commence on May 31 of the biennial review year with the filing of a petition by each Phase I Utility subject to the provisions of this section. The Commission, after providing notice and an opportunity for hearing, shall grant a final order on such petition no later than January 15 of the subsequent year, with any revisions in rates ordered by the Commission pursuant to the rate review taking effect no earlier than March 1. E. In each biennial review proceeding, the Commission shall set the fair rate of return on common equity applicable to the generation and distribution services of the utility for the two such services combined and for any rate adjustment clauses approved under subdivision A 5 or 6 of § 56-585.1. The Commission may use any methodology it finds consistent with the public interest to determine the Phase I Utility's fair rate of return on common equity. The Commission may increase or decrease the combined rate of return for generation and distribution services by up to 50 basis points based on factors that may include reliability, generating plant performance, customer service, and operating efficiency of a utility. Any such adjustment to the combined rate of return for generation and distribution services shall include consideration of nationally recognized standards determined by the Commission to be appropriate for such purposes. F. In any biennial review for a Phase I Utility, if the Commission determines in its sole discretion that the utility's existing rates for generation and distribution services will, on a going-forward basis, either produce (i) revenues in excess of the utility's authorized rate of return or (ii) revenues below the utility's authorized rate of return, then the Commission shall order any reductions or increases, as applicable and necessary, to such rates for generation and distribution services that it deems appropriate to ensure the resulting rates for generation and distribution services (a) are just and reasonable and (b) provide the utility an opportunity to recover its costs of providing services over the rate period ending on December 31 of the year of the utility's succeeding review and earn a fair rate of return authorized pursuant to this section. Such determination shall be limited to the Phase I Utility's rates for generation and distribution services and shall not consider the costs or revenues recovered in any rate adjustment clause authorized pursuant to this chapter. G. In any biennial review of rates for generation and distribution services, if the combined rate of return on common equity earned is no more than 100 basis points above or below the fair combined rate of return, as determined by the Commission, for the test period under review, then such combined return shall not be considered either excessive or insufficient, respectively. 1. If in any biennial review, the Commission finds that, during the test period under review, considered as a whole, the utility has earned more than 100 basis points above the authorized fair combined rate of return on its generation or distribution services, the Commission shall direct that 100 percent of the amount of such earnings that were more than 100 basis points above such fair combined rate of return for the test period under review, considered as a whole, be credited to customers' bills. Any such credits shall be applied to customers' bills, as determined at the discretion of the Commission, following the effective date of the Commission's order, and shall be allocated among customer classes such that the relationship between the specific customer class rates of return to the overall target rate of return will have the same relationship as the last approved allocation of revenues used to design base rates; or 2. The Commission shall authorize deferred recovery for reasonable (i) actual costs associated with severe weather events and (ii) actual costs associated with natural disasters, not currently in rates, and the Commission shall allow the utility to amortize and recover such deferred costs over future periods as determined by the Commission. The amount of any such deferral shall not exceed an amount that would, together with the utility's other costs, revenues, and investments recovered through rates for generation and distribution services for the test period under review, cause the utility's earned return on its generation and distribution services to exceed 100 basis points above the fair combined rate of return applicable to the test period under review. For the purposes of determining any amount of costs that are associated with severe weather events, the Commission shall consider nationally recognized standards such as those published by the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE). Any amount of a utility's earnings directed by the Commission to be credited to customers' bills pursuant to this subsection shall not be considered for the purpose of determining the utility's earnings in any subsequent biennial review. H. In any proceeding under this title, including each biennial review, to determine the prior two years' excess or deficiency for the purposes of subsection F, the Commission shall use an average rate base using the actual starting and end-of-test period capital structure of the utility, excluding any debt associated with any securitized bonds and without regard to the cost of capital, capital structure, or investments of any other entities with which the utility is affiliated. To determine a revenue requirement in any proceeding under this title, the Commission shall use the utility's actual end-of-test period capital structure and cost of capital without regard to the cost of capital, capital structure, or investments of any other entities with which the utility is affiliated, including debt associated with any securitized bonds, unless the Commission makes a finding, based on evidence in the record, that the debt to equity ratio of the actual end-of-test period capital structure of such utility is unreasonable, in which case the Commission may utilize a debt to equity ratio that it finds to be reasonable. In a rate review for a Phase I Utility that is part of a publicly traded, consolidated group, the Commission shall determine federal and state income tax costs as follows: (i) the utility's apportioned state income tax costs shall be calculated according to the applicable statutory rate, as if the utility had not filed a consolidated return with its affiliates, and (ii) the utility's federal income tax costs shall be calculated according to the applicable federal income tax rate and shall exclude any consolidated tax liability or benefit adjustments originating from any taxable income or loss of its affiliates. I. The Commission is authorized to determine during any biennial review the reasonableness or prudence of any cost subject to the rate review incurred or projected to be incurred by the utility, and a Phase I Utility shall recover such costs that the Commission finds to be reasonable and prudent. J. In any biennial review conducted pursuant to this section, a Phase I Utility or any other party may propose changes to its terms and conditions and the Commission may approve, reject, or amend any changes and may propose any special rates, contracts, or incentives pursuant to § 56-235.2. K. Nothing in this section shall alter a Phase I Utility's obligations pursuant to §§ 56-585.5 and 56-596.2. L. To the extent that the provisions of this section are inconsistent with the provisions of § 56-585.1, the provisions of this section shall control. 2023, cc. 749, 776; 2025, cc. 497, 597.

Va. Code § 56-586

§ 56-586. Emergency service provider.On and after January 1, 2001, if any supplier fails to fulfill an obligation, resulting in the failure of retail electric energy to be delivered into the control area serving the supplier's retail customer, the entity fulfilling the control area function, or, if applicable, the regional transmission entity or other entity as designated by the Commission, shall be responsible for charging the defaulting supplier for the full cost of replacement energy, including the cost of energy, the cost incurred by others as a result of the default, and the assessment of penalties as may be approved either by the Commission, to the extent not precluded by federal law, or by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission. The Commission, as part of the rules established under § 56-587, shall determine the circumstances under which failures to deliver electricity will result in the revocation of the supplier's license. 1999, c. 411.

Va. Code § 56-586.1

§ 56-586.1. Electric energy emergencies.A. As used in this section, "electric energy emergency" means an unplanned interruption in the generation or transmission of electricity resulting from a hurricane, ice storm, windstorm, earthquake or similar natural phenomena, or from a criminal act affecting such generation or transmission, act of war or act of terrorism, which interruption is (i) of such severity that minimum levels of reliable service cannot be maintained using resources practicably obtainable from the market and (ii) so imminently and substantially threatening to the health, safety or welfare of residents of this Commonwealth that immediate action of state government is necessary to prevent loss of life, protect the public health or safety, and prevent unnecessary or avoidable damage to property. B. The Governor is authorized, after finding that an electric energy emergency exists and that appropriate federal and state agencies and appropriate reliability councils cannot adequately address such emergency, to declare an electric energy emergency by filing a written declaration with the Secretary of the Commonwealth. The declaration shall state the counties and cities or utility service areas of the Commonwealth in which the declaration is applicable, or its statewide application. A declared electric energy emergency shall go into immediate effect upon filing and continue in effect for the period prescribed in the declaration, but not more than thirty days. At the end of the prescribed period, the Governor may issue another declaration extending the emergency. The Governor shall terminate such declaration as soon as the basis for such declaration no longer exists. C. During a declared electric energy emergency, the Governor is authorized, in compliance with guidelines of the Department of Emergency Services promulgated as provided in subsection G, to require any generator or any municipal electric utility that is capable of generating but (i) is not generating or (ii) is not generating at its full potential during such declared electric emergency, to generate, dispatch or sell electricity from a facility that it operates within the Commonwealth, to the Commonwealth for distribution within the areas of the Commonwealth designated in the declaration. The quantity of electricity required to be generated, dispatched or sold, and the duration of such requirements, shall be as determined by the Governor to be necessary to alleviate the electric energy emergency hardship. The Commonwealth shall compensate an entity required to generate, dispatch, or sell electricity pursuant to this subsection, and the operator of any transmission facilities over which the electricity is transmitted, in the manner provided in § 56-522, mutatis mutandis, unless otherwise provided by federal law. The Department of Environmental Quality, the State Air Pollution Control Board, the State Water Control Board, and the Virginia Waste Management Board shall issue any temporary or emergency permit, order, or variance necessary to authorize any permit amendments or other changes needed to meet the requirements imposed under this section and the Governor may petition the President to declare a regional energy emergency under 42 U.S.C. § 7410 (f) as necessary to suspend enforcement of any provision of the federal Clean Air Act. Any increased operation required during such declared emergency shall not be counted towards the number of hours of operation allowed during the year. No civil charges or penalties shall be imposed for any violation that occurs as a result of actions taken that are necessary for the required generation, dispatch or sale during the declared electric energy emergency. The foregoing provisions shall apply to all actions the entity takes in connection with such required generation, dispatch or sale during the period of the declared emergency. D. During a declared electric energy emergency, the Governor may use the services, equipment, supplies, and facilities of existing departments, offices, and agencies of the Commonwealth, and of the political subdivisions thereof, to the maximum extent practicable and necessary to meet the electric energy emergency. The officers and personnel of all such departments, offices, and agencies shall cooperate with and extend such services and facilities to the Governor upon request. E. During a declared electric energy emergency, the Governor is authorized to request the Secretary of the United States Department of Energy to invoke section 202(C) of the Federal Power Act, 16 U.S.C. § 824a (1935). F. The General Assembly is authorized by joint resolution to terminate any declaration of an electric energy emergency. The emergency shall be terminated at the time of filing of the joint resolution with the Secretary of the Commonwealth. G. The Department of Emergency Services, in consultation with the Commission and the Secretary of Commerce and Trade, shall establish guidelines for the implementation of the Governor's powers pursuant to subsection C that protect the public health and safety and prevent unnecessary or avoidable damage to property with a minimum of economic disruption to generators, transmitters and distributors of electricity. Such guidelines shall: 1. Define various foreseeable levels of electric energy emergencies and specify appropriate measures to be taken for each type of electric energy emergency as necessary to protect the public health or safety or prevent unnecessary or avoidable damage to property; 2. Prescribe appropriate response measures for each level of electric energy emergency; and 3. Equitably distribute the burdens and benefits resulting from the implementation of this section among other members of the affected class of persons within all geographic regions of the Commonwealth. H. During a declared electric energy emergency, the attorney general may bring an action for injunctive or other appropriate relief in the Circuit Court of the City of Richmond to secure prompt compliance. The court may issue an ex parte temporary order without notice that shall enforce the prohibitions, restrictions or actions that are necessary to secure compliance with the guideline, order or declaration. I. During a declared electric energy emergency, no person shall intentionally violate any guideline adopted or declaration issued pursuant to this section. Any person who violates this section is guilty of a Class 1 misdemeanor. 2002, c. 609.

Va. Code § 56-587

§ 56-587. Licensure of retail electric energy suppliers and persons providing other competitive services.A. As a condition of doing business in the Commonwealth, each person except a default service provider seeking to sell, offering to sell, or selling electric energy to any retail customer in the Commonwealth, on and after January 1, 2002, shall obtain a license from the Commission to do so. A license shall not be required solely for the leasing or financing of property used in the sale of electricity to any retail customer in the Commonwealth. The license shall authorize that person to engage in the activities authorized by such license until the license expires or is otherwise terminated, suspended or revoked. B. 1. As a condition of obtaining, retaining and renewing any license issued pursuant to this section, a person shall satisfy such reasonable and nondiscriminatory requirements as may be specified by the Commission, which may include requirements that such person (i) demonstrate, in a manner satisfactory to the Commission, financial responsibility; (ii) post a bond as deemed adequate by the Commission to ensure that financial responsibility; (iii) pay an annual license fee to be determined by the Commission; and (iv) pay all taxes and fees lawfully imposed by the Commonwealth or by any municipality or other political subdivision of the Commonwealth. In addition, as a condition of obtaining, retaining and renewing any license pursuant to this section, a person shall satisfy such reasonable and nondiscriminatory requirements as may be specified by the Commission, including but not limited to requirements that such person demonstrate (i) technical capabilities as the Commission may deem appropriate; (ii) in the case of a person seeking to sell, offering to sell, or selling electric energy to any retail customer in the Commonwealth, access to generation and generation reserves; and (iii) adherence to minimum market conduct standards. 2. Any license issued by the Commission pursuant to this section to a person seeking to sell, offering to sell, or selling electric energy to any retail customer in the Commonwealth may be conditioned upon the licensee furnishing to the Commission prior to the provision of electric energy to consumers proof of adequate access to generation and generation reserves. C. The Commission: 1. Shall establish a reasonable period within which any retail customer may cancel, without penalty or cost, any contract entered into with any person licensed pursuant to this section; and 2. May adopt other rules and regulations governing the requirements for obtaining, retaining, and renewing a license issued pursuant to this section, and may, as appropriate, refuse to issue a license to, or suspend, revoke, or refuse to renew the license of, any person that does not meet those requirements. D. Each licensed supplier serving customers of a Phase I Utility, as defined in subdivision A 1 of § 56-585.1, shall file a report, verified by the president or the equivalent executive of such supplier, with the Commission by March 31 of each year that contains: 1. Copies of all marketing materials and other public information conveyed to potential customers regarding the services offered by the supplier; 2. Usage and revenue data for the most recent year submitted to the U.S. Energy Information Administration; 3. Copies of all agreements entered into during the previous calendar year with such customers taking service under subdivision A 3 of § 56-577. Such agreements may be filed under seal, and if so will be afforded confidential treatment and will not be disclosed beyond the Commission or its staff; and 4. A statement that the agreements submitted comply with the Commission's Rules Governing Retail Access to Competitive Energy Services (20VAC5-312-10 et seq.). Failure to provide such report may be grounds for suspension or revocation of the supplier's license to sell retail electric energy within the Commonwealth. E. Notwithstanding the provisions of § 13.1-620, a public service company may, through an affiliate or subsidiary, conduct one or more of the following businesses, even if such business is not related to or incidental to its stated business as a public service company: (i) become licensed as a retail electric energy supplier pursuant to this section, or for purposes of participation in an approved pilot program encompassing retail customer choice of electric energy suppliers; (ii) become licensed as an aggregator pursuant to § 56-588, or for purposes of participation in an approved pilot program encompassing retail customer choice of electric energy suppliers; or (iii) own, manage or control any plant or equipment or any part of a plant or equipment used for the generation of electric energy. 1999, c. 411; 2000, c. 991; 2007, cc. 888, 933; 2019, c. 833.

Va. Code § 56-588

§ 56-588. Licensing of aggregators.A. As a condition of doing business in the Commonwealth, each person seeking to act as an aggregator within this Commonwealth on and after January 1, 2002, shall obtain a license from the Commission to do so. The license shall authorize that person to act as an aggregator until the license expires or is otherwise terminated, suspended or revoked. Licensing pursuant to this section, however, shall not relieve any person seeking to act as a supplier of electric energy from their obligation to obtain a license as a supplier pursuant to § 56-587. B. As a condition of obtaining, retaining and renewing any license issued pursuant to this section, a person shall satisfy such reasonable and nondiscriminatory requirements as may be specified by the Commission, which may include requirements that such person (i) provide background information; (ii) demonstrate, in a manner satisfactory to the Commission, financial responsibility; (iii) post a bond as deemed adequate by the Commission to ensure that financial responsibility; (iv) pay an annual license fee to be determined by the Commission; and (v) pay all taxes and fees lawfully imposed by the Commonwealth or by any municipality or other political subdivision of the Commonwealth. In addition, as a condition of obtaining, retaining and renewing any license pursuant to this section, a person shall satisfy such reasonable and nondiscriminatory requirements as may be specified by the Commission, including, but not limited to, requirements that such person demonstrate technical capabilities as the Commission may deem appropriate. Any license issued by the Commission pursuant to this section may be conditioned upon the licensee, if acting as a supplier, furnishing to the Commission prior to the provision of electricity to consumers proof of adequate access to generation and generation reserves. C. In establishing aggregator licensing schemes and requirements applicable to the same, the Commission may differentiate between (i) those aggregators representing retail customers only, (ii) those aggregators representing suppliers only, and (iii) those aggregators representing both retail customers and suppliers. D. 1. The Commission shall establish a reasonable period within which any retail customer may cancel, without penalty or cost, any contract entered into with an aggregator licensed pursuant to this section. 2. The Commission may adopt other rules and regulations governing the requirements for obtaining, retaining, and renewing a license to aggregate electric energy to retail customers, and may, as appropriate, refuse to issue a license to, or suspend, revoke, or refuse to renew the license of, any person that does not meet those requirements. 1999, c. 411; 2000, c. 991.

Va. Code § 56-589

§ 56-589. Municipal and state aggregation.A. Subject to the provisions of subdivision A 3 of § 56-577, counties, cities, and towns (hereafter municipalities) and other political subdivisions of the Commonwealth may, at their election and upon authorization by majority votes of their governing bodies, aggregate electrical energy and demand requirements for the purpose of negotiating the purchase of electrical energy requirements from any licensed supplier within this Commonwealth, as follows: 1. Any municipality or other political subdivision of the Commonwealth may aggregate the electric energy load of residential, commercial, and industrial retail customers within its boundaries on an opt-in or opt-out basis. 2. Any municipality or other political subdivision of the Commonwealth may aggregate the electric energy load of its governmental buildings, facilities, and any other governmental operations requiring the consumption of electric energy. Aggregation pursuant to this subdivision shall not require licensure pursuant to § 56-588. 3. Two or more municipalities or other political subdivisions within the Commonwealth may aggregate the electric energy load of their governmental buildings, facilities, and any other governmental operations requiring the consumption of electric energy. Aggregation pursuant to this subdivision shall not require licensure pursuant to § 56-588 when such municipalities or other political subdivisions are acting jointly to negotiate or arrange for themselves agreements for their energy needs directly with licensed suppliers or aggregators. Nothing in this subsection shall prohibit the Commission's development and implementation of pilot programs for opt-in, opt-out, or any other type of municipal aggregation, as provided in § 56-577. B. The Commonwealth, at its election, may aggregate the electric energy load of its governmental buildings, facilities, and any other government operations requiring the consumption of electric energy for the purpose of negotiating the purchase of electricity from any licensed supplier within the Commonwealth. Aggregation pursuant to this subsection shall not require licensure pursuant to § 56-588. C. Nothing in this section shall preclude municipalities from aggregating the electric energy load of their governmental buildings, facilities and any other governmental operations requiring the consumption of electric energy for the purpose of negotiating rates and terms, and conditions of service from the electric utility certificated by the Commission to serve the territory in which such buildings, facilities and operations are located, provided, however, that no such electric energy load shall be aggregated for this purpose unless all such buildings, facilities and operations to be aggregated are served by the same electric utility. 1999, c. 411; 2000, c. 991; 2003, c. 795; 2004, c. 827; 2007, cc. 888, 933.

Va. Code § 56-590

§ 56-590. Divestiture, functional separation and other corporate relationships.A. The Commission shall not require any incumbent electric utility to divest itself of any generation, transmission or distribution assets pursuant to any provision of this chapter. B. 1. The Commission shall, however, direct the functional separation of generation, retail transmission and distribution of all incumbent electric utilities in connection with the provisions of this chapter to be completed by January 1, 2002. 2. By January 1, 2001, each incumbent electric utility shall submit to the Commission a plan for such functional separation which may be accomplished through the creation of affiliates, or through such other means as may be acceptable to the Commission. 3. Consistent with this chapter, the Commission may impose conditions, as the public interest requires, upon its approval of any incumbent electric utility's plan for functional separation, including requirements that (i) the incumbent electric utility's generation assets or, at the election of the incumbent electric utility and if approved by the Commission pursuant to subdivision 4 of this subsection, their equivalent are made available for electric service during the capped rate period as provided in § 56-582 and, if applicable, during any period the distributor serves as a default provider as provided for in § 56-585; (ii) the incumbent electric utility receive Commission approval for the sale, transfer or other disposition of generation assets during the capped rate period and, if applicable, during any period the distributor serves as a default provider; and (iii) any such generation asset sold, transferred, or otherwise disposed of by the incumbent electric utility with Commission approval shall not be further sold, transferred, or otherwise disposed of during the capped rate period and, if applicable, during any period the distributor serves as default provider, without additional Commission approval. 4. If an incumbent electric utility proposes that the equivalent to its generation assets be made available pursuant to subdivision 3 of this subsection, the Commission shall determine the adequacy of such proposal and shall approve or reject such proposal based on the public interest. 5. In exercising its authority under the provisions of this section and under § 56-90, the Commission shall have no authority to regulate, on a cost-of-service basis or other basis, the price at which generation assets or their equivalent are made available for default service purposes. Such restriction on the Commission's authority to regulate, on a cost-of-service basis or other basis, prices for default service shall not affect the ability of a distributor to offer to provide, and of the Commission to approve if appropriate the provision of, such services on a cost plus basis or any other basis. The Commission's authority to regulate the price of default service shall be consistent with the pricing provisions applicable to a distributor pursuant to § 56-585. In addition, the Commission shall, in exercising its responsibilities under this section and under § 56-90, consider, among other factors, the potential effects of any such transfer on: (i) rates and reliability of capped rate service under § 56-582, and of default service under § 56-585, and (ii) the development of a competitive market in the Commonwealth for retail generation services. However, the Commission may not deny approval of a transfer proposed by an incumbent electric utility, pursuant to subdivisions 2 and 4 of this subsection, due to an inability to determine, at the time of consideration of the transfer, default service prices under § 56-585. C. The Commission shall, to the extent necessary to promote effective competition in the Commonwealth, promulgate rules and regulations to carry out the provisions of this section, which rules and regulations shall include provisions: 1. Prohibiting cost-shifting or cross-subsidies between functionally separate units; 2. Prohibiting functionally separate units from engaging in anticompetitive behavior or self-dealing; 3. Prohibiting affiliated entities from engaging in discriminatory behavior towards nonaffiliated units; and 4. Establishing codes of conduct detailing permissible relations between functionally separate units. D. Neither a covered entity nor an affiliate thereof may be a party to a covered transaction without the prior approval of the Commission. Any such person proposing to be a party to such transaction shall file an application with the Commission. The Commission shall approve or disapprove such transaction within sixty days after the filing of a completed application; however, the sixty-day period may be extended by Commission order for a period not to exceed an additional 120 days. The application shall be deemed approved if the Commission fails to act within such initial or extended period. The Commission shall approve such application if it finds, after notice and opportunity for hearing, that the transaction will comply with the requirements of subsection E, and may, as a part of its approval, establish such conditions or limitations on such transaction as it finds necessary to ensure compliance with subsection E. E. A transaction described in subsection D shall not: 1. Substantially lessen competition among the actual or prospective providers of noncompetitive electric service or of a service which is, or is likely to become, a competitive electric service; or 2. Jeopardize or impair the safety or reliability of electric service in the Commonwealth, or the provision of any noncompetitive electric service at just and reasonable rates. F. Except as provided in subdivision B 5, nothing in this chapter shall be deemed to abrogate or modify the Commission's authority under Chapter 3 (§ 56-55 et seq.), 4 (§ 56-76 et seq.) or 5 (§ 56-88 et seq.) of this title. However, any person subject to the requirements of subsection D that is also subject to the requirements of Chapter 5 of this title may be exempted from compliance with the requirements of Chapter 5 of this title. 1999, c. 411; 2000, c. 991; 2001, c. 748; 2007, cc. 888, 933.

Va. Code § 56-592

§ 56-592. Consumer education and marketing practices.A. The Commission shall develop an electric energy consumer education program designed to provide the following information to retail customers: 1. Information regarding energy conservation, energy efficiency, demand-side management, demand response, and renewable energy; 2. Information concerning demand-side management and demand response programs offered in the Commonwealth to retail customers; 3. Information regarding the matters described in subdivisions 1 and 2 that are specifically designed for the industrial, commercial, residential, and government sectors; and 4. Such other information as the Commission may deem necessary and appropriate in the public interest. B. The Commission shall complete the development of the consumer education program described in subsection A, and report its findings and recommendations to the Commission on Electric Utility Regulation as frequently as may be required by such Commission concerning: 1. The scope of such recommended program consistent with the requirements of subsection A; 2. Materials and media required to effectuate any such program; 3. State agency and nongovernmental entity participation; 4. Program duration; 5. Funding requirements and mechanisms for any such program; and 6. Such other findings and recommendations the Commission deems appropriate in the public interest. C. The Commission shall develop regulations governing marketing practices by public service companies, licensed suppliers, aggregators or any other providers of services made competitive by this chapter, including regulations to prevent unauthorized switching of suppliers, unauthorized charges, and improper solicitation activities. The Commission shall also establish standards for marketing information to be furnished by licensed suppliers, aggregators or any other providers of services made competitive by this chapter, which information shall include standards concerning: 1. Pricing and other key contract terms and conditions; 2. To the extent feasible, fuel mix and emissions data on at least an annualized basis; 3. Customer's rights of cancellation following execution of any contract; 4. Toll-free telephone number for customer assistance; and 5. Such other and further marketing information as the Commission may deem necessary and appropriate in the public interest. D. The Commission shall also establish standards for billing information to be furnished by public service companies, suppliers, aggregators or any other providers of services made competitive by this chapter. Such billing information standards shall require that billing formation: 1. Distinguishes between charges for regulated services and unregulated services; 2. Is presented in a format that complies with standards to be established by the Commission; 3. Discloses, to the extent feasible, fuel mix and emissions data on at least an annualized basis; and 4. Includes such other billing information as the Commission deems necessary and appropriate in the public interest. E. The Commission shall establish or maintain a complaint bureau for the purpose of receiving, reviewing and investigating complaints by retail customers against public service companies, licensed suppliers, aggregators and other providers of any services made competitive under this chapter. Upon the request of any interested person or the Attorney General, or upon its own motion, the Commission shall be authorized to inquire into possible violations of this chapter and to enjoin or punish any violations thereof pursuant to its authority under this chapter, this title, and under Title 12.1. The Attorney General shall have a right to participate in such proceedings consistent with the Commission's Rules of Practice and Procedure. F. The Commission shall establish reasonable limits on customer security deposits required by public service companies, suppliers, aggregators or any other persons providing competitive services pursuant to this chapter. 1999, c. 411; 2003, c. 885; 2008, c. 883.

Va. Code § 56-592.1

§ 56-592.1. Consumer education program; scope and funding.A. The Commission shall establish and implement the consumer education program developed pursuant to subsection A of § 56-592. In establishing such a program, the Commission shall take into account the findings and recommendations of the subgroup on Information/Consumer Education that was established in conjunction with the Commission's proceeding in Case PUE-2007-00049, that implemented the third enactment of Chapters 888 and 933 of the Acts of Assembly of 2007. B. The program shall be designed to (i) enable consumers to make rational and informed choices about the matters described in subsection A of § 56-592, including but not limited to demand side management, energy conservation, and energy efficiency, (ii) help consumers reduce transaction costs in making decisions regarding such matters, and (iii) foster compliance with the consumer protection provisions of this chapter. C. The Commission shall regularly consult with representatives of consumer organizations, community-based groups, state agencies, incumbent utilities, and other interested parties throughout the program's implementation and operation. D. Pursuant to the provisions of § 30-205, the Commission shall provide periodic updates to the Commission on Electric Utility Regulation concerning the program's implementation and operation. E. The Commission shall fund the establishment and operation of such consumer education program through the special regulatory revenue tax currently authorized by § 58.1-2660 and the special regulatory tax authorized by Chapter 29 (§ 58.1-2900 et seq.) of Title 58.1. 2000, c. 991; 2003, c. 885; 2008, c. 883.

Va. Code § 56-593

§ 56-593. Retail customers' private right of action; marketing practices.A. No entity subject to this chapter shall use any deception, fraud, false pretense, misrepresentation, or any deceptive or unfair practices in providing, distributing or marketing electric service. B. 1. Any person who suffers loss (i) as the result of marketing practices, including telemarketing practices, engaged in by any public service company, licensed supplier, aggregator or any other provider of any service made competitive under this chapter, and in violation of subsection C of § 56-592, including any rule or regulation adopted by the Commission pursuant thereto, or (ii) as the result of any violation of subsection A, shall be entitled to initiate an action to recover actual damages, or $500, whichever is greater. If the trier of fact finds that the violation was willful, it may increase damages to an amount not exceeding three times the actual damages sustained, or $1,000, whichever is greater. 2. Upon referral from the Commission, the Attorney General, the attorney for the Commonwealth, or the attorney for any city, county, or town may cause an action to be brought in the appropriate circuit court for relief of violations within the scope of (i) subsection C of § 56-592, including any rule or regulation adopted by the Commission pursuant thereto or (ii) subsection A. C. Notwithstanding any other provision of law to the contrary, in addition to any damages awarded, such person, or any governmental agency initiating such action, also may be awarded reasonable attorney's fees and court costs. D. Any action pursuant to this section shall be commenced within two years after its accrual. The cause of action shall accrue as provided in § 8.01-230. However, if the Commission initiates proceedings, or any other governmental agency files suit for the purpose of enforcing subsection A of this section or the provisions of subsection C of § 56-592, the time during which such proceeding or governmental suit and all appeals therefrom is pending shall not be counted as any part of the period within which an action under this section shall be brought. E. The circuit court may make such additional orders or decrees as may be necessary to restore to any identifiable person any money or property, real, personal, or mixed, tangible or intangible, which may have been acquired from such person by means of any act or practice violative of subsection A of this section or subsection C of § 56-592, provided, that such person shall be identified by order of the court within 180 days from the date of any order permanently enjoining the unlawful act or practice. F. In any case arising under this section, no liability shall be imposed upon any licensed supplier, aggregator or any other provider of any service made competitive under this chapter, who shows by a preponderance of the evidence that (i) the act or practice alleged to be in violation of subsection A of this section or subsection C of § 56-592 was an act or practice over which the same had no control or (ii) the alleged violation resulted from a bona fide error notwithstanding the maintenance of procedures reasonably adopted to avoid a violation. However, nothing in this section shall prevent the court from ordering restitution and payment of reasonable attorney's fees and court costs pursuant to subsection C to individuals aggrieved as a result of an unintentional violation of subsection A of this section or subsection C of § 56-592. 1999, c. 411; 2000, c. 991.

Va. Code § 56-594

§ 56-594. Net energy metering provisions.A. The Commission shall establish by regulation a program that affords eligible customer-generators the opportunity to participate in net energy metering, and a program, to begin no later than July 1, 2014, for customers of investor-owned utilities and to begin no later than July 1, 2015, and to end July 1, 2019, for customers of electric cooperatives as provided in subsection G, to afford eligible agricultural customer-generators the opportunity to participate in net energy metering. The regulations may include, but need not be limited to, requirements for (i) retail sellers; (ii) owners or operators of distribution or transmission facilities; (iii) providers of default service; (iv) eligible customer-generators; (v) eligible agricultural customer-generators; or (vi) any combination of the foregoing, as the Commission determines will facilitate the provision of net energy metering, provided that the Commission determines that such requirements do not adversely affect the public interest. On and after July 1, 2017, small agricultural generators or eligible agricultural customer-generators may elect to interconnect pursuant to the provisions of this section or as small agricultural generators pursuant to § 56-594.2, but not both. Existing eligible agricultural customer-generators may elect to become small agricultural generators, but may not revert to being eligible agricultural customer-generators after such election. On and after July 1, 2019, interconnection of eligible agricultural customer-generators shall cease for electric cooperatives only, and such facilities shall interconnect solely as small agricultural generators. For electric cooperatives, eligible agricultural customer-generators whose renewable energy generating facilities were interconnected before July 1, 2019, may continue to participate in net energy metering pursuant to this section for a period not to exceed 25 years from the date of their renewable energy generating facility's original interconnection. B. For the purpose of this section: "Eligible agricultural customer-generator" means a customer that operates a renewable energy generating facility as part of an agricultural business, which generating facility (i) uses as its sole energy source solar power, wind power, or aerobic or anaerobic digester gas, (ii) does not have an aggregate generation capacity of more than 500 kilowatts, (iii) is located on land owned or controlled by the agricultural business, (iv) is connected to the customer's wiring on the customer's side of its interconnection with the distributor; (v) is interconnected and operated in parallel with an electric company's transmission and distribution facilities, and (vi) is used primarily to provide energy to metered accounts of the agricultural business. An eligible agricultural customer-generator may be served by multiple meters serving the eligible agricultural customer-generator that are located at the same or adjacent sites, such that the eligible agricultural customer-generator may aggregate in a single account the electricity consumption and generation measured by the meters, provided that the same utility serves all such meters. The aggregated load shall be served under the appropriate tariff. "Eligible customer-generator" means a customer that owns and operates, or contracts with other persons to own, operate, or both, an electrical generating facility, including any additions or enhancements such as battery storage or a smart inverter, that (i) has a capacity of not more than 25 kilowatts for residential customers and not more than three megawatts for nonresidential customers; (ii) uses as its total source of fuel renewable energy, as defined in § 56-576; (iii) is located on land owned or leased by the customer and is connected to the customer's wiring on the customer's side of its interconnection with the distributor; (iv) is interconnected and operated in parallel with an electric company's transmission and distribution facilities; and (v) is intended primarily to offset all or part of the customer's own electricity requirements. No contract, lease, or arrangement by which a third party owns, maintains, or operates an electrical generating facility on an eligible customer-generator's property shall constitute the sale of electricity or cause the customer-generator or the third party to be considered an electric utility by virtue of participating in net energy metering. In addition to the electrical generating facility size limitations in clause (i), the capacity of any generating facility installed under this section between July 1, 2015, and July 1, 2020, shall not exceed the expected annual energy consumption based on the previous 12 months of billing history or an annualized calculation of billing history if 12 months of billing history is not available. In addition to the electrical generating facility size limitation in clause (i), in the certificated service territory of a Phase I Utility, the capacity of any generating facility installed under this section after July 1, 2020, shall not exceed 100 percent of the expected annual energy consumption based on the previous 12 months of billing history or an annualized calculation of billing history if 12 months of billing history is not available, and in the certificated service territory of a Phase II Utility, the capacity of any generating facility installed under this section after July 1, 2020, shall not exceed 150 percent of the expected annual energy consumption based on the previous 12 months of billing history or an annualized calculation of billing history if 12 months of billing history is not available. "Net energy metering" means measuring the difference, over the net metering period, between (i) electricity supplied to an eligible customer-generator or eligible agricultural customer-generator from the electric grid and (ii) the electricity generated and fed back to the electric grid by the eligible customer-generator or eligible agricultural customer-generator. "Net metering period" means the 12-month period following the date of final interconnection of the eligible customer-generator's or eligible agricultural customer-generator's system with an electric service provider, and each 12-month period thereafter. "Small agricultural generator" has the same meaning that is ascribed to that term in § 56-594.2. C. The Commission's regulations shall ensure that (i) the metering equipment installed for net metering shall be capable of measuring the flow of electricity in two directions and (ii) any eligible customer-generator seeking to participate in net energy metering shall notify its supplier and receive approval to interconnect prior to installation of an electrical generating facility. The electric distribution company shall have 30 days from the date of notification for residential facilities, and 60 days from the date of notification for nonresidential facilities, to determine whether the interconnection requirements have been met. Such regulations shall allocate fairly the cost of such equipment and any necessary interconnection. An eligible customer-generator's electrical generating system, and each electrical generating system of an eligible agricultural customer-generator, shall meet all applicable safety and performance standards established by the National Electrical Code, the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers, and accredited testing laboratories such as Underwriters Laboratories. Beyond the requirements set forth in this section and to ensure public safety, power quality, and reliability of the supplier's electric distribution system, an eligible customer-generator or eligible agricultural customer-generator whose electrical generating system meets those standards and rules shall bear all reasonable costs of equipment required for the interconnection to the supplier's electric distribution system, including costs, if any, to (a) install additional controls and (b) perform or pay for additional tests. No eligible customer-generator or eligible agricultural customer-generator shall be required to provide proof of liability insurance or to purchase additional liability insurance as a condition of interconnection. D. The Commission shall establish minimum requirements for contracts to be entered into by the parties to net metering arrangements. Such requirements shall protect the eligible customer-generator or eligible agricultural customer-generator against discrimination by virtue of its status as an eligible customer-generator or eligible agricultural customer-generator, and permit customers that are served on time-of-use tariffs that have electricity supply demand charges contained within the electricity supply portion of the time-of-use tariffs to participate as an eligible customer-generator or eligible agricultural customer-generator. Notwithstanding the cost allocation provisions of subsection C, eligible customer-generators or eligible agricultural customer-generators served on demand charge-based time-of-use tariffs shall bear the incremental metering costs required to net meter such customers. E. If electricity generated by an eligible customer-generator or eligible agricultural customer-generator over the net metering period exceeds the electricity consumed by the eligible customer-generator or eligible agricultural customer-generator, the customer-generator or eligible agricultural customer-generator shall be compensated for the excess electricity if the entity contracting to receive such electric energy and the eligible customer-generator or eligible agricultural customer-generator enter into a power purchase agreement for such excess electricity. Upon the written request of the eligible customer-generator or eligible agricultural customer-generator, the supplier that serves the eligible customer-generator or eligible agricultural customer-generator shall enter into a power purchase agreement with the requesting eligible customer-generator or eligible agricultural customer-generator that is consistent with the minimum requirements for contracts established by the Commission pursuant to subsection D. The power purchase agreement shall obligate the supplier to purchase such excess electricity at the rate that is provided for such purchases in a net metering standard contract or tariff approved by the Commission, unless the parties agree to a higher rate. The eligible customer-generator or eligible agricultural customer-generator owns any renewable energy certificates associated with its electrical generating facility; however, at the time that the eligible customer-generator or eligible agricultural customer-generator enters into a power purchase agreement with its supplier, the eligible customer-generator or eligible agricultural customer-generator shall have a one-time option to sell the renewable energy certificates associated with such electrical generating facility to its supplier and be compensated at an amount that is established by the Commission to reflect the value of such renewable energy certificates. Nothing in this section shall prevent the eligible customer-generator or eligible agricultural customer-generator and the supplier from voluntarily entering into an agreement for the sale and purchase of excess electricity or renewable energy certificates at mutually-agreed upon prices if the eligible customer-generator or eligible agricultural customer-generator does not exercise its option to sell its renewable energy certificates to its supplier at Commission-approved prices at the time that the eligible customer-generator or eligible agricultural customer-generator enters into a power purchase agreement with its supplier. All costs incurred by the supplier to purchase excess electricity and renewable energy certificates from eligible customer-generators or eligible agricultural customer-generators shall be recoverable through its Renewable Energy Portfolio Standard (RPS) rate adjustment clause, if the supplier has a Commission-approved RPS plan. If not, then all costs shall be recoverable through the supplier's fuel adjustment clause. For purposes of this section, "all costs" shall be defined as the rates paid to the eligible customer-generator or eligible agricultural customer-generator for the purchase of excess electricity and renewable energy certificates and any administrative costs incurred to manage the eligible customer-generator's or eligible agricultural customer-generator's power purchase arrangements. The net metering standard contract or tariff shall be available to eligible customer-generators or eligible agricultural customer-generators on a first-come, first-served basis in each electric distribution company's Virginia service area until the rated generating capacity owned and operated by eligible customer-generators, eligible agricultural customer-generators, and small agricultural generators in the Commonwealth reaches six percent, in the aggregate, five percent of which is available to all customers and one percent of which is available only to low-income utility customers of each electric distribution company's adjusted Virginia peak-load forecast for the previous year, and shall require the supplier to pay the eligible customer-generator or eligible agricultural customer-generator for such excess electricity in a timely manner at a rate to be established by the Commission. On and after the earlier of (i) 2024 for a Phase I Utility or 2025 for a Phase II Utility or (ii) when the aggregate rated generating capacity owned and operated by eligible customer-generators, eligible agricultural customer-generators, and small agricultural generators in the Commonwealth reaches three percent of a Phase I or Phase II Utility's adjusted Virginia peak-load forecast for the previous year, the Commission shall conduct a net energy metering proceeding. In any net energy metering proceeding, the Commission shall, after notice and opportunity for hearing, evaluate and establish (a) an amount customers shall pay on their utility bills each month for the costs of using the utility's infrastructure; (b) an amount the utility shall pay to appropriately compensate the customer, as determined by the Commission, for the total benefits such facilities provide; (c) the direct and indirect economic impact of net metering to the Commonwealth; and (d) any other information the Commission deems relevant. The Commission shall establish an appropriate rate structure related thereto, which shall govern compensation related to all eligible customer-generators, eligible agricultural customer-generators, and small agricultural generators, except low-income utility customers, that interconnect after the effective date established in the Commission's final order. Nothing in the Commission's final order shall affect any eligible customer-generators, eligible agricultural customer-generators, and small agricultural generators who interconnect before the effective date of such final order. As part of the net energy metering proceeding, the Commission shall evaluate the six percent aggregate net metering cap and may, if appropriate, raise or remove such cap. The Commission shall enter its final order in such a proceeding no later than 12 months after it commences such proceeding, and such final order shall establish a date by which the new terms and conditions shall apply for interconnection and shall also provide that, if the terms and conditions of compensation in the final order differ from the terms and conditions available to customers before the proceeding, low-income utility customers may interconnect under whichever terms are most favorable to them. F. Any residential eligible customer-generator or eligible agricultural customer-generator, in the service territory of a Phase II Utility who owns and operates, or contracts with other persons to own, operate, or both, an electrical generating facility with a capacity that exceeds 15 kilowatts shall pay to its supplier, in addition to any other charges authorized by law, a monthly standby charge. The amount of the standby charge and the terms and conditions under which it is assessed shall be in accordance with a methodology developed by the supplier and approved by the Commission. The Commission shall approve a supplier's proposed standby charge methodology if it finds that the standby charges collected from all such eligible customer-generators and eligible agricultural customer-generators allow the supplier to recover only the portion of the supplier's infrastructure costs that are properly associated with serving such eligible customer-generators or eligible agricultural customer-generators. Such an eligible customer-generator or eligible agricultural customer-generator shall not be liable for a standby charge until the date specified in an order of the Commission approving its supplier's methodology. For customers of all other investor-owned utilities, on and after July 1, 2020, standby charges are prohibited for any residential eligible customer-generator or agricultural customer-generator. G. On and after the later of July 1, 2019, or the effective date of regulations that the Commission is required to adopt pursuant to § 56-594.01, (i) net energy metering in the service territory of each electric cooperative shall be conducted as provided in a program implemented pursuant to § 56-594.01 and (ii) the provisions of this section shall not apply to net energy metering in the service territory of an electric cooperative except as provided in § 56-594.01. H. The Commission may adopt such rules or establish such guidelines as may be necessary for its general administration of this section. I. When the Commission conducts a net energy metering proceeding, it shall: 1. Investigate and determine the costs and benefits of the current net energy metering program; 2. Establish an appropriate netting measurement interval for a successor tariff that is just and reasonable in light of the costs and benefits of the net metering program in aggregate, and applicable to new requests for net energy metering service; 3. Determine a specific avoided cost for customer-generators, the different type of customer-generator technologies where the Commission deems it appropriate, and establish the methodology for determining the compensation rate for any net excess generation determined according to the applicable net measurement interval for any new tariff; and 4. Make all reasonable efforts to ensure that the net energy metering program does not result in unreasonable cost-shifting to nonparticipating electric utility customers. J. In evaluating the costs and benefits of the net energy metering program, the Commission shall consider: 1. The aggregate impact of customer-generators on the electric utility's long-run marginal costs of generation, distribution, and transmission; 2. The cost of service implications of customer-generators on other customers within the same class, including an evaluation of whether customer-generators provide an adequate rate of return to the electrical utility compared to the otherwise applicable rate class when, for analytical purposes only, examined as a separate class within a cost of service study; 3. The direct and indirect economic impact of the net energy metering program to the Commonwealth; and 4. Any other information it deems relevant, including environmental and resilience benefits of customer-generator facilities. K. Notwithstanding the provisions of this section, § 56-585.1:8, or any other provision of law to the contrary, any locality that is a nonjurisdictional customer of a Phase II Utility, as defined in § 56-585.1:3, and is in Planning District Eight with a population greater than 1 million may (i) install solar-powered or wind-powered electric generation facilities with a rated capacity not exceeding five megawatts, whether the facilities are owned by the locality or owned and operated by a third party pursuant to a contract with the locality, on any locality-owned site within the locality and (ii) credit the electricity generated at any such facility as directed by the governing body of the locality to any one or more of the metered accounts of buildings or other facilities of the locality or the locality's public school division that are located within the locality, without regard to whether the buildings and facilities are located at the same site where the electric generation facility is located or at a site contiguous thereto. The amount of the credit for such electricity to the metered accounts of the locality or its public school division shall be identical, with respect to the rate structure, all retail rate components, and monthly charges, to the amount the locality or public school division would otherwise be charged for such amount of electricity under its contract with the public utility, without the assessment by the public utility of any distribution charges, service charges, or fees in connection with or arising out of such crediting. L. Any eligible customer-generator or eligible agricultural customer-generator may participate in demand response, energy efficiency, or peak reduction from dispatch of onsite battery service, provided that the compensation received is in exchange for a distinct service that is not already compensated by net metering credits for electricity exported to the electric distribution system or compensated by any other utility program or tariff. The Commission shall review and evaluate the continuing need for the imposition of standby or other charges on eligible customer-generators or eligible agricultural customer-generators in any net energy metering proceeding conducted pursuant to subsection E. 1999, c. 411; 2004, c. 827; 2006, c. 470; 2007, cc. 877, 888, 933; 2009, c. 804; 2011, c. 239; 2013, c. 268; 2015, cc. 431, 432; 2017, cc. 565, 581; 2019, cc. 742, 763; 2020, cc. 1187, 1188, 1189, 1193, 1194, 1239; 2024, cc. 783, 827.

Va. Code § 56-594.01

§ 56-594.01. Net energy metering provisions for electric cooperative service territories.A. The Commission shall establish by regulation a program that affords eligible customer-generators the opportunity to participate in net energy metering in the service territory of each electric cooperative, which program shall commence on the later of July 1, 2019, or the effective date of such regulations. Such regulations shall be similar to existing regulations promulgated pursuant to § 56-594. In lieu of adopting new regulations, the Commission may amend such existing regulations to apply to electric cooperatives with such revisions as are required to comply with the provisions of this section. The regulations may include requirements applicable to (i) retail sellers, (ii) owners or operators of distribution or transmission facilities, (iii) providers of default service, (iv) eligible customer-generators, or (v) any combination of the foregoing, as the Commission determines will facilitate the provision of net energy metering, provided that the Commission determines that such requirements do not adversely affect the public interest. B. As used in this section: "Eligible customer-generator" means a customer that owns and operates, or contracts with other persons to own, operate, or both, an electrical generating facility that (i) has a capacity of not more than 20 kilowatts for residential customers and not more than one megawatt for nonresidential customers on an electrical generating facility placed in service after July 1, 2015; (ii) uses as its total source of fuel renewable energy as defined in § 56-576; (iii) is located on the customer's premises and is connected to the customer's wiring on the customer's side of its interconnection with the distributor; (iv) is interconnected and operated in parallel with an electric company's transmission and distribution facilities; and (v) is intended primarily to offset all or part of the customer's own electricity requirements. In addition to the electrical generating facility size limitations in clause (i), the capacity of any generating facility installed under this section after July 1, 2015, shall not exceed the expected annual energy consumption based on the previous 12 months of billing history or an annualized calculation of billing history if 12 months of billing history is not available. "Net energy metering" means measuring the difference, over the net metering period, between (i) electricity supplied to an eligible customer-generator from the electric grid and (ii) the electricity generated and fed back to the electric grid by the eligible customer-generator. "Net metering period" means the 12-month period following the date of final interconnection of the eligible customer-generator's system with an electric service provider, and each 12-month period thereafter. C. The Commission's regulations shall ensure that (i) the metering equipment installed for net metering shall be capable of measuring the flow of electricity in two directions and (ii) any eligible customer-generator seeking to participate in net energy metering shall notify its supplier and receive approval to interconnect prior to installation of an electrical generating facility. The Commission shall publish a form for such prior notice and such notice shall be processed promptly by the supplier prior to any construction activity taking place. After construction, inspection and documentation thereof shall be required prior to interconnection. The electric distribution company shall have 30 days from the date of each notification for residential facilities, and 60 days from the date of each notification for nonresidential facilities, to determine whether the interconnection requirements have been met. Such regulations shall allocate fairly the cost of such equipment and any necessary interconnection. An eligible customer-generator's electrical generating system shall meet all applicable safety and performance standards established by the National Electrical Code, the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers, and accredited testing laboratories such as Underwriters Laboratories. In addition to the requirements set forth in this section and to ensure public safety, power quality, and reliability of the supplier's electric distribution system, an eligible customer-generator whose electrical generating system meets those standards and rules shall bear all reasonable costs of equipment required for the interconnection to the supplier's electric distribution system, including costs, if any, to (a) install additional controls, (b) perform or pay for additional tests, and (c) purchase additional liability insurance. An electric cooperative may publish and use its own forms, including an electronic form, for purposes of implementing the regulations described herein so long as the information collected on the Commission's form is also collected by the cooperative and submitted to the Commission. D. The Commission shall establish minimum requirements for contracts to be entered into by the parties to net metering arrangements. Such requirements shall protect the eligible customer-generator against discrimination by virtue of its status as an eligible customer-generator and permit customers that are served on time-of-use tariffs that have electricity supply demand charges contained within the electricity supply portion of the time-of-use tariffs to participate as an eligible customer-generator. Notwithstanding the cost allocation provisions of subsection C, eligible customer-generators served on demand charge-based time-of-use tariffs shall bear the incremental metering costs required to net meter such customers. E. If electricity generated by an eligible customer-generator over the net metering period exceeds the electricity consumed by the eligible customer-generator, the customer-generator shall be compensated for the excess electricity if the entity contracting to receive such electric energy and the eligible customer-generator enter into a power purchase agreement for such excess electricity. Upon the written request of the eligible customer-generator, the supplier that serves the eligible customer-generator shall enter into a power purchase agreement with the requesting eligible customer-generator that is consistent with the minimum requirements for contracts established by the Commission pursuant to subsection D. The power purchase agreement shall obligate the supplier to purchase such excess electricity at the rate that is provided for such purchases in a net metering standard contract or tariff approved by the Commission, unless the parties agree to a higher rate. The eligible customer-generator owns any renewable energy certificates associated with its electrical generating facility; however, at the time that the eligible customer-generator enters into a power purchase agreement with its supplier, the eligible customer-generator shall have a one-time option to sell the renewable energy certificates associated with such electrical generating facility to its supplier and be compensated at an amount that is established by the Commission to reflect the value of such renewable energy certificates. Nothing in this section shall prevent the eligible customer-generator and the supplier from voluntarily entering into an agreement for the sale and purchase of excess electricity or renewable energy certificates at mutually agreed upon prices if the eligible customer-generator does not exercise its option to sell its renewable energy certificates to its supplier at Commission-approved prices at the time that the eligible customer-generator enters into a power purchase agreement with its supplier. All costs incurred by the supplier to purchase excess electricity and renewable energy certificates from eligible customer-generators shall be recoverable through its fuel adjustment clause. For purposes of this section, "all costs" shall be defined as the rates paid to the eligible customer-generator for the purchase of excess electricity and renewable energy certificates and any administrative costs incurred to manage the eligible customer-generator's power purchase arrangements. The net metering standard contract or tariff shall be available to eligible customer-generators on a first-come, first-served basis, subject to the provisions of subsection F, and shall require the supplier to pay the eligible customer-generator for such excess electricity in a timely manner at a rate to be established by the Commission. F. Net energy metering shall be open to customers on a first-come, first-served basis until such time as the total capacity of the generation facilities, expressed in alternating current nameplate, reaches two percent of system peak for residential customers, two percent of system peak for not-for-profit and nonjurisdictional customers, and one percent of system peak for other nonresidential customers, which are herein referred to as the electric cooperative's caps. As used in this subsection, "percent of system peak" refers to a percentage of the electric cooperative's highest total system peak, based on the noncoincident peak of the electric cooperative or the coincident peak of all of the electric cooperative's customers, within the past three years as listed in Part O, Line 20 of Form 7 filed with the Rural Utilities Service or its equivalent, less any portion of the cooperative's total load that is served by a competitive service provider or by a market-based rate. Such caps shall not decrease but may increase if the system peak in any year exceeds the previous year's system peak. Nothing in this subsection shall amend or confer new rights upon any existing nonjurisdictional contract or arrangement or work to submit any nonjurisdictional customer, contract, or arrangement to the jurisdiction of the Commission. For purposes of calculating the caps established in this subsection, all net energy metering shall be counted, whenever interconnected, and shall include net energy metering interconnected pursuant to § 56-594, agricultural net energy metering, and any net energy metering entered into with a third-party provider registered pursuant to subsection K. Net energy metering with nonjurisdictional customers entered into prior to July 1, 2019, may be counted toward the caps, in the discretion of the cooperative, as net energy metering if the nonjurisdictional customer takes service pursuant to a cooperative's net energy metering rider. Net energy metering with nonjurisdictional customers entered into on or after July 1, 2019, shall be counted toward the caps by default unless the cooperative has reason to exclude such net energy metering as subject to a separate contract or arrangement. Each electric cooperative governed by this section shall publish information regarding the calculation and status of its caps pursuant to this subsection, or the electric cooperative's systemwide cap established in § 56-585.4 if applicable, on the electric cooperative's website. G. An electric cooperative may, without Commission approval or the requirement of any filing other than as provided in this subsection, upon the adoption by its board of directors of a resolution so providing, raise the caps established in subsection F, with any increase allocated among residential, not-for-profit and nonjurisdictional, and other nonresidential customers as the board of directors may find to be in the interests of the electric cooperative's membership. The electric cooperative shall promptly file a revised net energy metering compliance filing with the Commission for informational purposes. H. Any residential eligible customer-generator who owns and operates, or contracts with other persons to own, operate, or both, an electrical generating facility with a capacity that exceeds 10 kilowatts shall pay to its supplier, in addition to any other charges authorized by law, a monthly standby charge. The amount of the standby charge and the terms and conditions under which it is assessed shall be in accordance with a methodology developed by the supplier and approved by the Commission. The Commission shall approve a supplier's proposed standby charge methodology if it finds that the standby charges collected from all such eligible customer-generators allow the supplier to recover only the portion of the supplier's infrastructure costs that are properly associated with serving such eligible customer-generators. Such an eligible customer-generator shall not be liable for a standby charge until the date specified in an order of the Commission approving its supplier's methodology. I. Any eligible agricultural customer-generator interconnected in an electric cooperative service territory prior to July 1, 2019, shall continue to be governed by § 56-594 and the regulations adopted pursuant thereto throughout the grandfathering period described in subsection A of § 56-594. J. Any eligible customer-generator served by a competitive service provider pursuant to the provisions of § 56-577 shall engage in net energy metering only with such supplier and pursuant only to tariffs filed by such supplier. Such an eligible customer-generator shall pay the full portion of its distribution charges, without offset or netting, to its electric cooperative. K. After the conclusion of the Commission's rulemaking proceeding pursuant to subsection L, third-party partial requirements power purchase agreements, the purpose of which is to finance the purchase of renewable generation facilities by eligible customer-generators through the sale of electricity, shall be permitted pursuant to the provisions of this section only for those retail customers and nonjurisdictional customers of the electric cooperative that are exempt from federal income taxation, unless otherwise permitted by § 56-585.4 or subsection M. No person shall offer a third-party partial requirements power purchase agreement in the service territory of an electric cooperative without fulfilling the registration requirements set forth in this section and complying with applicable Commission rules, including those adopted pursuant to subdivision L 2. L. After August 1, 2019, but before January 1, 2020, the Commission shall initiate a rulemaking proceeding to promulgate the regulations necessary to implement this section as follows: 1. In conducting such a proceeding, the Commission may require notice to be given to current eligible customer-generators and eligible agricultural customer-generators but shall not require general publication of the notice. An opportunity to request a hearing shall be afforded, but a hearing is not required. In the rulemaking proceeding, the electric cooperatives governed by this section shall be required to submit compliance filings, but no other individual proceedings shall be required or conducted. 2. In promulgating regulations to govern third-party power purchase agreement providers as retail sellers, the Commission shall: a. Direct the staff to administer a registration system for such providers; b. Enumerate in its regulations the jurisdiction of the Commission over providers, generally limited in scope to the behavior of providers, customer complaints, and their compliance with the registration requirements and stating clearly that civil contract disputes and claims for damages against providers shall not be subject to the jurisdiction of the Commission; c. Enumerate in its regulations the maximum extent of its authority over the providers, to be limited to any or all of: (1) Monetary penalties against registered providers not to exceed $30,000 per provider registration; (2) Orders for providers to cease or desist from a certain practice, act, or omission; (3) Debarment of registered providers; (4) The issuance of orders to show cause; and (5) Authority incident to subdivisions (1) through (4); d. Delineate in its regulations two classes of providers, one for residential customers and one for nonresidential customers; e. Direct the staff to set up a self-certification system as described in this subdivision; f. Establish business practice and consumer protection standards from a national renewable energy association whose business is germane to the businesses of the providers; g. Require providers to comply with other applicable Commission regulations governing interconnection and safety, including utility procedures governing the same; h. Require minimum capitalization or other bond or surety that, in the judgment of the Commission, is necessary for adequate consumer protection and in the public interest; i. Require the payment of a fee of $250 for residential and nonresidential provider registration; and j. Provide that no registered provider, by virtue of that status alone, shall be considered a public utility or competitive service provider for purposes of this title. 3. The self-certification system described in this subdivision shall require a provider to affirm to the staff, under the penalty of revocation of registration, (i) that it is licensed to do business in Virginia; (ii) the names of the responsible officers of the provider entity; (iii) that its named officers have no felony convictions or convictions for crimes of moral turpitude; (iv) that it will abide by all applicable Commission regulations promulgated under this section or for purposes of interconnections and safety; (v) that it will appoint an officer to be a primary liaison to the staff; (vi) that it will appoint an employee to be a primary contact for customer complaints; (vii) that it will have and disclose to customers a dispute resolution procedure; (viii) that it has specified in its registration materials in which territories it intends to offer power purchase agreements; (ix) that it, and each of its named officers, agree to submit themselves to the jurisdiction of the Commission as described in this subdivision; and (x) that, once registered, the provider shall report any material changes in its registration materials to the staff, as a continuing obligation of registration. The staff shall send a copy of the registration materials to each cooperative in whose territory the provider intends to offer power purchase agreements. The staff, once satisfied that the certifications required pursuant to this subdivision are complete, and not more than 30 days following the initial and complete submittal of the registration materials, shall enter the provider onto the official register of providers. No formal Commission proceeding is required for registration but may be initiated if the staff (a) has reason to doubt the veracity of the certifications of the provider or (b) in any other case, if, in the judgment of the staff, extenuating or extraordinary circumstances exist that warrant a proceeding. The staff shall not investigate the corporate structure, financing, bookkeeping, accounting practices, contracting practices, prices, or terms and conditions in a third-party partial requirements power purchase agreement. Nothing in this section shall abridge the right of any person, including the Office of Attorney General, from proceeding in a cause of action under the Virginia Consumer Protection Act, § 59.1-196 et seq. 4. The Commission shall complete such rulemaking procedure within 12 months of its initiation. M. An electric cooperative may, without approval of the Commission or the requirement of any filing other than as provided in this subsection, and upon the adoption by its board of directors of a resolution so providing, permit the use of any third-party partial requirements power purchase agreement, the purpose of which agreement is to finance the purchase of renewable generation facilities by eligible customer-generators through the sale of electricity for residential retail customers, nonresidential retail customers, or both. The electric cooperative shall promptly file a revised net energy metering compliance filing with the Commission for informational purposes. 2019, cc. 742, 763; 2022, cc. 363, 364.

Va. Code § 56-594.02

§ 56-594.02. Solar-powered or wind-powered electricity generation; power purchase agreements; pilot programs.A. The Commission shall conduct pilot programs under which a person that owns or operates a solar-powered or wind-powered electricity generation facility located on premises owned or leased by an eligible customer-generator, as defined in § 56-594, shall be permitted to sell the electricity generated from such facility exclusively to such eligible customer-generator under a power purchase agreement used to provide third party financing of the costs of such a renewable generation facility (third party power purchase agreement), subject to the following terms, conditions, and restrictions: 1. Notwithstanding subsection G of § 56-580 or any other provision of law, a pilot program shall be conducted within the certificated service territory of each investor-owned electric utility ("Pilot Utility"); 2. Except as provided in this subdivision, both jurisdictional and nonjurisdictional customers may participate in such pilot programs on a first-come, first-serve basis. The aggregated capacity of all generation facilities that are subject to such third party power purchase agreements at any time during the pilot program shall not exceed 500 megawatts for Virginia jurisdictional customers and 500 megawatts for Virginia nonjurisdictional customers. Such limitation on the aggregated capacity of such facilities shall constitute a portion of the existing limit of six percent of each Pilot Utility's adjusted Virginia peak-load forecast for the previous year that is available to eligible customer-generators pursuant to subsection E of § 56-594. Notwithstanding any provision of this section that incorporates provisions of § 56-594, the seller and the customer shall elect either to (i) enter into their third party power purchase agreement subject to the conditions and provisions of the Pilot Utility's net energy metering program under § 56-594 or (ii) provide that electricity generated from the generation facilities subject to the third party power purchase agreement will not be net metered under § 56-594, provided that an election not to net meter under § 56-594 shall not exempt the third party power purchase agreement and the parties thereto from the requirements of this section that incorporate provisions of § 56-594; 3. A solar-powered or wind-powered generation facility with a capacity of no less than 50 kilowatts and no more than three megawatts shall be eligible for a third party power purchase agreement under a pilot program; however, if the customer under such agreement is a low-income utility customer, as defined in § 56-576, or is an entity with tax-exempt status in accordance with § 501(c) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1954, as amended, then such facility is eligible for the pilot program even if it does not meet the 50 kilowatts minimum size requirement. The maximum generation capacity of three megawatts shall not affect the limits on the capacity of electrical generating capacities of 25 kilowatts for residential customers and three megawatts for nonresidential customers set forth in subsection B of § 56-594, which limitations shall continue to apply to net energy metering generation facilities regardless of whether they are the subject of a third party power purchase agreement under the pilot program; 4. A generation facility that is the subject of a third party power purchase agreement under the pilot program shall serve only one customer, and a third party power purchase agreement shall not serve multiple customers; 5. The customer under a third party power purchase agreement under the pilot program shall be subject to the interconnection and other requirements imposed on eligible customer-generators pursuant to subsection C of § 56-594, including the requirement that the customer bear the reasonable costs, as determined by the Commission, of the items described in clauses (a) and (b) of such subsection; 6. A third party power purchase agreement under the pilot program shall not be valid unless it conforms in all respects to the requirements of the pilot program conducted under the provisions of this section and unless the Commission and the Pilot Utility are provided written notice of the parties' intent to enter into a third party power purchase agreement not less than 30 days prior to the agreement's proposed effective date; and 7. An affiliate of the Pilot Utility shall be permitted to offer and enter into third party power purchase arrangements on the same basis as may any other person that satisfies the requirements of being a seller under a third party power purchase agreement under the pilot program. B. The Commission shall review the pilot program established pursuant to subsection A in 2015 and every two years thereafter during the pilot program. In its review, the Commission shall determine whether the limitations in subdivisions A 2 and 3 should be expanded, reduced, or continued. C. Any third party power purchase agreement that is not entered into pursuant to the pilot program established pursuant to subsection A is prohibited in the Pilot Utility's service territory, unless such third party power purchase agreement is entered into between a licensed supplier and a retail customer pursuant to § 56-577 where such supplier is responsible for serving 100 percent of the load requirements for each retail customer account it serves. D. If the Commission approves a tariff proposed for electric power provided 100 percent from renewable energy that serves 100 percent of the load requirements for each retail customer account it serves under such tariff, hereafter referred to as a "green tariff," such a green tariff shall not be available to any party to a third party power purchase agreement for the account being served by such power purchase agreement, and such an agreement shall remain in effect notwithstanding the approval of the green tariff. E. Nothing in this section shall be construed as (i) rendering any person, by virtue of its selling electric power to an eligible customer-generator under a third party power purchase agreement entered into pursuant to the pilot program established under this section, a public utility or a competitive service provider, (ii) imposing a requirement that such a person meet 100 percent of the load requirements for each retail customer account it serves, or (iii) affecting third party power purchase agreements in effect prior to July 1, 2013. F. Nothing in this section shall abridge any rights of either party to an agreement between a Pilot Utility and a group purchasing organization acting on behalf of Virginia local governments regarding the purchase of electric service. G. The Commission shall, by December 1, 2013, establish guidelines concerning (i) information to be provided in notices required under subdivision A 6 and (ii) procedures for aggregating and posting to the Commission's web site information derived from the aforesaid notices, including total capacity utilized by pilot projects for which notice has been received and capacity remaining available for future pilot projects. In addition, the Commission may adopt such rules or establish such guidelines as may be necessary for its general administration of the pilot program established under this section. 2013, cc. 358, 382; 2017, c. 803; 2020, cc. 1187, 1188, 1189, 1193, 1194, 1239; 2021, Sp. Sess. I, cc. 361, 362; 2024, cc. 783, 827.

Va. Code § 56-594.1

§ 56-594.1. Interconnection by farms.A. As used in this section, "eligible farm" means an entity that owns or operates facilities within the Commonwealth for the generation of electric energy, which entity is described in subdivision (b)(10) of § 56-265.1. B. Eligible farms shall be permitted to connect to the electrical grid in order to feed into the grid electricity generated by the eligible farm from its facilities that generate electricity from a waste-to-energy technology. C. The Commission shall adopt regulations to implement this section pursuant to § 56-578. 2009, c. 746.

Va. Code § 56-594.2

§ 56-594.2. Small agricultural generators.A. As used in this section: "Small agricultural generating facility" means an electrical generating facility that: 1. Has a capacity: a. Of not more than 1.5 megawatts; and b. That does not exceed 150 percent of the customer's expected annual energy consumption based on the previous 12 months of billing history or an annualized calculation of billing history if 12 months of billing history is not available; 2. Uses as its total source of fuel renewable energy; 3. Is located on the customer's premises and is interconnected with its utility through a separate meter; 4. Is interconnected and operated in parallel with an electric utility's distribution but not transmission facilities; 5. Is designed so that the electricity generated by the facility is expected to remain on the utility's distribution system; and 6. Is a qualifying small power production facility pursuant to the Public Utility Regulatory Policies Act of 1978 (P.L. 95-617). "Small agricultural generator" means a customer that: 1. Is not an eligible agricultural customer-generator pursuant to § 56-594; 2. Operates a small agricultural generating facility as part of (i) an agricultural business or (ii) any business granted a manufacturer license pursuant to subdivisions 1 through 6 of § 4.1-206.1; 3. May be served by multiple meters that are located at separate but contiguous sites; 4. May aggregate the electricity consumption measured by the meters, solely for purposes of calculating 150 percent of the customer's expected annual energy consumption, but not for billing or retail service purposes, provided that the same utility serves all of its meters; 5. Uses not more than 25 percent of contiguous land owned or controlled by the agricultural business for purposes of the renewable energy generating facility; and 6. Issues a certification under oath as to the amount of land being used for renewable generation. "Utility" includes supplier or distributor, as applicable. B. A small agricultural generator electing to interconnect pursuant to this section shall: 1. Enter into a power purchase agreement with its utility to sell all of the electricity generated from its small agricultural generating facility, which power purchase agreement obligates the utility to purchase all the electricity generated, at a rate agreed upon by the parties, but at a rate not less than the utility's Commission-approved avoided cost tariff for energy and capacity; 2. Have the rights described in subsection E of § 56-594 pertaining to an eligible agricultural customer-generator as to the renewable energy certificates or other environmental attributes generated by the renewable energy generating facility; 3. Abide by the appropriate small generator interconnection process as described in 20VAC5-314; and 4. Pay to its utility any necessary additional expenses as required by this section. C. Utilities: 1. Shall purchase, through the power purchase agreement described in subdivision B 1, all of the output of the small agricultural generator; 2. Shall recover the cost for its distribution facilities to the generating meter either through a proportional cost-sharing agreement with the small agricultural generator or through metering the total capacity and energy placed on the distribution system by the small agricultural generator; 3. Shall recover all costs incurred by the utility to purchase electricity, capacity, and renewable energy certificates from the small agricultural generator: a. If the utility has a Commission-approved Renewable Energy Portfolio Standard (RPS) plan and rate adjustment clause, through the utility's RPS rate adjustment clause; or b. If the utility does not have a Commission-approved RPS rate adjustment clause, through the utility's fuel adjustment clause or through the utility's cost of purchased power; 4. May conduct settlement transactions for purchased power in dollars on the small agricultural generator's electric bill or through other means of settlement, in the utility's sole discretion; 5. Shall bill the small agricultural generator eligible costs for small generator interconnection studies required pursuant to the appropriate small generator interconnection process described in subdivision B 3; and 6. Shall bill its expenses, at cost, for any additional engineering studies that a small agricultural generator is required to pay prior to interconnection. 2017, cc. 565, 581; 2021, Sp. Sess. I, c. 266.

Va. Code § 56-594.3

§ 56-594.3. Shared solar programs; Phase II Utility.A. As used in this section: "Administrative cost" means the reasonable incremental cost to the investor-owned utility to process subscribers' bills for the program. "Applicable bill credit rate" means the dollar-per-kilowatt-hour rate used to calculate the subscriber's bill credit. "Bill credit" means the monetary value of the electricity, in kilowatt-hours, generated by the shared solar facility allocated to a subscriber to offset that subscriber's electricity bill. "Dual-use agricultural facility" means agricultural production and electricity production from solar photovoltaic panels occurring simultaneously on the same property. "Gross bill" means the amount that a customer would pay to the utility based on the customer's monthly energy consumption before any bill credits are applied. "Incremental cost" means any cost directly caused by the implementation of the shared solar program that would not have occurred absent the implementation of the shared solar program. "Low-income customer" means any person or household whose income is no more than 80 percent of the median income of the locality in which the customer resides. The median income of the locality is determined by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. "Low-income service organization" means a nonresidential customer of an investor-owned utility whose primary purpose is to serve low-income individuals and households. "Low-income shared solar facility" means a shared solar facility at least 30 percent of the capacity of which is subscribed by low-income customers or low-income service organizations. "Minimum bill" means an amount determined by the Commission under subsection D that a subscriber is required to, at a minimum, pay on the subscriber's utility bill each month after accounting for any bill credits. "Net bill" means the resulting amount a customer must pay the utility after deducting the bill credit from the customer's monthly gross bill. "Phase II Utility" has the same meaning as provided in subdivision A 1 of § 56-585.1. "Shared solar facility" means a facility that: 1. Generates electricity by means of a solar photovoltaic device with a nameplate capacity rating that does not exceed 5,000 kilowatts of alternating current; 2. Is interconnected with a Phase II Utility's distribution system within the Commonwealth; 3. Has at least three subscribers; 4. Has at least 40 percent of its capacity subscribed by customers with subscriptions of 25 kilowatts or less; and 5. Is located on a single parcel of land. "Shared solar program" or "program" means the program created through the adoption of rules to allow for the development of shared solar facilities. "Subscriber" means a retail customer of a utility that (i) owns one or more subscriptions of a shared solar facility that is interconnected with the utility and (ii) receives service in the service territory of the same utility in whose service territory the shared solar facility is interconnected. "Subscriber organization" means any for-profit or nonprofit entity that owns or operates one or more shared solar facilities. A subscriber organization shall not be considered a utility solely as a result of its ownership or operation of a shared solar facility. A subscriber organization licensed with the Commission shall be eligible to own or operate shared solar facilities in more than one investor-owned utility service territory. "Subscribed" means, in relation to a subscription, that a subscriber has made initial payments or provided a deposit to the owner of a shared solar facility for such subscription. "Subscription" means a contract or other agreement between a subscriber and the owner of a shared solar facility. A subscription shall be sized such that the estimated bill credits do not exceed the subscriber's average annual bill for the customer account to which the subscription is attributed. "Utility" means a Phase II Utility. B. The Commission shall establish by regulation a program that affords customers of a Phase II Utility the opportunity to participate in shared solar projects. Under its shared solar program, a utility shall provide a bill credit for the proportional output of a shared solar facility attributable to that subscriber. The shared solar program shall be administered as follows: 1. The value of the bill credit for the subscriber shall be calculated by multiplying the subscriber's portion of the kilowatt-hour electricity production from the shared solar facility by the applicable bill credit rate for the subscriber. Any amount of the bill credit that exceeds the subscriber's monthly bill, minus the minimum bill, shall be carried over and applied to the next month's bill. 2. The utility shall provide bill credits to a shared solar facility's subscribers for not less than 25 years from the date the shared solar facility becomes commercially operational. 3. The subscriber organization shall, on a monthly basis and in a standardized electronic format, and pursuant to guidelines established by the Commission, provide to the utility a subscriber list indicating the kilowatt-hours of generation attributable to each of the subscribers participating in a shared solar facility in accordance with the subscriber's portion of the output of the shared solar facility. 4. Subscriber lists may be updated monthly to reflect canceling subscribers and to add new subscribers. The utility shall apply bill credits to subscriber bills within two billing cycles following the cycle during which the energy was generated by the shared solar facility. 5. Each utility shall, on a monthly basis and in a standardized electronic format, provide to the subscriber organization a report indicating the total value of bill credits generated by the shared solar facility in the prior month, as well as the amount of the bill credit applied to each subscriber. 6. A subscriber organization may accumulate bill credits in the event that all of the electricity generated by a shared solar facility is not allocated to subscribers in a given month. On an annual basis and pursuant to guidelines established by the Commission, the subscriber organization shall furnish to the utility allocation instructions for distributing excess bill credits to subscribers. 7. A subscriber organization that registers a shared solar facility in the program within the first 200 megawatts alternating current of awarded capacity shall own all environmental attributes associated with a shared solar facility, including renewable energy certificates. At such subscriber organization's direction, such environmental attributes may be distributed to subscribers, sold to load-serving entities with compliance obligations or other buyers, accumulated, or retired. For a shared solar facility registered in the program after the first 200 megawatts alternating current of awarded capacity, the registering subscriber organization shall transfer renewable energy certificates to a Phase II Utility to be retired for compliance with such Phase II Utility's renewable portfolio standard obligations pursuant to subsection C of § 56-585.5. 8. Projects shall be entitled to receive incentives when they are located on rooftops, brownfields, or landfills, are dual-use agricultural facilities, or meet the definition of another category established by the Department of Energy pursuant to this section. C. Each subscriber shall pay a minimum bill, established pursuant to subsection D, and shall receive an applicable bill credit based on the subscriber's customer class of residential, commercial, or industrial. Each class's applicable credit rate shall be calculated by the Commission annually by dividing revenues to the class by sales, measured in kilowatt-hours, to that class to yield a bill credit rate for the class ($/kWh). D. The Commission shall establish a minimum bill, which shall include the costs of all utility infrastructure and services used to provide electric service and administrative costs of the shared solar program. The Commission may modify the minimum bill over time. In establishing the minimum bill, the Commission shall (i) consider further costs the Commission deems relevant to ensure subscribing customers pay a fair share of the costs of providing electric services and generation sufficient to meet customer needs at all times, (ii) minimize the costs shifted to customers not in a shared solar program, and (iii) calculate the benefits of shared solar to the electric grid and to the Commonwealth and deduct such benefits from other costs. The Commission shall explicitly set forth its findings as to each cost and benefit, or other value used to determine such minimum bill. Low-income customers shall be exempt from the minimum bill. E. The Commission shall approve part one of a shared solar program with an aggregate capacity of 200 megawatts. Upon a determination that at least 90 percent of the megawatts of the aggregate capacity of such program have been subscribed and that project construction is substantially complete, the Commission shall approve up to an additional 150 megawatts of capacity as part two of such program, 75 megawatts of which shall serve no more than 51 percent low-income customers. Subscriber organizations shall be allowed to demonstrate compliance with the low income requirement using either project capacity or project savings methodology. The Commission, in collaboration with the Department of Energy, may adopt mechanisms to ensure low-income customer participation. F. The Commission shall establish by regulation a shared solar program that complies with the provisions of subsections B, C, D, and E by March 1, 2025, and shall require each utility to file any tariffs, agreements, or forms necessary for implementation of the program by December 1, 2025. Any tariffs, agreements, and forms currently in effect at the time of enactment shall remain in effect until such revisions are approved by the Commission. Any rule or utility implementation filings approved by the Commission shall: 1. Reasonably allow for the creation of shared solar facilities; 2. Allow all customer classes to participate in the program; 3. Create a stakeholder working group including low-income community representatives and community solar providers to facilitate low-income customer and low-income service organization participation in the program; 4. Encourage public-private partnerships to further the Commonwealth's clean energy and equity goals, such as state agency and affordable housing provider participation as subscribers of a shared solar program; 5. Not remove a customer from its otherwise applicable customer class in order to participate in a shared solar facility; 6. Reasonably allow for the transferability and portability of subscriptions, including allowing a subscriber to retain a subscription to a shared solar facility if the subscriber moves within the same utility's service territory; 7. Establish standards, fees, and processes for the interconnection of shared solar facilities that allow the utility to recover reasonable interconnection costs for each shared solar facility; 8. Adopt standardized consumer disclosure forms; 9. Allow the utility the opportunity to recover reasonable costs of administering the program; 10. Ensure nondiscriminatory and efficient requirements and utility procedures for interconnecting projects; 11. Address the co-location of two or more shared solar facilities on a single parcel of land and provide guidelines for determining when two or more such facilities are co-located; 12. Include a program implementation schedule; 13. Prohibit credit checks as a means of establishing eligibility for residential customers to become subscribers; 14. Prohibit early termination fees and credit reporting for any low-income customer; 15. Require a customer's affirmative consent by written or electronic signature before providing access to customer billing and usage data to a subscriber organization; 16. Establish customer engagement rules and minimum rules for education, contract reviews, and continued engagement; 17. Require net crediting functionality. Under net crediting, the utility shall include the shared solar subscription fee on the customer's utility bill and provide the customer with a net credit equivalent to the total bill credit value for that generation period minus the shared solar subscription fee as set by the subscriber organization. The net crediting fee shall not exceed one percent of the bill credit value. Net crediting shall be optional for subscriber organizations, and any shared solar subscription fees charged via the net crediting model shall be set to ensure that subscribers do not pay more in subscription fees than they receive in bill credits; and 18. Allow the utility to recover as the cost of purchased power pursuant to § 56-249.6 any difference between the bill credit provided to the subscriber and the cost of energy injected into the grid by the subscriber organization. G. Within 180 days of finalization of the Commission's adoption of regulations for the shared solar program, a utility shall begin crediting subscriber accounts of each shared solar facility interconnected in its service territory, subject to the requirements of this section and regulations adopted thereto. 2020, cc. 1238, 1264; 2021, Sp. Sess. I, c. 532; 2024, cc. 715, 763.

Va. Code § 56-594.4

§ 56-594.4. Shared solar programs; Phase I Utility.A. As used in this section: "Administrative cost" means the reasonable incremental cost to the investor-owned utility to process subscribers' bills for the program. "Applicable bill credit rate" means the dollar-per-kilowatt-hour rate used to calculate the subscriber's bill credit. "Bill credit" means the monetary value of the electricity, in kilowatt-hours, generated by the shared solar facility allocated to a subscriber to offset that subscriber's electricity bill. "Dual-use agricultural facility" means agricultural production and electricity production from solar photovoltaic panels occurring simultaneously on the same property. "Gross bill" means the amount that a customer would pay to the utility based on the customer's monthly energy consumption before any bill credits are applied. "Incremental cost" means any cost directly caused by the implementation of the shared solar program that would not have occurred absent the implementation of the shared solar program. "Minimum bill" means an amount determined by the Commission under subsection D that a subscriber is required to, at a minimum, pay on the subscriber's utility bill each month after accounting for any bill credits. "Net bill" means the resulting amount a customer must pay the utility after deducting the bill credit from the customer's monthly gross bill. "Phase I Utility" has the same meaning as provided in subdivision A 1 of § 56-585.1. "Shared solar facility" means a facility that: 1. Generates electricity by means of a solar photovoltaic device with a nameplate capacity rating that does not exceed 5,000 kilowatts of alternating current; 2. Is interconnected with the distribution system of an investor-owned electric utility within the Commonwealth; 3. Has at least three subscribers; 4. Has at least 40 percent of its capacity subscribed by customers with subscriptions of 25 kilowatts or less; and 5. Is located on a single parcel of land. "Shared solar program" or "program" means the program created through the adoption of rules to allow for the development of shared solar facilities. "Subscriber" means a retail customer of a utility that (i) owns one or more subscriptions of a shared solar facility that is interconnected with the utility and (ii) receives service in the service territory of the same utility in whose service territory the shared solar facility is interconnected. "Subscriber organization" means any for-profit or nonprofit entity that owns or operates one or more shared solar facilities. A subscriber organization shall not be considered a utility solely as a result of its ownership or operation of a shared solar facility. A subscriber organization licensed with the Commission shall be eligible to own or operate shared solar facilities in more than one investor-owned utility service territory. "Subscription" means a contract or other agreement between a subscriber and the owner of a shared solar facility. A subscription shall be sized such that the estimated bill credits do not exceed the subscriber's average annual bill for the customer account to which the subscription is attributed. "Utility" means a Phase I Utility. B. The Commission shall establish by regulation a program that affords customers of a Phase I Utility the opportunity to participate in shared solar projects. Under its shared solar program, a utility shall provide a bill credit for the proportional output of a shared solar facility attributable to that subscriber. The shared solar program shall be administered as follows: 1. The value of the bill credit for the subscriber shall be calculated by multiplying the subscriber's portion of the kilowatt-hour electricity production from the shared solar facility by the applicable bill credit rate for the subscriber. Any amount of the bill credit that exceeds the subscriber's monthly bill, minus the minimum bill, shall be carried over and applied to the next month's bill. 2. The utility shall provide bill credits to a shared solar facility's subscribers for not less than 25 years from the date the shared solar facility becomes commercially operational. 3. The subscriber organization shall, on a monthly basis and in a standardized electronic format, and pursuant to guidelines established by the Commission, provide to the utility a subscriber list indicating the percentage of shared solar capacity attributable to each of the subscribers participating in a shared solar facility in accordance with the subscriber's portion of the output of the shared solar facility. 4. Subscriber lists may be updated monthly to reflect canceling subscribers and to add new subscribers. The utility shall apply bill credits to subscriber bills within two billing cycles following the cycle during which the energy was generated by the shared solar facility. 5. Each utility shall, on a monthly basis and in a standardized electronic format, provide to the subscriber organization a report indicating the total value of bill credits generated by the shared solar facility in the prior month, as well as the amount of the bill credit applied to each subscriber. 6. A subscriber organization may accumulate bill credits in the event that all of the electricity generated by a shared solar facility is not allocated to subscribers in a given month. On an annual basis and pursuant to guidelines established by the Commission, the subscriber organization shall furnish to the utility allocation instructions for distributing excess bill credits to subscribers. 7. Any renewable energy certificates associated with a shared solar facility shall be distributed to a Phase I Utility to be retired for compliance with such Phase I Utility's renewable portfolio standard obligations pursuant to subsection C of § 56-585.5. 8. Projects shall be entitled to receive incentives when they are located on rooftops, brownfields, or landfills, are dual-use agricultural facilities, or meet the definition of another category established by the Department of Energy pursuant to this section. C. Each subscriber shall pay a minimum bill, established pursuant to subsection D, and shall receive an applicable bill credit based on the subscriber's customer class of residential, commercial, or industrial. Each class's applicable credit rate shall be calculated by the Commission annually by dividing revenues to the class by sales, measured in kilowatt-hours, to that class to yield a bill credit rate for the class ($/kWh). D. The Commission shall establish a minimum bill, which shall include the costs of all utility infrastructure and services used to provide electric service and administrative costs of the shared solar program. The Commission may modify the minimum bill over time. In establishing the minimum bill, the Commission shall (i) consider further costs the Commission deems relevant to ensure subscribing customers pay a fair share of the costs of providing electric services, (ii) minimize the costs shifted to customers not in a shared solar program, and (iii) calculate the benefits of shared solar to the electric grid and to the Commonwealth and deduct such benefits from other costs. The Commission shall explicitly set forth its findings as to each cost and benefit, or other value used to determine such minimum bill. E. The Commission shall approve a shared solar program of 50 megawatts or six percent of peak load, whichever is less. F. The Commission shall establish by regulation a shared solar program that complies with the provisions of subsections B, C, D, and E by January 1, 2025, and shall require each utility to file any tariffs, agreements, or forms necessary for implementation of the program by July 1, 2025. Any rule or utility implementation filings approved by the Commission shall: 1. Reasonably allow for the creation of shared solar facilities; 2. Allow all customer classes to participate in the program; 3. Encourage public-private partnerships to further the Commonwealth's clean energy and equity goals, such as state agency and affordable housing provider participation as subscribers of a shared solar program; 4. Not remove a customer from its otherwise applicable customer class in order to participate in a shared solar facility; 5. Reasonably allow for the transferability and portability of subscriptions, including allowing a subscriber to retain a subscription to a shared solar facility if the subscriber moves within the same utility's service territory; 6. Establish standards, fees, and processes for the interconnection of shared solar facilities that allow the utility to recover reasonable interconnection costs for each shared solar facility; 7. Adopt standardized consumer disclosure forms; 8. Allow the utility the opportunity to recover reasonable costs of administering the program; 9. Ensure nondiscriminatory and efficient requirements and utility procedures for interconnecting projects; 10. Allow for the co-location of two or more shared solar facilities on a single parcel of land and provide guidelines for determining when two or more such facilities are co-located; 11. Include a program implementation schedule; 12. Prohibit credit checks as a means of establishing eligibility for residential customers to become subscribers; 13. Require a customer's affirmative consent by written or electronic signature before providing access to customer billing and usage data to a subscriber organization; 14. Establish customer engagement rules and minimum rules for education, contract reviews, and continued engagement; 15. Require net financial savings for low-income customers, as that term is defined in § 56-594.3, of at least 10 percent, relative to the subscription fee throughout the life of the subscription; and 16. Allow the utility to recover as the cost of purchased power pursuant to § 56-249.6 any difference between the bill credit provided to the subscriber and the cost of energy injected into the grid by the subscriber organization. G. Within 180 days of finalization of the Commission's adoption of regulations for the shared solar program, a utility shall begin crediting subscriber accounts of each shared solar facility interconnected in its service territory, subject to the requirements of this section and regulations adopted thereto. 2024, cc. 716, 765.

Va. Code § 56-596

§ 56-596. Consideration of economic development; report.A. In all relevant proceedings pursuant to this Act, the Commission shall take into consideration, among other things, the goal of economic development in the Commonwealth. B. By September 1 of each year, the Commission shall report to the Commission on Electric Utility Regulation and the Governor on the status of the implementation of this chapter and its recommendations regarding the implementation of the provisions of this chapter. This report shall include the Commission's recommendations for any actions by the General Assembly, the Commission, electric utilities, or any other entity that the Commission considers to be in the public interest. 2001, c. 748; 2003, c. 885; 2008, c. 883.

Va. Code § 56-596.1

§ 56-596.1. New generating facilities utilizing energy derived from sunlight and from wind; report.It is the objective of the General Assembly that the construction and development of new utility-owned and utility-operated generating facilities utilizing energy derived from sunlight and from wind with an aggregate capacity of 5,000 megawatts, including rooftop solar installations with a capacity of not less than 50 kilowatts, and with an aggregate capacity of 50 megawatts, be placed in service on or before July 1, 2028. It is also the objective of the General Assembly that 2,700 megawatts of aggregate energy storage capacity be placed into service on or before July 1, 2030. The Commission shall submit a report and make recommendations to the Governor and the General Assembly annually on or before December 1 of each year through December 1, 2028, assessing (i) the aggregate annual new construction and development of new utility-owned and utility-operated generating facilities utilizing energy derived from sunlight, (ii) the integration of utility-owned renewable electric generation resources with the utility's electric distribution grid, (iii) the aggregate additional utility-owned and utility-operated generating facilities utilizing energy derived from sunlight placed in operation since July 1, 2018, (iv) the need for additional generation of electricity utilizing energy derived from sunlight in order to meet the objective of the General Assembly on or before July 1, 2028, and (v) the aggregate annual new construction or purchase of energy storage facilities. The Commission shall submit copies of such annual reports to the Chairman of the House Committee on Labor and Commerce, the Chairman of the Senate Committee on Commerce and Labor, and the Chairman of the Commission on Electric Utility Regulation. 2018, c. 296; 2020, c. 1190.

Va. Code § 56-596.2

§ 56-596.2. Energy efficiency policy and programs; financial assistance for low-income customers.A. Notwithstanding subsection G of § 56-580, or any other provision of law, each incumbent investor-owned electric utility shall develop proposed energy efficiency programs. Any program shall provide for the submission of a petition or petitions for approval to design, implement, and operate energy efficiency programs pursuant to subdivision A 5 c of § 56-585.1. At least 15 percent of such proposed costs of energy efficiency programs shall be allocated to programs designed to benefit low-income, elderly, or disabled individuals or veterans. B. Notwithstanding any other provision of law, each investor-owned incumbent electric utility shall implement energy efficiency programs and measures to achieve the following total annual energy savings: 1. For Phase I electric utilities: a. In calendar year 2022, at least 0.5 percent of the average annual energy jurisdictional retail sales by that utility in 2019; b. In calendar year 2023, at least 1.0 percent of the average annual energy jurisdictional retail sales by that utility in 2019; c. In calendar year 2024, at least 1.5 percent of the average annual energy jurisdictional retail sales by that utility in 2019; d. In calendar year 2025, at least 2.0 percent of the average annual energy jurisdictional retail sales by that utility in 2019; 2. For Phase II electric utilities: a. In calendar year 2022, at least 1.25 percent of the average annual energy jurisdictional retail sales by that utility in 2019; b. In calendar year 2023, at least 2.5 percent of the average annual energy jurisdictional retail sales by that utility in 2019; c. In calendar year 2024, at least 3.75 percent of the average annual energy jurisdictional retail sales by that utility in 2019; and d. In calendar year 2025, at least 5.0 percent of the average annual energy jurisdictional retail sales by that utility in 2019; 3. For the time period 2026 through 2028, the Commission shall, after notice and hearing, establish new energy efficiency savings targets measured as a percentage of the average annual energy jurisdictional retail sales by that utility in 2019; and 4. For the time period 2029 through 2031, and for every successive three-year period thereafter, the Commission shall establish new energy efficiency savings targets measured as a percentage of the average annual energy jurisdictional retail sales by that utility in 2019, which shall be the greatest level of energy savings that the Commission finds is feasible and cost-effective pursuant to the Commission's cost-effectiveness test regulations. To assist the Commission in setting such targets, the Commission shall retain a qualified expert, compensated pursuant to subsection E of § 56-592.1, to independently conduct an energy efficiency potential study for each Phase I and Phase II Utility's service territory, and each such utility shall provide to the Commission and its expert any information necessary to complete such study if such information is reasonably available. For every subsequent three-year period, the Commission shall retain an expert, compensated pursuant to subsection E of § 56-592.1, to update the energy efficiency potential study for each Phase I and Phase II Utility's service territory. A utility may recover any costs it incurs to assist the Commission with the energy efficiency potential study if the Commission finds such costs are reasonable and prudent. Such costs shall not be considered when determining whether an energy efficiency measure or program is cost-effective. In advance of the effective date of such targets, the Commission shall, after notice and opportunity for hearing, initiate proceedings to establish such targets. As part of such proceeding, the Commission shall consider the feasibility of achieving energy efficiency goals and future energy efficiency savings through cost-effective programs and measures. The Commission shall annually review the feasibility of the energy efficiency program savings in this section and report to the Chairs of the House Committee on Labor and Commerce and the Senate Committee on Commerce and Labor and the Secretary of Natural and Historic Resources and the Secretary of Commerce and Trade on such feasibility by October 1, 2022, and each year thereafter. C. The projected costs for the utility to design, implement, and operate such energy efficiency programs and portfolios of programs shall be no less than an aggregate amount of $140 million for a Phase I Utility and $870 million for a Phase II Utility for the period beginning July 1, 2018, and ending July 1, 2028, including any existing approved energy efficiency programs. In developing such portfolio of energy efficiency programs and portfolios of programs, each utility shall utilize a stakeholder process, to be facilitated by an independent monitor compensated under the funding provided pursuant to subsection E of § 56-592.1, to provide input and feedback on (i) the development of such energy efficiency programs and portfolios of programs; (ii) compliance with the total annual energy savings set forth in this subsection and how such savings affect utility integrated resource plans; (iii) recommended policy reforms by which the General Assembly or the Commission can ensure maximum and cost-effective deployment of energy efficiency technology across the Commonwealth; and (iv) best practices for evaluation, measurement, and verification for the purposes of assessing compliance with the total annual energy savings set forth in subsection B. Utilities shall utilize the services of a third party to perform evaluation, measurement, and verification services to determine a utility's total annual savings as required by this subsection, as well as the annual and lifecycle net and gross energy and capacity savings, related emissions reductions, and other quantifiable benefits of each program; total customer bill savings that the programs and portfolios produce; and utility spending on each program, including any associated administrative costs. The third-party evaluator shall include and review each utility's avoided costs and cost-benefit analyses. The findings and reports of such third parties shall be concurrently provided to both the Commission and the utility, and the Commission shall make each such final annual report easily and publicly accessible online. Such stakeholder process shall include the participation of representatives from each utility, relevant directors, deputy directors, and staff members of the Commission who participate in approval and oversight of utility energy efficiency savings programs, the office of Consumer Counsel of the Attorney General, the Department of Energy, energy efficiency program implementers, energy efficiency providers, residential and small business customers, and any other interested stakeholder whom the independent monitor deems appropriate for inclusion in such process. The independent monitor shall convene meetings of the participants in the stakeholder process not less frequently than twice in each calendar year during the period beginning July 1, 2019, and ending July 1, 2028. The independent monitor shall report on the status of the energy efficiency stakeholder process, including (a) the objectives established by the stakeholder group during this process related to programs to be proposed, (b) recommendations related to programs to be proposed that result from the stakeholder process, and (c) the status of those recommendations, in addition to the petitions filed and the determination thereon, to the Governor, the Commission, and the Chairmen of the House Committee on Labor and Commerce and the Senate Committee on Commerce and Labor on July 1, 2019, and annually thereafter through July 1, 2028. D. Nothing in this section shall apply to any entity organized under Chapter 9.1 (§ 56-231.15 et seq.). 2018, c. 296; 2019, cc. 397, 398; 2020, cc. 1193, 1194, 1208; 2021, Sp. Sess. I, cc. 401, 532; 2024, cc. 794, 818.

Va. Code § 56-596.3

§ 56-596.3. Electric generation, transmission, and distribution; report.The Commission shall submit a report and make recommendations to the Governor and the General Assembly annually on or before December 1 of each year assessing (i) the reliability of electrical transmission or distribution systems; (ii) the integration of utility or customer owned renewable electric generation resources with the utility's electric distribution grid; (iii) the level of investment in generation, transmission, or distribution of electricity; (iv) the need for additional generation of electricity during times of peak demand; and (v) distribution system hardening projects and enhanced physical security measures. The Commission shall submit copies of such annual reports to the Chairman of the House Committee on Labor and Commerce, the Chairman of the Senate Committee on Commerce and Labor and the Chairman of the Commission on Electric Utility Regulation. 2018, c. 296.

Va. Code § 56-596.4

§ 56-596.4. Electric utilities; local reliability data.A. For the purposes of this section, "Phase II Utility" has the same meaning as provided in subdivision A 1 of § 56-585.1. B. Upon request of a locality located within the service territory of a Phase II Utility, a Phase II Utility shall provide local reliability data within 30 days of such request. The data provided to the locality shall be limited in scope to the particular locality that made the request. Such data provided by the utility shall include standard reliability metrics used in accordance with industry-recognized electric reliability standards (IEEE 1366), including data from the System Average Interruption Duration Index (SAIDI), the System Average Interruption Frequency Index (SAIFI), the Customer Average Interruption Duration Index (CAIDI), and the Customer Average Interruption Frequency Index (CAIFI). The Commission shall include in the report required pursuant to § 56-596.3 such industry standard reliability metrics for each Phase II Utility and a description of any infrastructure investments made by each Phase II Utility to improve electric service reliability over the relevant reporting period. 2022, c. 653.

Va. Code § 56-596.5

§ 56-596.5. Rate increases in certain months prohibited; Phase I Utility.A. Notwithstanding any other provision of law, the rates for electric generation and distribution services by a Phase I Utility, as defined in subdivision A 1 of § 56-585.1, shall not be increased during the months of November through February. B. Notwithstanding any other provision of law, during the months of November through February, no new rate adjustment clause shall be applied to a Phase I Utility's residential customers' bills and no existing rate adjustment clause applicable to such customers' bills shall be increased. The Commission's final order regarding any petition for a rate adjustment clause that results in an increase to residential customer rates, including any petition filed pursuant to subdivision A 4, 5, or 6 of § 56-585.1 or § 56-585.1:15, 56-585.5, or 56-585.6, issued between September 1 and December 31 shall direct that the applicable rate adjustment clause be applied to customers' bills beginning on March 1 of the following year. 2025, cc. 497, 597.

Va. Code § 56-596.6

§ 56-596.6. Distribution cost sharing program.A. As used in this section: "Hosting capacity" means the amount of aggregate generation that can be accommodated on the electric distribution system without any infrastructure upgrades. "Program" means the distribution cost sharing program established pursuant to this section. "Qualifying upgrade" means a system upgrade that increases the hosting capacity of the utility's distribution system. "Sharing project" means any distributed energy resource with an alternating current (AC) nameplate capacity rating greater than or equal to 250 kilowatts and less than or equal to three megawatts within the Phase I or Phase II Utility's service territory seeking to interconnect to the utility's distribution system and participate in net energy metering pursuant to § 56-594 that utilizes distribution system upgrades that were necessary to interconnect a triggering project. "Triggering project" means a project application in the interconnection queue at a given substation or feeder that requires a qualifying upgrade to successfully interconnect the project to the electric distribution system. B. The Commission shall establish by regulation a distribution cost sharing program for Phase I and Phase II Utilities, as those terms are defined in subdivision A 1 of § 56-585.1, to construct distribution system upgrades required to interconnect triggering projects. Under the program, when a Phase I or Phase II Utility determines that a qualifying upgrade is required to interconnect a triggering project, such utility shall determine the costs of the qualifying upgrade and the net increase in hosting capacity that would result from the construction of the qualifying upgrade. The costs of the qualifying upgrade shall be subject to approval by the Commission that the costs are reasonable and prudent. The program shall require each Phase I and Phase II Utility to allocate the costs of qualifying upgrades among any sharing projects based on the AC nameplate capacity rating of each sharing project, except that a project shall be exempted from the program if the owner or developer of such project elects to pay in full the approved cost of any associated qualifying upgrade. The Commission shall determine limits on cost recovery for ratepayers and the appropriate time period for cost recovery under the program. The program shall also require that the costs attributed to jurisdictional triggering projects are recovered from jurisdictional sharing projects and costs attributed to nonjurisdictional triggering projects are recovered from nonjurisdictional sharing projects. The Commission may establish a system to refund projects for any interconnection upgrade costs collected during time periods in which such projects are not operational and may provide such refunds upon the petition of the owner of a participating project. 2025, cc. 615, 658. Chapter 24. Electric Utility Integrated Resource Planning.

Va. Code § 56-597

§ 56-597. (Effective January 1, 2026) Definitions.As used in this chapter: "Advanced conductors" means high-temperature low-sag hardware technology that can conduct electricity across transmission lines and that demonstrates enhanced performance over traditional conductor products. "Advanced conductors" includes aluminum conductor composite core, aluminum conductor steel supported, aluminum conductor composite reinforced, thermal-resistant aluminum alloy conductor, and any similar technologies. "Affiliate" means a person that controls, is controlled by, or is under common control with an electric utility. "Electric utility" means any investor-owned public utility that provides electric energy for use by retail customers, except investor-owned utilities subject to the provisions of § 56-585.8. "Grid-enhancing technologies" means a set of technologies that maximize the transmission of electricity across the electric distribution grid in a manner that ensures grid reliability and safeguards the cybersecurity and physical security of the electric distribution grid, including storage as a transmission asset, dynamic line rating, power flow control, and topology optimization. "Integrated resource plan" or "IRP" means a document developed by an electric utility that provides a forecast of its load obligations and a plan to meet those obligations by supply side and demand side resources over the ensuing 15 years to promote reasonable prices, reliable service, energy independence, and environmental responsibility. "Retail customer" means any person that purchases retail electric energy for its own consumption at one or more metering points or non-metered points of delivery located in the Commonwealth. 2008, cc. 476, 603; 2023, cc. 749, 776; 2024, c. 532; 2025, c. 551.

Va. Code § 56-598

§ 56-598. Contents of integrated resource plans.An IRP should: 1. Integrate, over the planning period, the electric utility's forecast of demand for electric generation supply with recommended plans to meet that forecasted demand and assure adequate and sufficient reliability of service, including: a. Generating electricity from generation facilities that it currently operates or intends to construct or purchase; b. Purchasing electricity from affiliates and third parties; c. Reducing load growth and peak demand growth through cost-effective demand reduction programs; and d. Utilizing energy storage facilities to help meet forecasted demand and assure adequate and sufficient reliability of service; 2. Identify a portfolio of electric generation supply resources, including purchased and self-generated electric power, that: a. Consistent with § 56-585.1, is most likely to provide the electric generation supply needed to meet the forecasted demand, net of any reductions from demand side programs, so that the utility will continue to provide reliable service at reasonable prices over the long term; and b. Will consider low cost energy/capacity available from short-term or spot market transactions, consistent with a reasonable assessment of risk with respect to both price and generation supply availability over the term of the plan; 3. Reflect a diversity of electric generation supply and cost-effective demand reduction contracts and services so as to reduce the risks associated with an over-reliance on any particular fuel or type of generation demand and supply resources and be consistent with the Commonwealth's energy policies as set forth in § 45.2-1706.1; and 4. Include such additional information as the Commission requests pertaining to how the electric utility intends to meets its obligation to provide electric generation service for use by its retail customers over the planning period. 2008, cc. 476, 603; 2020, c. 1190; 2021, Sp. Sess. I, c. 327.

Va. Code § 56-599

§ 56-599. Integrated resource plan required.A. Each electric utility shall file an updated integrated resource plan by October 15, in each year immediately preceding the year the utility is subject to a biennial review of rates for generation and distribution services filing. A copy of each integrated resource plan shall be provided to the Chairman of the House Committee on Labor and Commerce, the Chairman of the Senate Committee on Commerce and Labor, and the Chairman of the Commission on Electric Utility Regulation. After January 1, 2024, each electric utility not subject to an annual review shall file an annual update to the integrated resource plan by October 15, in each year that the utility is subject to review of rates for generation and distribution services filing. All updated integrated resource plans shall comply with the provisions of any relevant order of the Commission establishing guidelines for the format and contents of updated and revised integrated resource plans. Each integrated resource plan shall consider options for maintaining and enhancing rate stability, energy independence, economic development including retention and expansion of energy-intensive industries, and service reliability. B. In preparing an integrated resource plan, each electric utility shall systematically evaluate and may propose: 1. Entering into short-term and long-term electric power purchase contracts; 2. Owning and operating electric power generation facilities; 3. Building new generation facilities; 4. Relying on purchases from the short term or spot markets; 5. Making investments in demand-side resources, including energy efficiency and demand-side management services; 6. Taking such other actions, as the Commission may approve, to diversify its generation supply portfolio and ensure that the electric utility is able to implement an approved plan; 7. The methods by which the electric utility proposes to acquire the supply and demand resources identified in its proposed integrated resource plan; 8. The effect of current and pending state and federal environmental regulations upon the continued operation of existing electric generation facilities or options for construction of new electric generation facilities; 9. The most cost effective means of complying with current and pending state and federal environmental regulations, including compliance options to minimize effects on customer rates of such regulations; 10. Long-term electric distribution grid planning and proposed electric distribution grid transformation projects, including a comprehensive assessment of the potential application of grid-enhancing technologies and advanced conductors in a manner that ensures grid reliability and safeguards the cybersecurity and physical security of the electric distribution grid. An electric utility that does not include grid-enhancing technologies or advanced conductors in an integrated resource plan shall include a detailed explanation of why such technologies or conductors are not included in such plan; 11. Developing a long-term plan for energy efficiency measures to accomplish policy goals of reduction in customer bills, particularly for low-income, elderly, and disabled customers; reduction in emissions; and reduction in carbon intensity; and 12. Developing a long-term plan to integrate new energy storage facilities into existing generation and distribution assets to assist with grid transformation. C. As part of preparing any integrated resource plan pursuant to this section, each utility shall conduct a facility retirement study for owned facilities located in the Commonwealth that emit carbon dioxide as a byproduct of combusting fuel and shall include the study results in its integrated resource plan. Upon filing the integrated resource plan with the Commission, the utility shall contemporaneously disclose the study results to each planning district commission, county board of supervisors, and city and town council where such electric generation unit is located, the Department of Energy, the Department of Housing and Community Development, the Virginia Employment Commission, and the Virginia Council on Environmental Justice. The disclosure shall include (i) the driving factors of the decision to retire and (ii) the anticipated retirement year of any electric generation unit included in the plan. Any electric generating facility with an anticipated retirement date that meets the criteria of § 45.2-1701.1 shall comply with the public disclosure requirements therein. D. As part of preparing any integrated resource plan pursuant to this section, each utility shall conduct outreach to engage the public in a stakeholder review process and provide opportunities for the public to contribute information, input, and ideas on the utility's integrated resource plan, including the plan's development methodology, modeling inputs, and assumptions, as well as the ability for the public to make relevant inquiries, to the utility when formulating its integrated resource plan. Each utility shall report its public outreach efforts to the Commission. The stakeholder review process shall include representatives from multiple interest groups, including residential and industrial classes of ratepayers. Each utility shall, at the time of the filing of its integrated resource plan, report on any stakeholder meetings that have occurred prior to the filing date. E. The Commission shall analyze and review an integrated resource plan and, after giving notice and opportunity to be heard, the Commission shall make a determination within nine months after the date of filing as to whether such an integrated resource plan is reasonable and is in the public interest. 2008, cc. 476, 603; 2015, c. 6; 2018, c. 296; 2020, c. 1190; 2021, Sp. Sess. I, cc. 41, 42; 2023, cc. 753, 757, 775, 793; 2024, c. 532. Chapter 25. Natural Gas Conservation and Ratemaking Efficiency Act.

Va. Code § 56-614

§ 56-614. Definitions.As used in this chapter, unless the context requires a different meaning: "Distribution facilities" includes poles and wires, or cables, or pipelines or other underground conduits by which a renewable generator is able to (i) supply electricity generated at its renewable energy facility to the electric distribution grid, (ii) distribute steam generated at its renewable energy facility to customers, or (iii) supply landfill gas it collects to customers or a natural gas distribution or transmission pipeline. "Locality" means the same as that term is defined in § 15.2-102. "Public highway" means, for purposes of computing the public rights-of-way use fee, the centerline mileage of highways and streets that are part of the primary state highway system as defined in § 33.2-100, the secondary state highway system as defined in §§ 33.2-100 and 33.2-324, the highways of those cities and certain towns defined in § 33.2-319, and the highways and streets maintained and operated by counties that have withdrawn or elect to withdraw from the secondary system of state highways under the provisions of § 11 of Chapter 415 of the Acts of Assembly of 1932 and that have not elected to return. "Public rights-of-way use fee" means the fee chargeable to a renewable generator for the occupation and use of public streets, roads, highways, works, turnpikes, streets, avenues, and alleys in the Commonwealth by a locality or the Commonwealth Transportation Board for a renewable generator for its distribution facilities. "Renewable energy facility" means (i) an electrical generation facility that produces not more than 2 megawatts peak net power output to the distribution grid, which electricity is generated only from a renewable energy source; (ii) a steam reduction facility with a rated capacity of not more than 5,000 mmBtus per hour that produces steam only from a renewable energy source; or (iii) a solid waste management facility permitted by the Department of Environmental Quality from which landfill gas is transmitted or distributed off premises. "Renewable energy source" means energy derived from any source specified in the definition of renewable energy in § 56-576. "Renewable generator" means a person that (i) does not have the power of a public service corporation to acquire rights-of-way, easements, or other interests in lands as provided in § 56-49 and (ii) operates a renewable energy facility. "Restrictions or requirements concerning the use of the public rights-of-way" includes permitting processes; requirements regarding notice, time, and location of excavations and repair work; enforcement of the statewide building code; and inspections but does not include any existing franchise fee or public rights-of-way use fee. 2009, c. 807, § 67-1100; 2021, Sp. Sess. I, c. 387.

Va. Code § 56-615

§ 56-615. Right to occupy rights-of-way; location of rights-of-way.A. Every renewable generator shall have authority to occupy and use the public roads, works, turnpikes, streets, avenues, and alleys in any county, with the consent of the board of supervisors or other governing authority thereof, or in any incorporated city or town, with the consent of the council thereof, and the waterways within the Commonwealth, with the consent of the Marine Resources Commission, for the erection of distribution facilities. However, if the road or street is in the primary state highway system or the secondary state highway system, the consent of the board of supervisors or other governing authority of any county shall not be necessary, provided that a permit for such occupation and use is first obtained from the Department of Transportation. The use of any road or street in the primary state highway system or secondary state highway system that has been designated a limited access highway in accordance with § 33.2-401 shall not be permitted, unless the Department of Transportation approves an exception in accordance with the then-current policy. B. Neither a locality nor the Department of Transportation shall impose any fees on a renewable generator for the use of public rights-of-way except in the manner prescribed in § 56-617. C. Neither a locality nor the Department of Transportation shall impose on renewable generators, whether by franchise, ordinance, or other means, any restrictions or requirements concerning the use of the public rights-of-way that are (i) unfair or unreasonable or (ii) any greater than those imposed on providers of electric or natural gas utility service. D. Notwithstanding any other provision of law, any permit or other permission required by a locality pursuant to a franchise, ordinance, or other permission to use the public rights-of-way or by the Department of Transportation of a renewable generator to use the public rights-of-way shall be granted or denied within 45 days from submission and, if denied, accompanied by a written explanation of the reasons the permit was denied and the actions required to cure the denial. E. Neither a locality receiving directly or indirectly a public rights-of-way use fee nor the Department of Transportation shall require a renewable generator to provide in-kind services or physical assets as a condition of consent to use public rights-of-way or easements, or in lieu of the public rights-of-way use fee. F. This chapter shall not affect the obligation of the Department of Transportation to give notice, pursuant to § 33.2-272, to localities when it grants its permission for the construction, installation, location, or placement of a landfill gas pipeline within any highway right-of-way. 2009, c. 807, § 67-1101; 2013, cc. 585, 646; 2021, Sp. Sess. I, c. 387.

Va. Code § 56-616

§ 56-616. Occupation of property of certain localities; imposition of terms and conditions as to use of property.A. Any incorporated city or town may impose upon a renewable generator any terms and conditions consistent herewith and supplemental hereto, as to the occupation and use of its streets, avenues, and alleys, and as to the construction and maintenance of the distribution facilities of the renewable generator along, over, or under the same, that the city or town may deem expedient and proper. B. No locality shall impose any fees on a renewable generator for the use of public rights-of-way except in the manner prescribed in § 56-617. C. No locality shall impose on a renewable generator, whether by franchise, ordinance, or other means, any restrictions or requirements concerning the use of the public rights-of-way that are (i) unfair or unreasonable or (ii) any greater than those imposed on providers of electric or natural gas utility service. D. Notwithstanding any other provision of law, any permit or other permission required by a locality pursuant to a franchise, ordinance, or other permission to use the public rights-of-way of a renewable generator to use the public rights-of-way shall be granted or denied within 45 days from submission and, if denied, accompanied by a written explanation of the reasons the permit was denied and the actions required to cure the denial. E. No locality receiving directly or indirectly a public rights-of-way use fee shall require a renewable generator to provide in-kind services or physical assets as a condition of consent to use public rights-of-way or easements, or in lieu of the public rights-of-way use fee. F. A renewable generator shall have the same rights, duties, and responsibilities related to the crossing of a railroad as afforded other public service corporations in §§ 56-12, 56-17 through 56-22, 56-25, 56-26, and 56-27. Nothing in this chapter shall expand the rights of renewable generators to either cross or otherwise have access to railroad property to an extent greater than that afforded other public service corporations in this title. 2009, c. 807, § 67-1102; 2021, Sp. Sess. I, c. 387.

Va. Code § 56-617

§ 56-617. Public rights-of-way use fee.A. Notwithstanding any other provisions of law, there is hereby established a public rights-of-way use fee to be charged in lieu of any and all fees of general application, except for zoning, subdivision, site plan, and comprehensive plan fees of general application, otherwise chargeable to a renewable generator by the Department of Transportation or a locality in connection with a permit for such occupation and use granted in accordance with § 56-615 or 56-616. The public rights-of-way use fee established by this section is imposed on all renewable generators that occupy and use public rights-of-way in order to (i) supply electricity generated at its renewable energy facility to the electric distribution grid, (ii) distribute steam generated at its renewable energy facility to customers, or (iii) supply landfill gas to customers or to a natural gas distribution or transmission pipeline. B. The amount of the public rights-of-way use fee for a renewable generator shall be $1,500 per mile or any portion thereof over which the renewable generator has installed distribution facilities. C. A renewable generator shall remit its required public rights-of-way use fee to the locality or the Department of Transportation, as applicable, prior to initiation of construction, as follows: 1. The renewable generator shall remit directly to the applicable locality all public rights-of-way use fees billed in (i) cities, (ii) towns whose public streets and roads are not maintained by the Department of Transportation, and (iii) any county that has withdrawn or elects to withdraw from the secondary system of state highways under the provisions of § 11 of Chapter 415 of the Acts of Assembly of 1932 and that has elected not to return. 2. The public rights-of-way use fees in all other counties shall be remitted by each renewable generator to the Department of Transportation, and shall first be used to offset the administrative costs of processing the permit with the remaining fee being added to the secondary system construction improvement program funds of the counties where the facilities are located. 2009, c. 807, § 67-1103; 2013, cc. 585, 646; 2021, Sp. Sess. I, c. 387.

Va. Code § 56-623

§ 56-623. Construction of transmission facilities.All posts, poles, wires, cables, lines, pipelines, conduits, and other distribution facilities erected under any authority conferred by this chapter shall be so located as in no way to obstruct or interfere with public travel or the ordinary use of, or the safety and convenience of persons traveling through, on, or over, the public roads, turnpikes, streets, avenues, alleys, railroads, or waters in or upon which the same may be erected. All distribution facilities erected as aforesaid shall be placed at such height as provided by regulations of the Commission or the Commonwealth Transportation Board. Buried distribution facilities shall be laid at such distance below the surface of any public road, turnpike, street, avenue, or alley, and at such distance from the outside of any gas or water main or other conduit already laid under such public road, turnpike, street, avenue, or alley, as prescribed by regulations of the Commission or by the Commonwealth Transportation Board. No distribution facilities shall be strung across or laid, nor posts or poles erected, upon the property of any person without first obtaining the consent of the owner thereof. Such distribution facilities shall not damage private property without compensation therefor, nor in any way obstruct the navigation of any stream, or impair or endanger the use thereof by the public or any other person entitled to the use of the same. In consideration of co-locating on existing rights of way, the renewable generator shall meet the respective safety and clearance standards of the public service corporation including the National Electrical Safety Code, the Underground Utility Damage Prevention Act (§ 56-265.14 et seq.), gas pipeline safety standards pursuant to § 56-257.2, and the public service corporation's own safety and clearance standards as the same are communicated to the renewable generator in writing, and any applicable federal laws and regulations. 2009, c. 807, § 67-1109; 2021, Sp. Sess. I, c. 387.

Va. Code § 56-88

§ 56-88. Definitions.In this chapter the following terms shall have the following meanings: "Acquire" or "acquisition" includes any purchase or other acquisition, whether by payment, exchange, gift, conveyance, lease, license, merger, consolidation or otherwise. "Company" means a corporation, a partnership, an association, a joint-stock company, a business trust or an organized group of persons, whether incorporated or not; or any receiver, trustee or other liquidating agent of any of the foregoing in his capacity as such; but not a municipal corporation or county. "Dispose of" or "disposition" includes any sale or other disposition, whether by payment, exchange, gift, conveyance, lease, license, merger, consolidation or otherwise. "Public utility" means any company which owns or operates facilities within the Commonwealth for the generation, transmission or distribution of electric energy for sale; for the production, transmission or distribution, otherwise than in enclosed portable containers, of natural or manufactured gas for sale for heat, light or power, but excluding any company described in subdivision (b)(8) or (b)(10) of § 56-265.1; or for the furnishing of sewerage facilities or water. "Utility assets" means the facilities in place of any public utility or municipality for the production, transmission or distribution of electric energy or natural or manufactured gas, or for the furnishing of sewerage facilities or water. "Utility security" means any note, draft, debenture, bond, share of stock, certificate, collateral trust certificate, preorganization certificate or subscription, transferable share, investment contract, receiver's or trustee's certificate or any other instrument or interest commonly known as a security which is issued, assumed or guaranteed by any public utility or any company which would be a public utility if the facilities owned or operated by it were within the Commonwealth, or any company substantially engaged in the ownership of any of the aforesaid securities or in supplying management or advice to any of the aforesaid companies; or any certificate of deposit for, voting trust certificate for, certificate of interest or participation in, temporary or interim certificate for, receipt for, guaranty of, assumption of liability on, or warrant or right to subscribe to or purchase or acquire, any of the aforesaid securities. 1940, p. 425; Michie Code 1942, § 3774l; 1992, c. 376; 2000, cc. 528, 543; 2009, c. 746.

Va. Code § 56-88.1

§ 56-88.1. Acquisition or disposition of control of a public utility.A. No person, whether acting alone or in concert with others, shall, directly or indirectly, acquire or dispose of control of: 1. A public utility within the meaning of this chapter, or all of the assets thereof, without the prior approval of the Commission. Any person proposing an acquisition or disposition for which Commission approval is required by this section shall seek such approval pursuant to the procedure of § 56-90; or 2. A telephone company, or all of the assets thereof, without the prior approval of the Commission. In determining whether to grant approval, the Commission shall consider only the financial, managerial, and technical resources to render local exchange telecommunications services of the person acquiring control of or all of the assets of the telephone company. The Commission shall, after the filing of a completed application, approve or disapprove the requested acquisition or disposition within 60 days. The 60-day period may be extended by Commission order for a period not to exceed an additional 120 days. The application shall be deemed approved if the Commission fails to act within 60 days or any extended period ordered by the Commission. B. Any such acquisition or disposition of control without prior approval shall be voidable by the Commission. In addition, the Commission is authorized to revoke any certificate of public convenience and necessity it has issued, order compliance with this chapter, or take such other action as may be appropriate within the authority of the Commission. C. For purposes of this section, "control" means (i) the acquisition of 25 percent or more of the voting stock or (ii) the actual exercise of any substantial influence over the policies and actions of any public utility or telephone company. D. This section shall not apply to any company engaged in the business of generating electricity whose rates and services are not regulated by the State Corporation Commission. 1992, c. 376; 2011, cc. 738, 740.

Va. Code § 56-90.1

§ 56-90.1. Sale of utility assets or undivided fractional interest therein; taxation.If the Commission shall have granted a petition filed pursuant to § 56-90 in which a public utility has applied for authority to sell utility assets or associated properties situated within the Commonwealth, or an undivided fractional interest therein, to (i) an association of one or more electric cooperatives or electric membership corporations that are wholesale customers of the electric public utility, (ii) an association of one or more cities or incorporated towns that are wholesale customers of the electric utility, (iii) any combination of such associations, or (iv) another public utility then, notwithstanding any other provisions of law: (1) A waiver made by any such electric public utility, association of cooperatives, cities or towns of any right it may have to compel partition, whether pursuant to the provisions of Article 9 (§ 8.01-81 et seq.) of Chapter 3 of Title 8.01, or otherwise, shall be effective and enforceable against (i) such public utility, association of cooperatives, cities or towns, and their successors and assigns, and (ii) all creditors of such public utility, association of cooperatives, cities and towns, their successors and assigns, who have notice of record of such waiver, so long as the waiver shall be limited so as not to exceed ninety-nine years; (2) No state recording tax shall be payable upon the admission to record of any deed, deed of trust, mortgage, bill of sale, contract, agreement or other writing supplemental to any such instrument which conveys or reconveys such utility assets or properties, or an undivided fractional interest therein or secures any bonds or other obligations of such association of cooperatives, cities or towns or combination thereof; provided, however, that any local recording taxes shall be payable as though the state recording taxes had been collected; (3) No state franchise tax or local license tax shall be payable on the proceeds of any such sale of utility assets or properties, or an undivided fractional interest therein; and (4) Unless otherwise expressly agreed by the joint owners the joint ownership of such utility assets or properties as approved by the Commission shall not constitute a partnership or joint venture among the owners. 1979, c. 238; 1980, c. 703.

Va. Code § 58.1-2201

§ 58.1-2201. Definitions.As used in this chapter, unless the context requires otherwise: "Alternative fuel" means a combustible gas, liquid or other energy source that can be used to generate power to operate a highway vehicle and that is neither a motor fuel nor electricity used to recharge an electric motor vehicle or a hybrid electric motor vehicle. "Alternative fuel vehicle" means a vehicle equipped to be powered by a combustible gas, liquid, or other source of energy that can be used to generate power to operate a highway vehicle and that is neither a motor fuel nor electricity used to recharge an electric motor vehicle or a hybrid electric motor vehicle. "Assessment" means a written determination by the Department of the amount of taxes owed by a taxpayer. Assessments made by the Department shall be deemed to be made when a written notice of assessment is delivered to the taxpayer by the Department or is mailed to the taxpayer at the last known address appearing in the Commissioner's files. "Aviation consumer" means any person who uses in excess of 100,000 gallons of aviation jet fuel in any fiscal year and is licensed pursuant to Article 2 (§ 58.1-2204 et seq.) of this chapter. "Aviation fuel" means aviation gasoline or aviation jet fuel. "Aviation gasoline" means fuel designed for use in the operation of aircraft other than jet aircraft, and sold or used for that purpose. "Aviation jet fuel" means fuel designed for use in the operation of jet or turbo-prop aircraft, and sold or used for that purpose. "Blended fuel" means a mixture composed of gasoline or diesel fuel and another liquid, other than a de minimis amount of a product such as carburetor detergent or oxidation inhibitor, that can be used as a fuel in a highway vehicle. "Blender" means a person who produces blended fuel outside the terminal transfer system. "Bonded aviation jet fuel" means aviation jet fuel held in bonded storage under United States Customs Law and delivered into a fuel tank of aircraft operated by certificated air carriers on international flights. "Bonded importer" means a person, other than a supplier, who imports, by transport truck or another means of transfer outside the terminal transfer system, motor fuel removed from a terminal located in another state in which (i) the state from which the fuel is imported does not require the seller of the fuel to collect motor fuel tax on the removal either at that state's rate or the rate of the destination state; (ii) the supplier of the fuel is not an elective supplier; or (iii) the supplier of the fuel is not a permissive supplier. "Bulk plant" means a motor fuel storage and distribution facility that is not a terminal and from which motor fuel may be removed at a rack. "Bulk user" means a person who maintains storage facilities for motor fuel and uses part or all of the stored fuel to operate a highway vehicle, watercraft, or aircraft. "Bulk user of alternative fuel" means a person who maintains storage facilities for alternative fuel and uses part or all of the stored fuel to operate a highway vehicle. "Commercial watercraft" means a watercraft employed in the business of commercial fishing, transporting persons or property for compensation or hire, or any other trade or business unless the watercraft is used in an activity of a type generally considered entertainment, amusement, or recreation. The definition shall include a watercraft owned by a private business and used in the conduct of its own business or operations, including but not limited to the transport of persons or property. "Commissioner" means the Commissioner of the Department of Motor Vehicles. "Corporate or partnership officer" means an officer or director of a corporation, partner of a partnership, or member of a limited liability company, who as such officer, director, partner or member is under a duty to perform on behalf of the corporation, partnership, or limited liability company the tax collection, accounting, or remitting obligations. "Department" means the Department of Motor Vehicles, acting directly or through its duly authorized officers and agents. "Designated inspection site" means any state highway inspection station, weigh station, agricultural inspection station, mobile station, or other location designated by the Commissioner or his designee to be used as a fuel inspection site. "Destination state" means the state, territory, or foreign country to which motor fuel is directed for delivery into a storage facility, a receptacle, a container, or a type of transportation equipment for the purpose of resale or use. The term shall not include a tribal reservation of any recognized Native American tribe. "Diesel fuel" means any liquid that is suitable for use as a fuel in a diesel-powered highway vehicle or watercraft. The term shall include undyed #1 fuel oil and undyed #2 fuel oil, but shall not include gasoline or aviation jet fuel. "Distributor" means a person who acquires motor fuel from a supplier or from another distributor for subsequent sale. "Dyed diesel fuel" means diesel fuel that meets the dyeing and marking requirements of 26 U.S.C. § 4082. "Elective supplier" means a supplier who (i) is required to be licensed in the Commonwealth and (ii) elects to collect the tax due the Commonwealth on motor fuel that is removed at a terminal located in another state and has Virginia as its destination state. "Electric motor vehicle" means a motor vehicle that uses electricity as its only source of motive power. "End seller" means the person who sells fuel to the ultimate user of the fuel. "Export" means to obtain motor fuel in Virginia for sale or distribution in another state, territory, or foreign country. Motor fuel delivered out-of-state by or for the seller constitutes an export by the seller, and motor fuel delivered out-of-state by or for the purchaser constitutes an export by the purchaser. "Exporter" means a person who obtains motor fuel in Virginia for sale or distribution in another state, territory, or foreign country. "Fuel" includes motor fuel and alternative fuel. "Fuel alcohol" means methanol or fuel grade ethanol. "Fuel alcohol provider" means a person who (i) produces fuel alcohol or (ii) imports fuel alcohol outside the terminal transfer system by means of a marine vessel, a transport truck, a tank wagon, or a railroad tank car. "Gasohol" means a blended fuel composed of gasoline and fuel grade ethanol. "Gasoline" means (i) all products that are commonly or commercially known or sold as gasoline and are suitable for use as a fuel in a highway vehicle, aircraft, or watercraft, other than products that have an American Society for Testing Materials octane number of less than 75 as determined by the motor method; (ii) a petroleum product component of gasoline, such as naphtha, reformate, or toluene; (iii) gasohol; and (iv) fuel grade ethanol. The term does not include aviation gasoline sold for use in an aircraft engine. "Governmental entity" means (i) the Commonwealth or any political subdivision thereof or (ii) the United States or its departments, agencies, and instrumentalities. "Gross gallons" means an amount of motor fuel measured in gallons, exclusive of any temperature, pressure, or other adjustments. "Heating oil" means any combustible liquid, including but not limited to dyed #1 fuel oil, dyed #2 fuel oil, and kerosene, that is burned in a boiler, furnace, or stove for heating or for industrial processing purposes. "Highway" means every way or place of whatever nature open to the use of the public for purposes of vehicular travel in the Commonwealth, including the streets and alleys in towns and cities. "Highway vehicle" means a self-propelled vehicle designed for use on a highway. "Hybrid electric motor vehicle" means a motor vehicle that uses electricity and another source of motive power. "Import" means to bring motor fuel into Virginia by any means of conveyance other than in the fuel supply tank of a highway vehicle. Motor fuel delivered into Virginia from out-of-state by or for the seller constitutes an import by the seller, and motor fuel delivered into Virginia from out-of-state by or for the purchaser constitutes an import by the purchaser. "Importer" means a person who obtains motor fuel outside of Virginia and brings that motor fuel into Virginia by any means of conveyance other than in the fuel tank of a highway vehicle. For purposes of this chapter, a motor fuel transporter shall not be considered an importer. "In-state-only supplier" means (i) a supplier who is required to have a license and who elects not to collect the tax due the Commonwealth on motor fuel that is removed by that supplier at a terminal located in another state and has Virginia as its destination state or (ii) a supplier who does business only in Virginia. "Licensee" means any person licensed by the Commissioner pursuant to Article 2 (§ 58.1-2204 et seq.) of this chapter or § 58.1-2244. "Liquid" means any substance that is liquid above its freezing point. "Motor fuel" means gasoline, diesel fuel, blended fuel, and aviation fuel. "Motor fuel transporter" means a person who transports motor fuel for hire by means of a pipeline, a tank wagon, a transport truck, a railroad tank car, or a marine vessel. "Net gallons" means the amount of motor fuel measured in gallons when adjusted to a temperature of 60 degrees Fahrenheit and a pressure of 14.7 pounds per square inch. "Occasional importer" means any person who (i) imports motor fuel by any means outside the terminal transfer system and (ii) is not required to be licensed as a bonded importer. "Permissive supplier" means an out-of-state supplier who elects, but is not required, to have a supplier's license under this chapter. "Person" means any individual; firm; cooperative; association; corporation; limited liability company; trust; business trust; syndicate; partnership; limited liability partnership; joint venture; receiver; trustee in bankruptcy; club, society or other group or combination acting as a unit; or public body, including but not limited to the Commonwealth, any other state, and any agency, department, institution, political subdivision or instrumentality of the Commonwealth or any other state. "Position holder" means a person who holds an inventory position of motor fuel in a terminal, as reflected on the records of the terminal operator. A person holds an "inventory position of motor fuel" when he has a contract with the terminal operator for the use of storage facilities and terminaling services for fuel at the terminal. The term includes a terminal operator who owns fuel in the terminal. "Principal" means (i) if a partnership, all its partners; (ii) if a corporation, all its officers, directors, and controlling direct or indirect owners; (iii) if a limited liability company, all its members; and (iv) or an individual. "Provider of alternative fuel" means a person who (i) acquires alternative fuel for sale or delivery to a bulk user or a retailer; (ii) maintains storage facilities for alternative fuel, part or all of which the person sells to someone other than a bulk user or a retailer to operate a highway vehicle; (iii) sells alternative fuel and uses part of the fuel acquired for sale to operate a highway vehicle by means of a fuel supply line from the cargo tank of the vehicle to the engine of the vehicle; or (iv) imports alternative fuel into Virginia, by a means other than the usual tank or receptacle connected with the engine of a highway vehicle, for sale or use by that person to operate a highway vehicle. "Rack" means a facility that contains a mechanism for delivering motor fuel from a refinery, terminal, or bulk plant into a transport truck, railroad tank car, or other means of transfer that is outside the terminal transfer system. "Refiner" means any person who owns, operates, or otherwise controls a refinery. "Refinery" means a facility for the manufacture or reprocessing of finished or unfinished petroleum products usable as motor fuel and from which motor fuel may be removed by pipeline or marine vessel or at a rack. "Removal" means a physical transfer other than by evaporation, loss, or destruction. A physical transfer to a transport truck or other means of conveyance outside the terminal transfer system is complete upon delivery into the means of conveyance. "Retailer" means a person who (i) maintains storage facilities for motor fuel and (ii) sells the fuel at retail or dispenses the fuel at a retail location. "Retailer of alternative fuel" means a person who (i) maintains storage facilities for alternative fuel and (ii) sells or dispenses the fuel at retail, to be used to generate power to operate a highway vehicle. "Supplier" means (i) a position holder, or (ii) a person who receives motor fuel pursuant to a two-party exchange. A licensed supplier includes a licensed elective supplier and licensed permissive supplier. "System transfer" means a transfer (i) of motor fuel within the terminal transfer system or (ii) of fuel grade ethanol by transport truck or railroad tank car. "Tank wagon" means a straight truck or straight truck/trailer combination designed or used to carry fuel and having a capacity of less than 6,000 gallons. "Terminal" means a motor fuel storage and distribution facility (i) to which a terminal control number has been assigned by the Internal Revenue Service, (ii) to which motor fuel is supplied by pipeline or marine vessel, and (iii) from which motor fuel may be removed at a rack. "Terminal operator" means a person who owns, operates, or otherwise controls a terminal. "Terminal transfer system" means a motor fuel distribution system consisting of refineries, pipelines, marine vessels, and terminals, and which is a "bulk transfer/terminal system" under 26 C.F.R. Part 48.4081-1. "Transmix" means (i) the buffer or interface between two different products in a pipeline shipment or (ii) a mix of two different products within a refinery or terminal that results in an off-grade mixture. "Transport truck" means a tractor truck/semitrailer combination designed or used to transport cargoes of motor fuel over a highway. "Trustee" means a person who (i) is licensed as a supplier, an elective supplier, or a permissive supplier and receives tax payments from and on behalf of a licensed or unlicensed distributor, or other person pursuant to § 58.1-2231 or (ii) is licensed as a provider of alternative fuel and receives tax payments from and on behalf of a bulk user of alternative fuel, retailer of alternative fuel or other person pursuant to § 58.1-2252. "Two-party exchange" means a transaction in which fuel is transferred from one licensed supplier to another licensed supplier pursuant to an exchange agreement, which transaction (i) includes a transfer from the person who holds the inventory position in taxable motor fuel in the terminal as reflected on the records of the terminal operator and (ii) is completed prior to removal of the product from the terminal by the receiving exchange partner. "Undyed diesel fuel" means diesel fuel that is not subject to the United States Environmental Protection Agency or Internal Revenue Service fuel-dyeing requirements. "Use" means the actual consumption or receipt of motor fuel by any person into a highway vehicle, aircraft, or watercraft. "Watercraft" means any vehicle used on waterways. "Wholesale price" means the price at the rack. 2000, cc. 729, 758; 2001, c. 802; 2002, cc. 4, 7; 2003, c. 781; 2004, c. 340; 2006, cc. 594, 912; 2011, c. 165; 2012, cc. 729, 733; 2013, c. 766.

Va. Code § 58.1-2600

§ 58.1-2600. Definitions.A. As used in this chapter: "Certificated motor vehicle carrier" means a common carrier by motor vehicle, as defined in § 46.2-2000, operating over regular routes under a certificate of public convenience and necessity issued by the Commission or issued on or after July 1, 1995, by the Department of Motor Vehicles. A transit company or bus company that is owned or operated directly or indirectly by a political subdivision of this Commonwealth shall not be deemed a "certificated motor vehicle carrier" for the purposes of this chapter and shall not be subject to the imposition of the tax imposed in § 58.1-2652, nor shall such transit company or bus company thereby be subject to the imposition of local property levies. A common carrier of property by motor vehicle shall not be deemed a "certificated motor vehicle carrier" for the purposes of this chapter and shall not be subject to the imposition of the tax imposed in § 58.1-2652, but shall be subject to the imposition of local property taxes. "Cogenerator" means a qualifying cogenerator or qualifying small power producer within the meaning of regulations adopted by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission in implementation of the Public Utility Regulatory Policies Act of 1978 (P.L. 95-617). "Commission" means the State Corporation Commission which is hereby designated pursuant to Article X, Section 2 of the Constitution of Virginia as the central state agency responsible for the assessment of the real and personal property of all public service corporations, except those public service corporations for which the Department of Taxation is so designated, upon which the Commonwealth levies a license tax measured by the gross receipts of such corporations. The State Corporation Commission shall also assess the property of each telephone or telegraph company, every public service corporation in the Commonwealth in the business of furnishing heat, light and power by means of electricity, and each electric supplier, as provided by this chapter. "Department" means the Department of Taxation which is hereby designated pursuant to Article X, Section 2 of the Constitution of Virginia as the central state agency to assess the real and personal property of railroads and pipeline transmission companies as defined herein. "Electric supplier" means any person owning or operating facilities for the generation, storage, transmission or distribution of electricity for sales, except any person owning or operating facilities with a designed generation or storage capacity of 25 megawatts or less. "Energy storage system" means the same as that term is defined in § 58.1-3660. "Estimated tax" means the amount of tax which a taxpayer estimates as being imposed by Article 2 (§ 58.1-2620 et seq.) of this chapter for the tax year as measured by the gross receipts received in the taxable year. "Freight car company" includes every car trust, mercantile or other company or person not domiciled in this Commonwealth owning stock cars, furniture cars, fruit cars, tank cars or other similar cars. Such term shall not include a company operating a line as a railroad. "Gross receipts" means the total of all revenue derived in the Commonwealth, including but not limited to income from the provision or performance of a service or the performance of incidental operations not necessarily associated with the particular service performed, without deductions for expenses or other adjustments. Such term shall not, however, include interest, dividends, investment income or receipts from the sale of real property or other assets except inventory of goods held for sale or resale. "Pipeline distribution company" means a corporation, other than a pipeline transmission company, which transmits, by means of a pipeline, natural gas, manufactured gas or crude petroleum and the products or by-products thereof to a purchaser for purposes of furnishing heat or light. "Pipeline transmission company" means a corporation authorized to transmit natural gas, manufactured gas or crude petroleum and the products or by-products thereof in the public service by means of a pipeline or pipelines from one point to another when such gas or petroleum is not for sale to an ultimate consumer for purposes of furnishing heat or light. "Storage" means the storage of energy by an energy storage system. "Tax Commissioner" means the chief executive officer of the Department of Taxation or his designee. "Tax year" means the twelve-month period beginning on January 1 and ending on December 31 of the same calendar year, such year also being the tax assessment year or the year in which the tax levied under this chapter shall be paid. "Taxable year" means the calendar year preceding the tax year, upon which the gross receipts are computed as a basis for the payment of the tax levied pursuant to this chapter. "Telegraph company" means a corporation or person operating the apparatus necessary to communicate by telegraph. "Telephone company" means a person holding a certificate of convenience and necessity granted by the State Corporation Commission authorizing telephone service; or a person authorized by the Federal Communications Commission to provide commercial mobile service as defined in § 332(d)(1) of the Communications Act of 1934, as amended, where such service includes cellular mobile radio communications services or broadband personal communications services; or a person holding a certificate issued pursuant to § 214 of the Communications Act of 1934, as amended, authorizing domestic telephone service and belonging to an affiliated group including a person holding a certificate of convenience and necessity granted by the State Corporation Commission authorizing telephone service. The term "affiliated group" has the meaning given in § 58.1-3700.1. B. For purposes of this chapter the terms "license tax" and "franchise tax" shall be synonymous. Code 1950, §§ 58-503, 58-503.1, 58-503.2, 58-508, 58-514.3, 58-514.4, 58-556, 58-626.1, 58-627; 1950, p. 660; 1954, c. 341; 1956, cc. 69, 475; 1968, c. 15; 1970, c. 32; 1971, Ex. Sess., c. 45; 1974, c. 397; 1978, c. 62; 1979, c. 153; 1980, c. 649; 1982, c. 671; 1983, c. 570; 1984, c. 675; 1988, cc. 730, 899; 1995, c. 507; 1996, c. 381; 1998, c. 897; 1999, c. 971; 2002, cc. 443, 444; 2021, Sp. Sess. I, cc. 49, 50.

Va. Code § 58.1-2606

§ 58.1-2606. Local taxation of real and tangible personal property of public service corporations; other persons.A. Notwithstanding the provisions of this section and §§ 58.1-2607 and 58.1-2690, all local taxes on the real estate and tangible personal property of public service corporations referred to in such sections and other persons with property assessed pursuant to this chapter shall be at the real estate rate applicable in the respective locality. B. Notwithstanding any of the foregoing provisions, all aircraft, automobiles and trucks of such corporations and other persons shall be taxed at the same rate or rates applicable to other aircraft, automobiles and trucks in the respective locality. C. Notwithstanding any of the foregoing provisions, generating equipment that is reported to the Commission by electric suppliers shall be taxed at a rate determined by the locality but shall not exceed the real estate rate applicable in the respective localities. However, generating equipment that is reported to the Commission by electric suppliers utilizing wind turbines, for which an initial interconnection request form has been filed with an electric utility or a regional transmission organization on or before July 1, 2020, may be taxed by the locality at a rate that exceeds the real estate rate by up to $0.20 per $100 of assessed value. All other generating equipment that is reported to the Commission by electric suppliers utilizing wind turbines may be taxed by the locality at a rate that exceeds the real estate rate but that does not exceed the general class of personal property tax rate applicable in the respective localities. D. Notwithstanding the provisions of any of the foregoing provisions, no additional tax otherwise authorized under § 58.1-3221.3 shall be imposed by the counties of Isle of Wight, James City, and York and the cities of Chesapeake, Hampton, Newport News, Norfolk, Poquoson, Portsmouth, Suffolk, Virginia Beach, and Williamsburg upon any real or tangible personal property of a public service corporation or electric supplier unless a final certificate of occupancy for a commercial or industrial use has been issued and remains in effect. Code 1950, §§ 58-514.2, 58-605; 1966, c. 539; 1972, c. 813; 1975, c. 620; 1976, c. 687; 1984, c. 675; 1999, cc. 866, 971; 2004, c. 504; 2006, c. 517; 2008, c. 642; 2020, c. 508.

Va. Code § 58.1-2606.1

§ 58.1-2606.1. Local taxation for solar photovoltaic projects five megawatts or less.A. Notwithstanding clause (iv) of subsection C of § 58.1-3660, generating equipment of solar photovoltaic projects five megawatts or less shall be taxable by a locality, at a rate determined by such locality, but shall not exceed the real estate rate applicable in that locality, and notwithstanding subsection F of § 58.1-3660, the exemption shall be as follows: 80 percent of the assessed value in the first five years in service after commencement of commercial operation, 70 percent of the assessed value in the second five years in service, and 60 percent of the assessed value for all remaining years in service. B. Notwithstanding clause (iii) of subsection B of § 58.1-2636, solar photovoltaic projects five megawatts or less shall not be exempt from the assessment of a revenue share by ordinance of that locality, as otherwise authorized pursuant to the provisions of § 58.1-2636. If a locality assesses a revenue share on solar photovoltaic projects five megawatts or less pursuant to this subsection, the exemption for such projects, as measured in alternating current (AC) generation capacity, shall, in lieu of the amounts specified in subsection A, be 100 percent of the assessed value. C. Nothing herein shall be construed to authorize local taxation pursuant to this section, § 58.1-2636, or § 58.1-3660 of generating or storage equipment of solar photovoltaic projects that serve the electricity needs of that property upon which such solar facilities are located, as is provided in § 15.2-2288.7. 2022, cc. 492, 493.

Va. Code § 58.1-2626

§ 58.1-2626. Annual state license tax on companies furnishing water, heat, light or power.A. Every corporation doing in the Commonwealth the business of furnishing water, heat, light or power, whether by means of gas or steam, except (i) a pipeline transmission company taxed pursuant to § 58.1-2627.1, (ii) a pipeline distribution company as defined in § 58.1-2600 and a gas utility and a gas supplier as defined in § 58.1-400.2, or (iii) an electric supplier as defined in § 58.1-400.2, shall, for the privilege of doing business within the Commonwealth, pay to the Commonwealth for each tax year an annual license tax equal to two percent of its gross receipts, actually received, from all sources. B. The state license tax provided in subsection A shall be (i) in lieu of all other state license or franchise taxes on such corporation, and (ii) in lieu of any tax upon the shares of stock issued by it. C. Nothing herein contained shall exempt such corporation from motor vehicle license taxes, motor vehicle fuel taxes, fees required by § 13.1-775.1 or from assessments for street and other local improvements, which shall be authorized by law, nor from the county, city, town, district or road levies. D. Nothing herein contained shall annul or interfere with any contract or agreement by ordinance between such corporations and cities and towns as to compensation for the use of the streets or alleys by such corporations. Code 1950, § 58-603; 1971, Ex. Sess., c. 41; 1972, c. 858; 1976, c. 778; 1978, c. 786; 1980, c. 668; 1982, c. 633; 1984, c. 675; 1985, c. 31; 1987, cc. 320, 364; 1999, c. 971; 2000, cc. 691, 706.

Va. Code § 58.1-2626.1

§ 58.1-2626.1. The Virginia Coal Employment and Production Incentive Tax Credit.A. For the tax years beginning on and after January 1, 1988, but before January 1, 2022, every corporation in the Commonwealth doing the business of furnishing water, heat, light, or power to the Commonwealth or its citizens, whether by means of electricity, gas, or steam shall be allowed a credit against the tax imposed by § 58.1-2626 in the following amount: $1 per ton for each ton of coal purchased and consumed by such corporation in excess of the number of tons of Virginia coal purchased by such corporation in 1985, provided such coal was mined in Virginia as certified by the producer of such coal. This credit shall be prorated equally against the corporation's estimated payments made in September and December and the final payment. B. For tax years beginning on and after January 1, 1989, but before January 1, 2022, every corporation in the Commonwealth doing the business of furnishing water, heat, light, or power to the Commonwealth or its citizens, whether by means of electricity, gas, or steam shall be allowed additional credit against the tax imposed by § 58.1-2626 in the following amount: $1 per ton for each ton of coal purchased and consumed by such corporation, provided such coal was mined in Virginia as certified by such seller. The credit shall be prorated equally against the corporation's estimated payments made in September and December and the final payment. 1986, c. 450; 1989, c. 429; 2000, c. 929; 2021, Sp. Sess. I, cc. 553, 554.

Va. Code § 58.1-2628

§ 58.1-2628. Annual report.A. Each telegraph company and telephone company shall report annually, on April 15, to the Commission all real and tangible personal property of every description in the Commonwealth, owned, operated or used by it, except leased automobiles, leased trucks or leased real estate, as of January 1 preceding, showing particularly the county, city, town or magisterial district wherein such property is located. The report shall also show the total gross receipts for the 12 months ending December 31 next preceding and the interstate revenue, if any, attributable to the Commonwealth. Such revenue shall include all interstate revenue from business originating and terminating within the Commonwealth and a proportion of interstate revenue from all interstate business passing through, into or out of the Commonwealth. B. Every corporation doing in the Commonwealth the business of furnishing water, heat, light and power, whether by means of gas or steam, except (i) pipeline transmission companies taxed pursuant to § 58.1-2627.1 or (ii) an electric supplier as defined in § 58.1-400.2, shall report annually, on April 15, to the Commission all real and tangible personal property of every description in the Commonwealth, belonging to it as of January 1 preceding, showing particularly, as to property owned by it, the county, city, town or magisterial district wherein such property is located. The report shall also show the total gross receipts for the 12 months ending December 31 next preceding. C. Every corporation in the Commonwealth in the business of furnishing heat, light and power by means of electricity shall report annually, on April 15, to the Commission all real and tangible personal property of every description in the Commonwealth, belonging to such corporation, leased by such corporation for a term greater than one year, or operated by such corporation as of the preceding January 1, showing particularly the county, city, town or magisterial district in which such property is located, unless reported to the Commission by another corporation or electric supplier in the Commonwealth in the business of furnishing heat, light and power by means of electricity. Real and tangible personal property of every description in the Commonwealth leased by such corporation for a term greater than one year or operated by such corporation shall mean only those assets directly associated with production facilities and shall not mean real estate or vehicles. The report shall also show the total gross receipts less sales to federal, state and local governments for their own use. Electric suppliers organized as cooperatives shall report annually their gross receipts received from nonmembers. D. Every electric supplier as defined in § 58.1-2600 shall report annually, on April 15, to the Commission all real and tangible personal property owned by such electric supplier, leased by such electric supplier for a term greater than one year, or operated by such electric supplier in the Commonwealth and used directly for the generation, storage, transmission, or distribution of electricity for sale as of the preceding January 1, showing particularly the county, city, town, or magisterial district in which such property is located, unless reported to the Commission by another corporation or electric supplier in the Commonwealth in the business of furnishing heat, light, and power by means of electricity. Real and tangible personal property of every description in the Commonwealth leased by such electric supplier for a term greater than one year or operated by such electric supplier shall mean only those assets directly associated with production facilities and shall not mean real estate or vehicles. The report shall also show the total gross receipts less sales to federal, state, and local governments for their own use. Electric suppliers organized as cooperatives shall report annually their gross receipts received from nonmembers. E. Every pipeline transmission company shall report annually, on April 15, to the Department all of its real and tangible personal property of every description as of the beginning of January 1 preceding, showing particularly in what city, town or county and magisterial district therein the property is located. F. The report required by subsections A through E shall be completed on forms prepared and furnished by the Commission. The Commission shall include on such forms such information as the Commission deems necessary for the proper administration of this chapter. G. The report required by this section shall be certified by the oath of the president or other designated official of the corporation or person. Code 1950, §§ 58-581, 58-607 through 58-609; 1956, c. 69; 1968, c. 637; 1972, c. 813; 1979, c. 284; 1984, c. 675; 1987, c. 376; 1988, c. 899; 1998, c. 197; 1999, c. 971; 2002, cc. 444, 502; 2004, cc. 661, 716; 2021, Sp. Sess. I, cc. 49, 50.

Va. Code § 58.1-2633

§ 58.1-2633. Assessment by Commission.A. The Commission shall assess the value of the reported property subject to local taxation of each telegraph, telephone, water, heat, light and power company and electric supplier, except a pipeline transmission company taxed pursuant to § 58.1-2627.1, and shall assess the license tax levied hereon if such company is subject to the license tax under this article. B. Should any such person fail to make the reports required by this article on or before April 15 of each year, the Commission shall assess the value of the property of such person, and its gross receipts upon the best and most reliable information that can be obtained by the Commission. C. In making such assessment, the Commission may require such person or its officers and employees to appear with such documents and papers as the Commission deems necessary. Code 1950, §§ 58-582, 58-610; 1956, c. 69; 1968, c. 637; 1972, c. 813; 1984, c. 675; 1988, c. 899; 1999, c. 971.

Va. Code § 58.1-2636

§ 58.1-2636. Revenue share for solar energy projects and energy storage systems.A. 1. Any locality may by ordinance assess a revenue share of (i) up to $1,400 per megawatt, as measured in alternating current (AC) generation capacity of the nameplate capacity of the facility based on submissions by the facility owner to the interconnecting utility, on any solar photovoltaic (electric energy) project, or (ii) up to $1,400 per megawatt, as measured in alternating current (AC) storage capacity, on any energy storage system. 2. Except as prohibited by subdivision 3, the maximum amount of the revenue share that may be imposed shall be increased on July 1, 2026, and every five years thereafter by 10 percent. 3. The provisions of subdivision 2 shall not apply to solar photovoltaic projects or energy storage systems for which an application has been filed with the locality, as defined by subsection D of § 58.1-3660, and such application has been approved by the locality prior to January 1, 2021. The provisions of subdivision 2 shall apply to all such projects and systems for which an application is approved by the locality on or after January 1, 2021. B. For purposes of this section, "solar photovoltaic (electric energy) project" shall not include any project that is (i) described in § 56-594, 56-594.01, 56-594.02, or 56-594.2; (ii) 20 megawatts or less, as measured in alternating current (AC) generation capacity, for which an initial interconnection request form has been filed with an electric utility or a regional transmission organization on or before December 31, 2018; or (iii) five megawatts or less. 2020, cc. 1224, 1270; 2021, Sp. Sess. I, cc. 49, 50, 429. Article 4. Estimated Tax. §§ 58.1-2640 through 58.1-2651. Repealed.Repealed by Acts 2017, c. 680, cl. 1, effective January 1, 2019.

Article 5. Rolling Stock Tax on Railroads, Freight Car Companies and Motor Vehicle Carriers and Property Valuation of Railroads.

Va. Code § 58.1-2660

§ 58.1-2660. Special revenue tax; levy.A. In addition to any other taxes upon the subjects of taxation listed herein, there is hereby levied, subject to the provisions of § 58.1-2664, a special regulatory revenue tax equal to twenty-six hundredths of one percent of the gross receipts such person receives from business done within the Commonwealth upon: 1. Corporations furnishing water, heat, light or power, by means of gas or steam, except for electric suppliers, gas utilities, and gas suppliers as defined in § 58.1-400.2 and pipeline distribution companies as defined in § 58.1-2600; 2. Telegraph companies owning and operating a telegraph line apparatus necessary to communicate by telecommunications in the Commonwealth; 3. Telephone companies whose gross receipts from business done within the Commonwealth exceed $50,000 or a company, the majority of stock or other property of which is owned or controlled by another telephone company, whose gross receipts exceed the amount set forth herein; 4. The Virginia Pilots' Association; 5. Railroads, except those exempt by virtue of federal law from the payment of state taxes, subject to the provisions of § 58.1-2661; 6. Common carriers of passengers by motor vehicle, except urban and suburban bus lines, a majority of whose passengers use the buses for traveling a daily distance of not more than 40 miles measured one way between their place of work, school or recreation and their place of abode; and 7. Any county, city or town that obtains a certificate pursuant to § 56-265.4:4. B. Notwithstanding the rate specified in subsection A, the maximum rate of the special regulatory revenue tax shall be increased above such specified rate to the extent necessary to permit the Commission to recover the additional costs incurred by the Commission in implementing subdivision B 4 of § 56-265.4:4 that cannot be recovered through the specified rate. Code 1950, §§ 58-660 through 58-667; 1958, c. 157; 1970, c. 773; 1979, c. 443; 1980, c. 282; 1982, c. 62; 1983, c. 547; 1984, c. 675; 1988, c. 899; 1990, c. 146; 1996, c. 381; 1999, c. 971; 2000, cc. 691, 706; 2002, cc. 479, 489; 2003, c. 720; 2020, c. 697.

Va. Code § 58.1-2674.1

§ 58.1-2674.1. Application for correction of certification to Department of Taxation.Any telecommunications company or electric supplier aggrieved by any action of the Commission in the certification of gross receipts to the Department of Taxation as required by § 58.1-400.1 or § 58.1-400.3 may apply to the Commission for review and correction of any specified item or items of a certification. Such application shall be in a form prescribed by the Commission and shall be filed within 18 months of the date of the certification to the Department of Taxation after which date the Commission shall have no authority under this section or any other provision of law to receive any application or complaint concerning the certification. The Commission shall provide for notice to the Department of Taxation of any application. If, from the evidence introduced at any hearing on the application or its own investigation, the Commission finds that the certification is incorrect, it shall correct the certification to the Department of Taxation. 2000, c. 368; 2004, c. 716.

Va. Code § 58.1-2690

§ 58.1-2690. No state or local tax on intangible personal property or money; local levies and license taxes.A. Except as provided in this chapter, there shall be no state or local taxes assessed on the intangible personal property, gross receipts or other such money or income owned by telephone or telegraph companies, railroads, pipeline companies, or corporations furnishing water, heat, light and power by means of electricity, gas or steam. B. On the real estate and tangible personal property of every incorporated telegraph and telephone company owning or operating telegraph or telephone lines in Virginia and of railroads, pipeline companies, or corporations furnishing water, heat, light and power by means of electricity, gas or steam, there shall be local levies at the rates prescribed by § 58.1-2606. C. Notwithstanding the provisions of subsection A, any county, city or town may impose a license tax under § 58.1-3703 upon a corporation owning or operating telegraph or telephone lines in Virginia for the privilege of doing business therein, which shall not exceed one-half of one percent of the gross receipts of such business accruing to such corporation from such business in such county, city or town; however, charges for long distance telephone calls shall not be considered receipts of business in such county, city or town. D. Notwithstanding the provisions of subsection A, any county, city or town may impose an excise tax under § 58.1-3818.3 upon a corporation owning or operating telegraph or telephone lines in Virginia, at a rate that shall not exceed the rate lawfully imposed by § 58.1-3818.3, on such corporation's gross receipts from sales of video programming or access to video programming directly to end-user subscribers who are located within such county, city or town. Code 1950, §§ 58-518, 58-523, 58-578, 58-593, 58-596, 58-602, 58-606; 1968, c. 637; 1972, cc. 813, 858; 1978, c. 784; 1984, c. 675; 1995, c. 751. Chapter 27. Road Tax on Motor Carriers.

Va. Code § 58.1-2814

§ 58.1-2814. Collection of unpaid bills for registration fees and franchise taxes by local treasurers.The Comptroller may deliver a copy of any past-due bill for a registration fee or franchise tax, plus penalties and interest, to the treasurer of any county or city in which the corporation may have any property belonging to it and such copy of such bill shall have the force and effect of an execution in favor of the Commonwealth. The treasurer may distrain or levy upon and sell any real or personal property of such corporation and shall pay the amount of the bill into the state treasury within ten days after he has collected the same. The compensation of such treasurer for collecting and paying into the treasury such bill shall be five percent of the aggregate of the bill, which compensation shall be added to the bill by the treasurer, collected by him from such corporation and paid into the state treasury and then repaid to the treasurer on warrant of the Comptroller. Code 1950, § 58-464; 1984, c. 675. Chapter 29. Electric Utility Consumption Tax.

Va. Code § 58.1-2900

§ 58.1-2900. Imposition of tax.A. Effective January 1, 2001, there is hereby imposed, in addition to the local consumer utility tax of Article 4 (§ 58.1-3812 et seq.) of Chapter 38 and subject to the adjustments authorized by subdivision A 5 and by § 58.1-2902, a tax on the consumers of electricity in the Commonwealth based on kilowatt hours delivered by the incumbent distribution utility and used per month as follows: 1. Each consumer of electricity in the Commonwealth shall pay electric utility consumption tax on all electricity consumed per month not in excess of 2,500 kWh at the rate of $0.001595 per kWh, as follows:

                       State consumption 
                       Special regulatory 
                       Local consumption



                       tax rate 
                       tax rate 
                       tax rate



                       $0.00102/kWh 
                       $0.000195/kWh 
                       $0.00038/kWh

1. Each consumer of electricity in the Commonwealth shall pay electric utility consumption tax on all electricity consumed per month in excess of 2,500 kWh but not in excess of 50,000 kWh at the rate of $0.001085 per kWh, as follows:

                      State consumption 
                      Special regulatory 
                      Local consumption
   
                      tax rate 
                      tax rate 
                      tax rate
   
                      $0.00065/kWh 
                      $0.000195/kWh
                      $0.00024/kWh
   

2. Each consumer of electricity in the Commonwealth shall pay electric utility consumption tax on all electricity consumed per month in excess of 50,000 kWh at the rate of $0.000875 per kWh, as follows:

                      State consumption 
                      Special regulatory 
                      Local consumption
   
                      tax rate 
                      tax rate 
                      tax rate
   
                      $0.00050/kWh 
                      $0.000195/kWh
                      $0.00018/kWh
   

3. The tax rates set forth in subdivisions 1, 2, and 3 are in lieu of and replace the state gross receipts tax (§ 58.1-2626), the special regulatory revenue tax (§ 58.1-2660), and the local license tax (§ 58.1-3731) levied on corporations furnishing heat, light or power by means of electricity.

4. The tax on consumers under this section shall not be imposed on consumers served by an electric utility owned or operated by a municipality if such municipal electric utility elects to have an amount equivalent to the tax added on the bill such utility (or an association or agency of which it is a member) pays for bundled or unbundled transmission service as a separate item. Such amount, equivalent to the tax, shall be calculated under the tax rate schedule as if the municipal electric utility were selling and collecting the tax from its consumers, adjusted to exclude the amount which represents the local consumption tax if the locality in which a consumer is located does not impose a license fee rate pursuant to § 58.1-3731, and shall be remitted to the Commission pursuant to § 58.1-2901. Municipal electric utilities may bundle the tax in the rates charged to their retail customers. Notwithstanding anything contained herein to the contrary, the election permitted under this subdivision shall not be exercised by any municipal electric utility if the entity to whom the municipal electric utility (or an association or agency of which it is a member) pays for transmission service is not subject to the taxing jurisdiction of the Commonwealth, unless such entity agrees to remit to the Commonwealth all amounts equivalent to the tax pursuant to § 58.1-2901.
5. The tax on consumers set forth in subdivisions 1, 2, and 3 shall only be imposed in accordance with this subdivision on consumers of electricity purchased from a utility consumer services cooperative to the extent that such cooperative purchases, for the purpose of resale within the Commonwealth, electricity from a federal entity that made payments in accordance with federal law (i) in lieu of taxes during such taxable period to the Commonwealth and (ii) on the basis of such federal entity's gross proceeds resulting from the sale of such electricity. Such tax shall instead be calculated by deducting from each of the respective tax amounts calculated in accordance with subdivisions 1, 2, and 3 an amount equal to the calculated tax amount multiplied by the ratio of the total cost of power supplied by the federal entity, including facilities rental, during the taxable period to the utility consumer services cooperative's total operating revenue within the Commonwealth during the taxable period. The State Corporation Commission may audit the records and books of any utility consumer services cooperative that determines the tax on consumers in accordance with this subdivision to verify that the tax imposed has been correctly determined and properly remitted. B. The tax authorized by this chapter shall not apply to municipalities' own use or to use by divisions or agencies of federal, state and local governments. C. For purposes of this section, "kilowatt hours delivered" means in the case of eligible customer-generators, as defined in § 56-594, those kilowatt hours supplied from the electric grid to such customer-generators, minus the kilowatt hours generated and fed back to the electric grid by such customer-generators. 1999, c. 971; 2000, cc. 427, 614; 2020, c. 697; 2025, cc. 711, 715.

Va. Code § 58.1-2901

§ 58.1-2901. Collection and remittance of tax.A. The provider of billing services shall collect the tax from the consumer by adding it as a separate charge to the consumer's monthly statement. Until the consumer pays the tax to such provider of billing services, the tax shall constitute a debt of the consumer to the Commonwealth, localities, and the State Corporation Commission. If any consumer receives and pays for electricity but refuses to pay the tax on the bill that is imposed by § 58.1-2900, the provider of billing services shall notify the State Corporation Commission of the name and address of such consumer. If any consumer fails to pay a bill issued by a provider of billing services including the tax that is imposed by § 58.1-2900, the provider of billing services shall follow its normal collection procedures with respect to the charge for electric service and the tax, and upon collection of the bill or any part thereof shall (i) apportion the net amount collected between the charge for electric service and the tax and (ii) remit the tax portion to the State Corporation Commission and the appropriate locality. After the consumer pays the tax to the provider of billing services, the taxes collected shall be deemed to be held in trust by such provider until remitted to the State Corporation Commission and the appropriate locality. When determining the amount of tax to collect from consumers of an electric utility that is a cooperative which purchases, for the purpose of resale within the Commonwealth, electricity from a federal entity that made payments during such taxable period to the Commonwealth in lieu of taxes in accordance with a federal law requiring such payments to be calculated on the basis of such federal entity's gross proceeds from the sale of electricity, the provider of billing services shall deduct from each of the respective tax amounts calculated in accordance with § 58.1-2900 an amount equal to the calculated tax amounts multiplied by the ratio that the total cost of the power, including facilities rental, supplied by said federal entity to said cooperative for resale within the Commonwealth bears to said cooperative's total operating revenue within the Commonwealth for the taxable period. The State Corporation Commission may audit the records and books of said cooperative to verify that the tax imposed by this chapter has been correctly determined and properly remitted. B. A provider of billing services shall remit monthly to the Commission the amount of tax paid during the preceding month by the provider of billing services' consumers, except for (i) amounts added on the bills to utilities owned and operated by municipalities which are collected by the entity providing transmission directly to such utilities (or an association or agency of which the municipality is a member), which they shall remit directly to the Commission and (ii) the portion which represents the local consumption tax, which portion shall be remitted to the locality in which the electricity was consumed and shall be based on such locality's license fee rate which it imposed. Amounts of the tax that are added on the bills to utilities owned and operated by municipalities, which are collected by the entity providing transmission directly to such utilities (or an association or agency of which the municipality is a member), shall be remitted monthly by such entity to the Commission, except that the portion which represents the local consumption tax shall be remitted to the locality in which the electricity was consumed and shall be based on such locality's license fee rate which it imposed. C. The electric utility consumption tax shall be remitted monthly, on or before the last day of the succeeding month of collection. Those portions of the electric utility consumption tax that relate to the state consumption tax and the special regulatory tax shall be remitted to the Commission; the portion that relates to the local consumption tax shall be remitted to the localities. Failure to remit timely will result in a ten percent penalty. D. Taxes on electricity sales in the year ending December 31, 2000, relating to the local license tax, shall be paid in accordance with § 58.1-3731. Monthly payments in accordance with subsection C shall commence on February 28, 2001. E. For purposes of this section, "service provider" means the person who delivers electricity to the consumer and "provider of billing services" means the person who bills a consumer for electric services rendered. If both the service provider and another person separately and directly bill a consumer for electricity service, then the service provider shall be considered the "provider of billing services." F. The portion of the electric utility consumption tax relating to the local consumption tax replaces and precludes localities from imposing a license tax in accordance with § 58.1-3731 and the business, professional, occupation and license tax in accordance with Chapter 37 (§ 58.1-3700 et seq.) on electric suppliers subsequent to December 31, 2000, except as provided in subsection D. If the license fee rate imposed by a locality is less than the equivalent of the local consumption tax rate component of the consumption tax paid under subsection A of § 58.1-2900, the excess collected by the Commission shall constitute additional state consumption tax revenue and shall be remitted by the Commission to the state treasury. However, effective January 1, 2003, any locality that failed to comply with the requirements of this subsection by December 31, 2000, regarding the local license tax, shall receive the revenues generated on or after January 1, 2003, by the local consumption tax component paid under subsection A by the citizens of such locality. Such locality shall be entitled to the maximum amount as if the locality had imposed the license tax, in accordance with the provisions of § 58.1-3731 at the maximum rate allowed, provided that the governing body of such locality adopts an ordinance electing to receive such amounts. G. The Department of Taxation may audit the books and records of any electric utility owned and operated by a municipality (or an association or agency of which the municipality is a member) to verify that the tax imposed by this chapter has been correctly determined and properly remitted to the Commission. H. The State Corporation Commission may audit the books and records of any service provider or provider of billing services, except as provided in subsection G, to verify that the tax imposed by this chapter has been correctly determined and properly remitted to the Commission. 1999, c. 971; 2000, cc. 427, 614; 2001, cc. 748, 829, 861; 2002, cc. 339, 502.

Va. Code § 58.1-2902

§ 58.1-2902. Electric utility consumption tax relating to the special regulatory tax; when not assessed or assessed only in part.A. The Commission may in the performance of its function and duty in levying the electric utility consumption tax relating to the special regulatory tax, omit the levy on any portion of the tax fixed in § 58.1-2900 as is unnecessary within the Commission's sole discretion for the accomplishment of the objects for which the tax is imposed, including a reasonable margin in the nature of a reserve fund. B. The Commission shall notify each provider of billing services, as defined in subsection E of § 58.1-2901, collecting the tax on consumers of electricity of any change in the electric utility consumption tax relating to the special regulatory tax not later than the first day of the second month preceding the month in which the revised rate is to take effect. 1999, c. 971; 2001, c. 748.

Va. Code § 58.1-2903

§ 58.1-2903. Use of electric utility consumption tax relating to special regulatory tax.The electric utility consumption tax relating to the special regulatory tax paid into the treasury under this chapter shall be deposited into a special fund used only by the Commission for the purpose of making appraisals, assessments and collections against electric suppliers as defined in §§ 58.1-400.2 and 58.1-2600 and public service corporations furnishing heat, light and power by means of electricity and for the further purposes of the Commission in investigating and inspecting the properties or the service or services of such electric suppliers and public service corporations, and for the supervision and administration of all laws relative to such electric suppliers and public service corporations, whenever the same shall be deemed necessary by the Commission. 1999, c. 971. Chapter 29.1. Natural Gas Consumption Tax.

Va. Code § 58.1-322.03

§ 58.1-322.03. Virginia taxable income; deductions.In computing Virginia taxable income pursuant to § 58.1-322, there shall be deducted from Virginia adjusted gross income as defined in § 58.1-321: 1. a. The amount allowable for itemized deductions for federal income tax purposes where the taxpayer has elected for the taxable year to itemize deductions on his federal return, but reduced by the amount of income taxes imposed by the Commonwealth or any other taxing jurisdiction and deducted on such federal return and increased by an amount that, when added to the amount deducted under § 170 of the Internal Revenue Code for mileage, results in a mileage deduction at the state level for such purposes at a rate of 18 cents per mile; or b. Provided that the taxpayer has not itemized deductions for the taxable year on his federal income tax return: (i) for taxable years beginning before January 1, 2019, and on and after January 1, 2027, $3,000 for single individuals and $6,000 for married persons (one-half of such amounts in the case of a married individual filing a separate return); (ii) for taxable years beginning on and after January 1, 2019, but before January 1, 2022, $4,500 for single individuals and $9,000 for married persons (one-half of such amounts in the case of a married individual filing a separate return); (iii) for taxable years beginning on and after January 1, 2022, but before January 1, 2024, $8,000 for single individuals and $16,000 for married persons (one-half of such amounts in the case of a married individual filing a separate return); (iv) for taxable years beginning on and after January 1, 2024, but before January 1, 2025, $8,500 for single individuals and $17,000 for married persons (one-half of such amounts in the case of a married individual filing a separate return); and (v) for taxable years beginning on and after January 1, 2025, but before January 1, 2027, $8,750 for single individuals and $17,500 for married persons (one-half of such amounts in the case of a married individual filing a separate return). For purposes of this section, any person who may be claimed as a dependent on another taxpayer's return for the taxable year may compute the deduction only with respect to earned income. 2. a. A deduction in the amount of $930 for each personal exemption allowable to the taxpayer for federal income tax purposes. b. Each blind or aged taxpayer as defined under § 63(f) of the Internal Revenue Code shall be entitled to an additional personal exemption in the amount of $800. The additional deduction for blind or aged taxpayers allowed under this subdivision shall be allowable regardless of whether the taxpayer itemizes deductions for the taxable year for federal income tax purposes. 3. A deduction equal to the amount of employment-related expenses upon which the federal credit is based under § 21 of the Internal Revenue Code for expenses for household and dependent care services necessary for gainful employment. 4. An additional $1,000 deduction for each child residing for the entire taxable year in a home under permanent foster care placement as defined in § 63.2-908, provided that the taxpayer can also claim the child as a personal exemption under § 151 of the Internal Revenue Code. 5. a. A deduction in the amount of $12,000 for individuals born on or before January 1, 1939. b. A deduction in the amount of $12,000 for individuals born after January 1, 1939, who have attained the age of 65. This deduction shall be reduced by $1 for every $1 that the taxpayer's adjusted federal adjusted gross income exceeds $50,000 for single taxpayers or $75,000 for married taxpayers. For married taxpayers filing separately, the deduction shall be reduced by $1 for every $1 that the total combined adjusted federal adjusted gross income of both spouses exceeds $75,000. For the purposes of this subdivision, "adjusted federal adjusted gross income" means federal adjusted gross income minus any benefits received under Title II of the Social Security Act and other benefits subject to federal income taxation solely pursuant to § 86 of the Internal Revenue Code, as amended. 6. The amount an individual pays as a fee for an initial screening to become a possible bone marrow donor, if (i) the individual is not reimbursed for such fee or (ii) the individual has not claimed a deduction for the payment of such fee on his federal income tax return. 7. a. A deduction shall be allowed to the purchaser or contributor for the amount paid or contributed during the taxable year for a prepaid tuition contract or college savings trust account entered into with the Commonwealth Savers Plan, pursuant to Chapter 7 (§ 23.1-700 et seq.) of Title 23.1. Except as provided in subdivision b, the amount deducted on any individual income tax return in any taxable year shall be limited to $4,000 per prepaid tuition contract or college savings trust account. No deduction shall be allowed pursuant to this subdivision 7 if such payments or contributions are deducted on the purchaser's or contributor's federal income tax return. If the purchase price or annual contribution to a college savings trust account exceeds $4,000, the remainder may be carried forward and subtracted in future taxable years until the purchase price or college savings trust contribution has been fully deducted; however, except as provided in subdivision b, in no event shall the amount deducted in any taxable year exceed $4,000 per contract or college savings trust account. Notwithstanding the statute of limitations on assessments contained in § 58.1-312, any deduction taken hereunder shall be subject to recapture in the taxable year or years in which distributions or refunds are made for any reason other than (i) to pay qualified higher education expenses, as defined in § 529 of the Internal Revenue Code or (ii) the beneficiary's death, disability, or receipt of a scholarship. For the purposes of this subdivision, "purchaser" or "contributor" means the person shown as such on the records of the Commonwealth Savers Plan as of December 31 of the taxable year. In the case of a transfer of ownership of a prepaid tuition contract or college savings trust account, the transferee shall succeed to the transferor's tax attributes associated with a prepaid tuition contract or college savings trust account, including, but not limited to, carryover and recapture of deductions. b. A purchaser of a prepaid tuition contract or contributor to a college savings trust account who has attained age 70 shall not be subject to the limitation that the amount of the deduction not exceed $4,000 per prepaid tuition contract or college savings trust account in any taxable year. Such taxpayer shall be allowed a deduction for the full amount paid for the contract or contributed to a college savings trust account, less any amounts previously deducted. 8. The total amount an individual actually contributed in funds to the Virginia Public School Construction Grants Program and Fund, established in Chapter 11.1 (§ 22.1-175.1 et seq.) of Title 22.1, provided that the individual has not claimed a deduction for such amount on his federal income tax return. 9. An amount equal to 20 percent of the tuition costs incurred by an individual employed as a primary or secondary school teacher licensed pursuant to Chapter 15 (§ 22.1-289.1 et seq.) of Title 22.1 to attend continuing teacher education courses that are required as a condition of employment; however, the deduction provided by this subdivision shall be available only if (i) the individual is not reimbursed for such tuition costs and (ii) the individual has not claimed a deduction for the payment of such tuition costs on his federal income tax return. 10. The amount an individual pays annually in premiums for long-term health care insurance, provided that the individual has not claimed a deduction for federal income tax purposes, or, for taxable years beginning before January 1, 2014, a credit under § 58.1-339.11. For taxable years beginning on and after January 1, 2014, no such deduction for long-term health care insurance premiums paid by the individual during the taxable year shall be allowed if the individual has claimed a federal income tax deduction for such taxable year for long-term health care insurance premiums paid by him. 11. Contract payments to a producer of quota tobacco or a tobacco quota holder, or their spouses, as provided under the American Jobs Creation Act of 2004 (P.L. 108-357), but only to the extent that such payments have not been subtracted pursuant to subsection D of § 58.1-402, as follows: a. If the payment is received in installment payments, then the recognized gain may be subtracted in the taxable year immediately following the year in which the installment payment is received. b. If the payment is received in a single payment, then 10 percent of the recognized gain may be subtracted in the taxable year immediately following the year in which the single payment is received. The taxpayer may then deduct an equal amount in each of the nine succeeding taxable years. 12. An amount equal to 20 percent of the sum paid by an individual pursuant to Chapter 6 (§ 58.1-600 et seq.), not to exceed $500 in each taxable year, in purchasing for his own use the following items of tangible personal property: (i) any clothes washers, room air conditioners, dishwashers, and standard size refrigerators that meet or exceed the applicable energy star efficiency requirements developed by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the U.S. Department of Energy; (ii) any fuel cell that (a) generates electricity using an electrochemical process, (b) has an electricity-only generation efficiency greater than 35 percent, and (c) has a generating capacity of at least two kilowatts; (iii) any gas heat pump that has a coefficient of performance of at least 1.25 for heating and at least 0.70 for cooling; (iv) any electric heat pump hot water heater that yields an energy factor of at least 1.7; (v) any electric heat pump that has a heating system performance factor of at least 8.0 and a cooling seasonal energy efficiency ratio of at least 13.0; (vi) any central air conditioner that has a cooling seasonal energy efficiency ratio of at least 13.5; (vii) any advanced gas or oil water heater that has an energy factor of at least 0.65; (viii) any advanced oil-fired boiler with a minimum annual fuel-utilization rating of 85; (ix) any advanced oil-fired furnace with a minimum annual fuel-utilization rating of 85; and (x) programmable thermostats. 13. The lesser of $5,000 or the amount actually paid by a living donor of an organ or other living tissue for unreimbursed out-of-pocket expenses directly related to the donation that arose within 12 months of such donation, provided that the donor has not taken a medical deduction in accordance with the provisions of § 213 of the Internal Revenue Code for such expenses. The deduction may be taken in the taxable year in which the donation is made or the taxable year in which the 12-month period expires. 14. For taxable years beginning on and after January 1, 2013, the amount an individual age 66 or older with earned income of at least $20,000 for the year and federal adjusted gross income not in excess of $30,000 for the year pays annually in premiums for (i) a prepaid funeral insurance policy covering the individual or (ii) medical or dental insurance for any person for whom individual tax filers may claim a deduction for such premiums under federal income tax laws. As used in this subdivision, "earned income" means the same as that term is defined in § 32(c) of the Internal Revenue Code. The deduction shall not be allowed for any portion of such premiums paid for which the individual has (a) been reimbursed, (b) claimed a deduction for federal income tax purposes, (c) claimed a deduction or subtraction under another provision of this section, or (d) claimed a federal income tax credit or any income tax credit pursuant to this chapter. 15. Business interest disallowed as a deduction pursuant to § 163(j) of the Internal Revenue Code: a. For taxable years beginning on and after January 1, 2018, but before January 1, 2022, 20 percent of such disallowed business interest; b. For taxable years beginning on and after January 1, 2022, but before January 1, 2024, 30 percent of such disallowed business interest; c. For taxable years beginning on and after January 2, 2024, 50 percent of such disallowed business interest. For purposes of subdivision 15, "business interest" means the same as that term is defined under § 163(j) of the Internal Revenue Code. 16. For taxable years beginning on and after January 1, 2019, the actual amount of real and personal property taxes imposed by the Commonwealth or any other taxing jurisdiction not otherwise deducted solely on account of the dollar limitation imposed on individual deductions by § 164(b)(6)(B) of the Internal Revenue Code. 17. For taxable years beginning before January 1, 2021, up to $100,000 of the amount that is not deductible when computing federal adjusted gross income solely on account of the portion of subdivision B 10 of § 58.1-301 related to Paycheck Protection Program loans. 18. For taxable years beginning on and after January 1, 2022, but before January 1, 2025, the lesser of $500 or the actual amount paid or incurred for eligible educator qualifying expenses. For purposes of this subdivision, "eligible educator" means an individual who for at least 900 hours during the taxable year in which the credit under this section is claimed served as a teacher licensed pursuant to Chapter 15 (§ 22.1-289.1 et seq.) of Title 22.1, instructor, student counselor, principal, special needs personnel, or student aide serving accredited public or private primary and secondary school students in Virginia, and "qualifying expenses" means 100 percent of the amount paid or incurred by an eligible educator during the taxable year for participation in professional development courses and the purchase of books, supplies, computer equipment (including related software and services), other educational and teaching equipment, and supplementary materials used directly in that individual's service to students as an eligible educator, provided that such purchases were neither reimbursed nor claimed as a deduction on the eligible educator's federal income tax return for such taxable year. 19. For taxable years beginning on and after January 1, 2026, the amount paid or cost incurred for installing a qualifying upgrade required to interconnect a triggering project. No deduction shall be allowed under this section for a taxpayer who has claimed a deduction under subsection I of § 58.1-402 for the same amount paid or cost incurred to install such qualifying upgrade. For purposes of this subdivision, "qualifying upgrade" and "triggering project" have the same meanings as provided for those terms in § 56-596.5. 2017, c. 444; 2019, cc. 17, 18; 2021, Sp. Sess. I, cc. 117, 118, 552; 2022, cc. 3, 19, 648; 2022, Sp. Sess. I, cc. 1, 6; 2023, Sp. Sess. I, c. 1; 2024, c. 217; 2025, cc. 615, 658, 725.

Va. Code § 58.1-3295.3

§ 58.1-3295.3. Assessment of real property; data centers.A. As used in this section: "Computer equipment and peripherals" means computer equipment and peripherals subject to classification under the provisions of subdivision A 17 of § 58.1-3503 or under the provisions of subdivision A 43 of § 58.1-3506. "Cost approach" means assessing value by determining the cost to construct a reproduction or suitable replacement of fixtures and deducting physical, functional, and economic depreciation sustained by such fixtures. "Data center" means the same as such term is defined in subdivision A 43 of § 58.1-3506. "Fixtures" means all fixtures and equipment used in a data center except computer equipment and peripherals, equipment used for external surveillance and security, and fire and burglar alarm systems. "Fixtures" includes generators, radiators, exhaust fans, and fuel storage tanks; electrical substations, power distribution equipment, cogeneration equipment, and batteries; chillers, computer room air conditioners, and cool towers; heating, ventilating, and air conditioning systems; water storage tanks, water pumps, and piping; monitoring systems; and transmission and distribution equipment. B. If fixtures are installed at a data center and taxed under the provisions of this chapter, such fixtures shall be assessed using the cost approach. 2022, cc. 671, 672. Article 8. Reassessment Record/Land Book, Communication of Documents to Commissioner of Revenue.

Va. Code § 58.1-3506

§ 58.1-3506. Other classifications of tangible personal property for taxation.A. The items of property set forth below are each declared to be a separate class of property and shall constitute a classification for local taxation separate from other classifications of tangible personal property provided in this chapter: 1. a. Boats or watercraft weighing five tons or more, not used solely for business purposes; b. Boats or watercraft weighing less than five tons, not used solely for business purposes; 2. Aircraft having a maximum passenger seating capacity of no more than 50 that are owned and operated by scheduled air carriers operating under certificates of public convenience and necessity issued by the State Corporation Commission or the Civil Aeronautics Board; 3. Aircraft having a registered empty gross weight equal to or greater than 20,000 pounds that are not owned or operated by scheduled air carriers recognized under federal law, but not including any aircraft described in subdivision 4; 4. Aircraft that are (i) considered Warbirds, manufactured and intended for military use, excluding those manufactured after 1954, and (ii) used only for (a) exhibit or display to the general public and otherwise used for educational purposes (including such flights as are necessary for testing, maintaining, or preparing such aircraft for safe operation), or (b) airshow and flight demonstrations (including such flights necessary for testing, maintaining, or preparing such aircraft for safe operation), shall constitute a new class of property. Such class of property shall not include any aircraft used for commercial purposes, including transportation and other services for a fee; 5. All other aircraft not included in subdivision 2, 3, or 4 and flight simulators; 6. Antique motor vehicles as defined in § 46.2-100 which may be used for general transportation purposes as provided in subsection D of § 46.2-730; 7. Tangible personal property used in a research and development business; 8. Heavy construction machinery not used for business purposes, including land movers, bulldozers, front-end loaders, graders, packers, power shovels, cranes, pile drivers, forest harvesting and silvicultural activity equipment except as exempted under § 58.1-3505, and ditch and other types of diggers; 9. Generating equipment purchased after December 31, 1974, for the purpose of changing the energy source of a manufacturing plant from oil or natural gas to coal, wood, wood bark, wood residue, or any other alternative energy source for use in manufacturing and any cogeneration equipment purchased to achieve more efficient use of any energy source. Such generating equipment and cogeneration equipment shall include, without limitation, such equipment purchased by firms engaged in the business of generating electricity or steam, or both; 10. Vehicles without motive power, used or designed to be used as manufactured homes as defined in § 36-85.3; 11. Computer hardware used by businesses primarily engaged in providing data processing services to other nonrelated or nonaffiliated businesses; 12. Privately owned pleasure boats and watercraft, 18 feet and over, used for recreational purposes only; 13. Privately owned vans with a seating capacity of not less than seven nor more than 15 persons, including the driver, used exclusively pursuant to a ridesharing arrangement as defined in § 46.2-1400; 14. Motor vehicles specially equipped to provide transportation for individuals with physical disabilities; 15. Motor vehicles (i) owned by members of a volunteer emergency medical services agency or a member of a volunteer fire department or (ii) leased by volunteer emergency medical services personnel or a member of a volunteer fire department if the volunteer is obligated by the terms of the lease to pay tangible personal property tax on the motor vehicle. One motor vehicle that is owned by each volunteer member who meets the definition of "emergency medical services personnel" in § 32.1-111.1 or volunteer fire department member, or leased by each volunteer member who meets the definition of "emergency medical services personnel" in § 32.1-111.1 or volunteer fire department member if the volunteer is obligated by the terms of the lease to pay tangible personal property tax on the motor vehicle, may be specially classified under this section, provided the volunteer regularly responds to emergency calls. The volunteer shall furnish the commissioner of revenue, or other assessing officer, with a certification by the chief of the volunteer emergency medical services agency or volunteer fire department, that the volunteer is an individual who meets the definition of "emergency medical services personnel" in § 32.1-111.1 or a member of the volunteer fire department who regularly responds to calls or regularly performs other duties for the emergency medical services agency or fire department, and the motor vehicle owned or leased by the volunteer is identified. The certification shall be submitted by January 31 of each year to the commissioner of revenue or other assessing officer; however, the commissioner of revenue or other assessing officer shall be authorized, in his discretion, and for good cause shown and without fault on the part of the volunteer, to accept a certification after the January 31 deadline. In any county that prorates the assessment of tangible personal property pursuant to § 58.1-3516, a replacement vehicle may be certified and classified pursuant to this subsection when the vehicle certified as of the immediately prior January date is transferred during the tax year; 16. Motor vehicles (i) owned by auxiliary members of a volunteer emergency medical services agency or volunteer fire department or (ii) leased by auxiliary members of a volunteer emergency medical services agency or volunteer fire department if the auxiliary member is obligated by the terms of the lease to pay tangible personal property tax on the motor vehicle. One motor vehicle that is regularly used by each auxiliary volunteer fire department or emergency medical services agency member may be specially classified under this section. The auxiliary member shall furnish the commissioner of revenue, or other assessing officer, with a certification by the chief of the volunteer emergency medical services agency or volunteer fire department, that the volunteer is an auxiliary member of the volunteer emergency medical services agency or fire department who regularly performs duties for the emergency medical services agency or fire department, and the motor vehicle is identified as regularly used for such purpose; however, if a volunteer meets the definition of "emergency medical services personnel" in § 32.1-111.1 or volunteer fire department member and an auxiliary member are members of the same household, that household shall be allowed no more than two special classifications under this subdivision or subdivision 15. The certification shall be submitted by January 31 of each year to the commissioner of revenue or other assessing officer; however, the commissioner of revenue or other assessing officer shall be authorized, in his discretion, and for good cause shown and without fault on the part of the auxiliary member, to accept a certification after the January 31 deadline; 17. Motor vehicles owned by a nonprofit organization and used to deliver meals to homebound persons or provide transportation to senior citizens or individuals with disabilities in the community to carry out the purposes of the nonprofit organization; 18. Privately owned camping trailers as defined in § 46.2-100, and privately owned travel trailers as defined in § 46.2-1500, which are used for recreational purposes only, and privately owned trailers as defined in § 46.2-100, which are designed and used for the transportation of horses except those trailers described in subdivision A 11 of § 58.1-3505; 19. One motor vehicle owned and regularly used by a veteran who has either lost, or lost the use of, one or both legs, or an arm or a hand, or who is blind or who is permanently and totally disabled as certified by the Department of Veterans Services. In order to qualify, the veteran shall provide a written statement to the commissioner of revenue or other assessing officer from the Department of Veterans Services that the veteran has been so designated or classified by the Department of Veterans Services as to meet the requirements of this section, and that his disability is service-connected. For purposes of this section, a person is blind if he meets the provisions of § 46.2-100; 20. Motor vehicles (i) owned by persons who have been appointed to serve as auxiliary police officers pursuant to Article 3 (§ 15.2-1731 et seq.) of Chapter 17 of Title 15.2 or (ii) leased by persons who have been so appointed to serve as auxiliary police officers if the person is obligated by the terms of the lease to pay tangible personal property tax on the motor vehicle. One motor vehicle that is regularly used by each auxiliary police officer to respond to auxiliary police duties may be specially classified under this section. In order to qualify for such classification, any auxiliary police officer who applies for such classification shall identify the vehicle for which this classification is sought, and shall furnish the commissioner of revenue or other assessing officer with a certification from the governing body that has appointed such auxiliary police officer or from the official who has appointed such auxiliary officers. That certification shall state that the applicant is an auxiliary police officer who regularly uses a motor vehicle to respond to auxiliary police duties, and it shall state that the vehicle for which the classification is sought is the vehicle that is regularly used for that purpose. The certification shall be submitted by January 31 of each year to the commissioner of revenue or other assessing officer; however, the commissioner of revenue or other assessing officer shall be authorized, in his discretion, and for good cause shown and without fault on the part of the member, to accept a certification after the January 31 deadline; 21. Until the first to occur of June 30, 2029, or the date that a special improvements tax is no longer levied under § 15.2-4607 on property within a Multicounty Transportation Improvement District created pursuant to Chapter 46 (§ 15.2-4600 et seq.) of Title 15.2, tangible personal property that is used in manufacturing, testing, or operating satellites within a Multicounty Transportation Improvement District, provided that such business personal property is put into service within the District on or after July 1, 1999; 22. Motor vehicles which use clean special fuels as defined in § 46.2-749.3, which shall not include any vehicle described in subdivision 38 or 40; 23. Wild or exotic animals kept for public exhibition in an indoor or outdoor facility that is properly licensed by the federal government, the Commonwealth, or both, and that is properly zoned for such use. "Wild animals" means any animals that are found in the wild, or in a wild state, within the boundaries of the United States, its territories or possessions. "Exotic animals" means any animals that are found in the wild, or in a wild state, and are native to a foreign country; 24. Furniture, office, and maintenance equipment, exclusive of motor vehicles, that are owned and used by an organization whose real property is assessed in accordance with § 58.1-3284.1 and that is used by that organization for the purpose of maintaining or using the open or common space within a residential development; 25. Motor vehicles, trailers, and semitrailers with a gross vehicle weight of 10,000 pounds or more used to transport property or passengers for hire by a motor carrier engaged in interstate commerce; 26. All tangible personal property employed in a trade or business other than that described in subdivisions A 1 through A 20, except for subdivision A 18, of § 58.1-3503; 27. Programmable computer equipment and peripherals employed in a trade or business; 28. Privately owned pleasure boats and watercraft, motorized and under 18 feet, used for recreational purposes only; 29. Privately owned pleasure boats and watercraft, nonmotorized and under 18 feet, used for recreational purposes only; 30. Privately owned motor homes as defined in § 46.2-100 that are used for recreational purposes only; 31. Tangible personal property used in the provision of Internet services. For purposes of this subdivision, "Internet service" means a service, including an Internet Web-hosting service, that enables users to access content, information, electronic mail, and the Internet as part of a package of services sold to customers; 32. Motor vehicles (i) owned by persons who serve as auxiliary, reserve, volunteer, or special deputy sheriffs or (ii) leased by persons who serve as auxiliary, reserve, volunteer, or special deputy sheriffs if the person is obligated by the terms of the lease to pay tangible personal property tax on the motor vehicle. For purposes of this subdivision, the term "auxiliary deputy sheriff" means auxiliary, reserve, volunteer, or special deputy sheriff. One motor vehicle that is regularly used by each auxiliary deputy sheriff to respond to auxiliary deputy sheriff duties may be specially classified under this section. In order to qualify for such classification, any auxiliary deputy sheriff who applies for such classification shall identify the vehicle for which this classification is sought, and shall furnish the commissioner of revenue or other assessing officer with a certification from the governing body that has appointed such auxiliary deputy sheriff or from the official who has appointed such auxiliary deputy sheriff. That certification shall state that the applicant is an auxiliary deputy sheriff who regularly uses a motor vehicle to respond to such auxiliary duties, and it shall state that the vehicle for which the classification is sought is the vehicle that is regularly used for that purpose. The certification shall be submitted by January 31 of each year to the commissioner of revenue or other assessing officer; however, the commissioner of revenue or other assessing officer shall be authorized, in his discretion, and for good cause shown and without fault on the part of the member, to accept a certification after the January 31 deadline; 33. Forest harvesting and silvicultural activity equipment, except as exempted under § 58.1-3505; 34. Equipment used primarily for research, development, production, or provision of biotechnology for the purpose of developing or providing products or processes for specific commercial or public purposes, including medical, pharmaceutical, nutritional, and other health-related purposes; agricultural purposes; or environmental purposes but not for human cloning purposes as defined in § 32.1-162.21 or for products or purposes related to human embryo stem cells. For purposes of this section, biotechnology equipment means equipment directly used in activities associated with the science of living things; 35. Boats or watercraft weighing less than five tons, used for business purposes only; 36. Boats or watercraft weighing five tons or more, used for business purposes only; 37. Tangible personal property which is owned and operated by a service provider who is not a CMRS provider and is not licensed by the FCC used to provide, for a fee, wireless broadband Internet service. For purposes of this subdivision, "wireless broadband Internet service" means a service that enables customers to access, through a wireless connection at an upload or download bit rate of more than one megabyte per second, Internet service, as defined in § 58.1-602, as part of a package of services sold to customers; 38. Low-speed vehicles as defined in § 46.2-100; 39. Motor vehicles with a seating capacity of not less than 30 persons, including the driver; 40. Motor vehicles powered solely by electricity; 41. Tangible personal property designed and used primarily for the purpose of manufacturing a product from renewable energy as defined in § 56-576; 42. Motor vehicles leased by a county, city, town, or constitutional officer if the locality or constitutional officer is obligated by the terms of the lease to pay tangible personal property tax on the motor vehicle; 43. Computer equipment and peripherals used in a data center. For purposes of this subdivision, "data center" means a facility whose primary services are the storage, management, and processing of digital data and is used to house (i) computer and network systems, including associated components such as servers, network equipment and appliances, telecommunications, and data storage systems; (ii) systems for monitoring and managing infrastructure performance; (iii) equipment used for the transformation, transmission, distribution, or management of at least one megawatt of capacity of electrical power and cooling, including substations, uninterruptible power supply systems, all electrical plant equipment, and associated air handlers; (iv) Internet-related equipment and services; (v) data communications connections; (vi) environmental controls; (vii) fire protection systems; and (viii) security systems and services; 44. Motor vehicles (i) owned by persons who serve as uniformed members of the Virginia Defense Force pursuant to Article 4.2 (§ 44-54.4 et seq.) of Chapter 1 of Title 44 or (ii) leased by persons who serve as uniformed members of the Virginia Defense Force pursuant to Article 4.2 (§ 44-54.4 et seq.) of Chapter 1 of Title 44 if the person is obligated by the terms of the lease to pay tangible personal property tax on the motor vehicle. One motor vehicle that is regularly used by a uniformed member of the Virginia Defense Force to respond to his official duties may be specially classified under this section. In order to qualify for such classification, any person who applies for such classification shall identify the vehicle for which the classification is sought and shall furnish to the commissioner of the revenue or other assessing officer a certification from the Adjutant General of the Department of Military Affairs under § 44-11. That certification shall state that (a) the applicant is a uniformed member of the Virginia Defense Force who regularly uses a motor vehicle to respond to his official duties, and (b) the vehicle for which the classification is sought is the vehicle that is regularly used for that purpose. The certification shall be submitted by January 31 of each year to the commissioner of the revenue or other assessing officer; however, the commissioner of revenue or other assessing officer shall be authorized, in his discretion, and for good cause shown and without fault on the part of the member, to accept a certification after the January 31 deadline; 45. If a locality has adopted an ordinance pursuant to subsection D of § 58.1-3703, tangible personal property of a business that qualifies under such ordinance for the first two tax years in which the business is subject to tax upon its personal property pursuant to this chapter. If a locality has not adopted such ordinance, this classification shall apply to the tangible personal property for such first two tax years of a business that otherwise meets the requirements of subsection D of § 58.1-3703; 46. Miscellaneous and incidental tangible personal property employed in a trade or business that is not classified as machinery and tools pursuant to Article 2 (§ 58.1-3507 et seq.), merchants' capital pursuant to Article 3 (§ 58.1-3509 et seq.), or short-term rental property pursuant to Article 3.1 (§ 58.1-3510.4 et seq.), and has an original cost of less than $500. A county, city, or town shall allow a taxpayer to provide an aggregate estimate of the total cost of all such property owned by the taxpayer that qualifies under this subdivision, in lieu of a specific, itemized list; 47. Commercial fishing vessels and property permanently attached to such vessels; and 48. The following classifications of vehicles: a. Automobiles as described in subdivision A 3 of § 58.1-3503; b. Trucks of less than two tons as described in subdivision A 4 of § 58.1-3503; c. Trucks and other vehicles as described in subdivision A 5 of § 58.1-3503; d. Motor vehicles with specially designed equipment for use by individuals with disabilities as described in subdivision A 9 of § 58.1-3503; and e. Motorcycles, mopeds, all-terrain vehicles, off-road motorcycles, campers, and other recreational vehicles as described in subdivision A 10 of § 58.1-3503. B. The governing body of any county, city, or town may levy a tax on the property enumerated in subsection A at different rates from the tax levied on other tangible personal property. The rates of tax and the rates of assessment shall (i) for purposes of subdivisions A 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 8, 11 through 20, 22 through 24, and 26 through 47, not exceed that applicable to the general class of tangible personal property, (ii) for purposes of subdivisions A 7, 9, 21, and 25, not exceed that applicable to machinery and tools, and (iii) for purposes of subdivision A 10, equal that applicable to real property. If an item of personal property is included in multiple classifications under subsection A, then the rate of tax shall be the lowest rate assigned to such classifications. C. Notwithstanding any other provision of this section, for any qualifying vehicle, as such term is defined in § 58.1-3523, (i) included in any separate class of property in subsection A and (ii) assessed for tangible personal property taxes by a county, city, or town receiving a payment from the Commonwealth under Chapter 35.1 (§ 58.1-3523 et seq.) for providing tangible personal property tax relief, the county, city, or town may levy the tangible personal property tax on such qualifying vehicle at a rate not to exceed the rates of tax and rates of assessment required under such chapter. Code 1950, §§ 58-829.2:1, 58-829.3, 58-829.5 to 58-829.9, 58-831.01; 1960, c. 418; 1970, c. 655; 1976, c. 567; 1978, c. 155; 1979, cc. 351, 576; 1980, c. 412; 1981, cc. 236, 445; 1982, c. 633; 1984, c. 675; 1985, c. 220; 1986, c. 195; 1988, c. 822; 1989, cc. 80, 694; 1990, cc. 677, 693; 1991, cc. 247, 330, 478; 1992, cc. 642, 680; 1993, c. 100; 1994, cc. 171, 221, 266, 631; 1995, c. 142; 1996, cc. 537, 603, 605; 1997, cc. 244, 250, 433, 457; 1999, cc. 289, 358; 2000, cc. 409, 413, 441, 442, 604; 2001, cc. 41, 447; 2002, cc. 6, 63, 148, 337; 2003, cc. 657, 670; 2004, cc. 4, 556, 591; 2004, Sp. Sess. I, c. 1; 2005, cc. 271, 325, 357; 2006, cc. 200, 231, 400; 2007, cc. 88, 322, 609; 2008, cc. 26, 94, 143; 2009, cc. 40, 44; 2010, cc. 264, 849; 2012, cc. 97, 288; 2013, cc. 39, 271, 287, 393, 652; 2014, cc. 50, 409; 2015, cc. 487, 502, 503, 593, 615; 2016, c. 483; 2017, cc. 116, 447; 2018, cc. 28, 292; 2020, cc. 64, 247, 251; 2021, Sp. Sess. I, c. 347; 2022, cc. 30, 578; 2023, cc. 148, 149. Article 1.01. Alternative Tax Rates for Elderly Individuals and Individuals with Disabilities.

Va. Code § 58.1-3660

§ 58.1-3660. Certified pollution control equipment and facilities.A. Certified pollution control equipment and facilities, as defined herein, are hereby declared to be a separate class of property and shall constitute a classification for local taxation separate from other such classification of real or personal property and such property. Certified pollution control equipment and facilities shall be exempt from state and local taxation pursuant to Article X, § 6 (d) of the Constitution of Virginia. B. As used in this section: "Certified pollution control equipment and facilities" means any property, including real or personal property, equipment, facilities, or devices, used primarily for the purpose of abating or preventing pollution of the atmosphere or waters of the Commonwealth and which the state certifying authority or subdivision certifying authority having jurisdiction with respect to such property has certified to the Department of Taxation as having been constructed, reconstructed, erected, or acquired in conformity with the state program or requirements for abatement or control of water or atmospheric pollution or contamination, except that in the case of equipment, facilities, devices, or other property intended for use by any political subdivision in conjunction with the operation of its water, wastewater, stormwater, or solid waste management facilities or systems, including property that may be financed pursuant to Chapter 22 (§ 62.1-224 et seq.) of Title 62.1, the state certifying authority or subdivision certifying authority having jurisdiction with respect to such property shall, upon the request of the political subdivision, make such certification prospectively for property to be constructed, reconstructed, erected, or acquired for such purposes. Such property shall include, but is not limited to, any equipment used to grind, chip, or mulch trees, tree stumps, underbrush, and other vegetative cover for reuse as mulch, compost, landfill gas, synthetic or natural gas recovered from waste or other fuel, and equipment used in collecting, processing, and distributing, or generating electricity from, landfill gas or synthetic or natural gas recovered from waste, whether or not such property has been certified to the Department of Taxation by a state certifying authority or subdivision certifying authority. Such property shall include solar energy equipment, facilities, or devices owned or operated by a business that collect, generate, transfer, or store thermal or electric energy whether or not such property has been certified to the Department of Taxation by a state certifying authority or subdivision certifying authority. Such property shall also include energy storage systems, whether or not such property has been certified to the Department of Taxation by a state certifying authority or subdivision certifying authority. All such property as described in this definition shall not include the land on which such equipment or facilities are located. "Energy storage system" means equipment, facilities, or devices that are capable of absorbing energy, storing it for a period of time, and redelivering that energy after it has been stored. "State certifying authority" means the State Water Control Board or the Virginia Department of Health, for water pollution; the State Air Pollution Control Board, for air pollution; the Department of Energy, for solar energy projects, energy storage systems, and for coal, oil, and gas production, including gas, natural gas, and coalbed methane gas; and the Virginia Waste Management Board, for waste disposal facilities, natural gas recovered from waste facilities, and landfill gas production facilities, and shall include any interstate agency authorized to act in place of a certifying authority of the Commonwealth. "Subdivision certifying authority" means the body of a political subdivision responsible for administering the political subdivision's water, wastewater, stormwater, or solid waste management facilities or systems. A subdivision certifying authority may only certify property pursuant to this section if the property being certified is equipment, facilities, devices, or other property intended for use by the political subdivision in conjunction with the operation of its water, wastewater, stormwater, or solid waste management facilities or systems. If property is certified by a subdivision certifying authority, it shall not be required to be certified by a state certifying authority. C. For solar photovoltaic (electric energy) systems, this exemption applies only to (i) projects equaling 20 megawatts or less, as measured in alternating current (AC) generation capacity, for which an initial interconnection request form has been filed with an electric utility or a regional transmission organization on or before December 31, 2018; (ii) projects equaling 20 megawatts or less, as measured in alternating current (AC) generation capacity, that serve any of the public institutions of higher education listed in § 23.1-100 or any private college as defined in § 23.1-105; (iii) 80 percent of the assessed value of projects for which an initial interconnection request form has been filed with an electric utility or a regional transmission organization (a) between January 1, 2015, and June 30, 2018, for projects greater than 20 megawatts or (b) on or after July 1, 2018, for projects greater than 20 megawatts and less than 150 megawatts, as measured in alternating current (AC) generation capacity, and that are first in service on or after January 1, 2017; (iv) projects equaling five megawatts or less, as measured in alternating current (AC) generation capacity, for which an initial interconnection request form has been filed with an electric utility or a regional transmission organization on or after January 1, 2019; and (v) 80 percent of the assessed value of all other projects equaling more than five megawatts and less than 150 megawatts, as measured in alternating current (AC) generation capacity for which an initial interconnection request form has been filed with an electric utility or a regional transmission organization on or after January 1, 2019. D. The exemption for solar photovoltaic (electric energy) projects greater than five megawatts, as measured in alternating current (AC) generation capacity, shall not apply to any such project unless an application has been filed with the locality for the project before July 1, 2030, regardless of whether a locality assesses a revenue share on such project pursuant to the provisions of § 58.1-2636. If a locality adopts an energy revenue share ordinance under § 58.1-2636, the exemption for solar photovoltaic (electric energy) projects greater than five megawatts, as measured in alternating current (AC) generation capacity, shall be 100 percent of the assessed value. If a locality does not adopt an energy revenue share ordinance under § 58.1-2636, the exemption for solar photovoltaic (electric energy) projects greater than five megawatts, as measured in alternating current (AC) generation capacity, for which an initial interconnection request form has been filed with an electric utility or a regional transmission organization, shall be 80 percent of the assessed value when an application has been filed with the locality prior to July 1, 2030. For purposes of this subsection, "application has been filed with the locality" means an applicant has filed an application for a zoning confirmation from the locality for a by-right use or an application for land use approval under the locality's zoning ordinance to include an application for a conditional use permit, special use permit, special exception, or other application as set out in the locality's zoning ordinance. E. For pollution control equipment and facilities certified by the Virginia Department of Health, this exemption applies only to onsite sewage systems that serve 10 or more households, use nitrogen-reducing processes and technology, and are constructed, wholly or partially, with public funds. F. Notwithstanding any provision to the contrary, for any solar photovoltaic project described in clauses (iii) and (v) of subsection C for which an initial interconnection request form has been filed with an electric utility or a regional transmission organization on or after January 1, 2019, the amount of the exemption shall be as follows: 80 percent of the assessed value in the first five years in service after commencement of commercial operation, 70 percent of the assessed value in the second five years in service, and 60 percent of the assessed value for all remaining years in service. G. Notwithstanding any provision to the contrary, the exemption for energy storage systems provided under this section (i) shall apply only to projects greater than five megawatts and less than 150 megawatts, as measured in alternating current (AC) storage capacity, and (ii) shall be in the following amounts: 80 percent of the assessed value in the first five years of service after commencement of commercial operation, 70 percent of the assessed value in the second five years in service, and 60 percent of the assessed value for all remaining years in service. H. The exemption for energy storage systems greater than five megawatts, as measured in alternating current (AC) storage capacity, shall not apply to any such project unless an application has been filed with the locality for the project before July 1, 2030, regardless of whether a locality assesses a revenue share on such project pursuant to the provisions of § 58.1-2636. If a locality adopts an energy revenue share ordinance under § 58.1-2636, the exemption for energy storage systems greater than five megawatts, as measured in alternating current (AC) storage capacity, shall be 100 percent of the assessed value. If a locality does not adopt an energy revenue share ordinance under § 58.1-2636, the exemption for energy storage systems greater than five megawatts, as measured in alternating current (AC) storage capacity, shall be as set out in subsection G when an application has been filed with the locality prior to July 1, 2030. For the purposes of this subsection, "application has been filed with the locality" means an applicant has filed an application for a zoning confirmation from the locality for a by-right use or an application for land use approval under the locality's zoning ordinance to include an application for a conditional use permit, special use permit, special exception, or other application as set out in the locality's zoning ordinance. Code 1950, § 58-16.3; 1972, c. 694; 1984, c. 675; 1995, c. 229; 2003, c. 859; 2006, cc. 375, 939; 2009, c. 671; 2014, cc. 259, 737; 2016, cc. 346, 518; 2018, c. 849; 2019, c. 441; 2020, cc. 65, 252, 1028, 1029, 1224, 1270; 2021, Sp. Sess. I, cc. 49, 50, 532; 2022, cc. 14, 501.

Va. Code § 58.1-3661

§ 58.1-3661. Certified solar energy equipment, facilities, or devices and certified recycling equipment, facilities, or devices.A. Any solar facility installed pursuant to subsections A or B of § 15.2-2288.7 with a nameplate rated electrical generating capacity measured in direct current kilowatts of not more than 25 kilowatts is hereby declared to be a separate class of property and shall constitute a classification for local taxation separate from other classifications of real or personal property. Such facilities shall be wholly exempt from state and local taxation pursuant to Article X, § 6 (d) of the Constitution of Virginia. B. Certified solar energy equipment, facilities, or devices and certified recycling equipment, facilities, or devices, as defined herein, are hereby declared to be a separate class of property and shall constitute a classification for local taxation separate from other classifications of real or personal property. The governing body of any county, city or town may, by ordinance, exempt or partially exempt such property from local taxation in the manner provided by subsection E. C. As used in this section: "Certified recycling equipment, facilities, or devices" means machinery and equipment which is certified by the Department of Environmental Quality as integral to the recycling process and for use primarily for the purpose of abating or preventing pollution of the atmosphere or waters of the Commonwealth, and used in manufacturing facilities or plant units which manufacture, process, compound, or produce for sale recyclable items of tangible personal property at fixed locations in the Commonwealth. "Certified solar energy equipment, facilities, or devices" means any property, including real or personal property, equipment, facilities, or devices, excluding any portion of such property that is exempt under § 58.1-3660, certified by the local certifying authority to be designed and used primarily for the purpose of collecting, generating, transferring, or storing thermal or electric energy. "Local certifying authority" means the local building departments or the Department of Environmental Quality. The State Board of Housing and Community Development shall promulgate regulations setting forth criteria for certifiable solar energy equipment. The Department of Environmental Quality shall promulgate regulations establishing criteria for recycling equipment, facilities, or devices. D. Any person residing in a county, city or town which has adopted an ordinance pursuant to subsection B may proceed to have solar energy equipment, facilities, or devices certified as exempt, wholly or partially, from taxation by applying to the local building department. If, after examination of such equipment, facility, or device, the local building department determines that the unit primarily performs any of the functions set forth in subsection C and conforms to the requirements set by regulations of the Board of Housing and Community Development, such department shall approve and certify such application. The local department shall forthwith transmit to the local assessing officer those applications properly approved and certified by the local building department as meeting all requirements qualifying such equipment, facility, or device for exemption from taxation. Any person aggrieved by a decision of the local building department may appeal such decision to the local board of building code appeals, which may affirm or reverse such decision. E. Upon receipt of the certificate from the local building department or the Department of Environmental Quality, the local assessing officer shall, if such local ordinance is in effect, proceed to determine the value of such qualifying solar energy equipment, facilities, or devices or certified recycling equipment, facilities, or devices. The exemption provided by this section shall be determined by applying the local tax rate to the value of such equipment, facilities, or devices and subtracting such amount, wholly or partially, either (i) from the total real property tax due on the real property to which such equipment, facilities, or devices are attached or (ii) if such equipment, facilities, or devices are taxable as machinery and tools under § 58.1-3507, from the total machinery and tools tax due on such equipment, facilities, or devices, at the election of the taxpayer. This exemption shall be effective beginning in the next succeeding tax year and shall be permitted for a term of not less than five years; however, if the taxpayer installs equipment, facilities, or devices and obtains certification for such equipment, facilities, or devices within one year of installation, the locality may provide by ordinance that the exemption shall be effective as of the date of installation, and if the taxpayer has paid any taxes on such equipment, facilities, or devices, the locality shall reimburse the taxpayer for any such taxes paid. In the event the locality assesses real estate pursuant to § 58.1-3292, the exemption shall be first effective when such real estate is first assessed, but not prior to the date of such application for exemption. F. It shall be presumed for purposes of the administration of ordinances pursuant to this section, and for no other purposes, that the value of such qualifying solar energy equipment, facilities, and devices is not less than the normal cost of purchasing and installing such equipment, facilities, and devices. Code 1950, § 58-16.4; 1977, c. 561; 1984, c. 675; 1988, c. 253; 1990, c. 690; 1998, c. 606; 2014, cc. 259, 737; 2016, c. 346; 2020, c. 633; 2022, c. 496.

Va. Code § 58.1-3714

§ 58.1-3714. Contractors; credits against tax; effect upon authority of towns; workers' compensation requirements; penalty.A. Whenever a license tax is levied on contractors by any county, city or town, the governing body of such county, city or town may, in its discretion, require a bond from the person licensed, with such surety, penalty and conditions as it may deem proper. B. 1. The governing body of any county, city or town shall not issue or reissue a business license under this chapter to any contractor who (i) has not obtained or is not maintaining workers' compensation coverage for his employees and (ii) at the time of application for such issuance or reissuance, is required to obtain or maintain such coverage pursuant to Chapter 8 (§ 65.2-800 et seq.) of Title 65.2. 2. Each such governing body shall require every contractor to provide written certification at the time of any application for issuance or reissuance of a business license that such contractor is in compliance with the provisions of Chapter 8 of Title 65.2 and will remain in compliance with such provisions at all times during the effective period of any such business license. 3. Any person who knowingly presents or causes to be presented to the governing body a false certificate shall be guilty of a Class 3 misdemeanor. C. If, within any county imposing a license tax on contractors, there is situated a town which imposes a similar tax upon contractors, the business, firm, corporation or individual subject to such town license tax shall be entitled, upon displaying evidence that such town license taxes have been paid, to receive a credit on the license taxes imposed by the county to the extent of the license taxes paid to such town. D. For the purpose of license taxation pursuant to § 58.1-3703, the term "contractor" means any person, firm or corporation: 1. Accepting or offering to accept orders or contracts for doing any work on or in any building or structure, requiring the use of paint, stone, brick, mortar, wood, cement, structural iron or steel, sheet iron, galvanized iron, metallic piping, tin, lead, or other metal or any other building material; 2. Accepting or offering to accept contracts to do any paving, curbing or other work on sidewalks, streets, alleys, or highways, or public or private property, using asphalt, brick, stone, cement, concrete, wood or any composition; 3. Accepting or offering to accept an order for or contract to excavate earth, rock, or other material for foundation or any other purpose or for cutting, trimming or maintaining rights-of-way; 4. Accepting or offering to accept an order or contract to construct any sewer of stone, brick, terra cotta or other material; 5. Accepting or offering to accept orders or contracts for doing any work on or in any building or premises involving the erecting, installing, altering, repairing, servicing, or maintaining electric wiring, devices or appliances permanently connected to such wiring, or the erecting, repairing or maintaining of lines for the transmission or distribution of electric light and power; or 6. Engaging in the business of plumbing and steam fitting. Code 1950, § 58-302.1; 1962, c. 553; 1984, c. 675; 1998, c. 503; 2024, c. 558.

Va. Code § 58.1-3731

§ 58.1-3731. Certain public service corporations; rate limitation.Every county, city or town is hereby authorized to impose a license tax, in addition to any tax levied under Chapter 26 (§ 58.1-2600 et seq.) of this title, on (i) telephone and telegraph companies; (ii) water companies; and (iii) heat, light and power companies (except electric suppliers, gas utilities and gas suppliers as defined in § 58.1-400.2 and pipeline distribution companies as defined in § 58.1-2600) at a rate not to exceed one-half of one percent of the gross receipts of such company accruing from sales to the ultimate consumer in such county, city or town. However, in the case of telephone companies, charges for long distance telephone calls shall not be included in gross receipts for purposes of license taxation. After December 31, 2000, the license tax authorized by this section shall not be imposed on pipeline distribution companies as defined in § 58.1-2600 or on gas suppliers, gas utilities or electric suppliers as defined in § 58.1-400.2, except upon gross receipts for calendar year 2000 as provided in §§ 58.1-2901 D and 58.1-2905 D. Code 1950, §§ 58-578, 58-603; 1968, c. 637; 1971, Ex. Sess., c. 41; 1972, cc. 813, 858; 1976, c. 778; 1978, c. 786; 1980, c. 668; 1982, c. 633; 1984, c. 675; 1987, c. 244; 1999, c. 971; 2000, cc. 691, 706; 2001, cc. 829, 861.

Va. Code § 58.1-3814

§ 58.1-3814. Water or heat, light and power companies.A. Any county, city or town may impose a tax on the consumers of the utility service or services provided by any water or heat, light and power company or other corporations coming within the provisions of Chapter 26 (§ 58.1-2600 et seq.), which tax shall not be imposed at a rate in excess of 20 percent of the monthly amount charged to consumers of the utility service and shall not be applicable to any amount so charged in excess of $15 per month for residential customers. Any city, town or county that on July 1, 1972, imposed a utility consumer tax in excess of limits specified herein may continue to impose such a tax in excess of such limits, but no more. For taxable years beginning on and after January 1, 2001, any tax imposed by a county, city or town on consumers of electricity shall be imposed pursuant to subsections C through J only. B. Any tax enacted pursuant to the provisions of this section, or any change in a tax or structure already in existence, shall not be effective until 60 days subsequent to written notice by certified mail from the county, city or town imposing such tax or change thereto, to the registered agent of the utility corporation that is required to collect the tax. C. Any county, city or town may impose a tax on the consumers of services provided within its jurisdiction by any electric light and power, water or gas company owned by another municipality; provided, that no county shall be authorized under this section to impose a tax within a municipality on consumers of services provided by an electric light and power, water or gas company owned by that municipality. Any county tax imposed hereunder shall not apply within the limits of any incorporated town located within such county which town imposes a town tax on consumers of utility service or services provided by any corporation coming within the provisions of Chapter 26 (§ 58.1-2600 et seq.), provided that such town (i) provides police or fire protection, and water or sewer services, provided that any such town served by a sanitary district or service authority providing water or sewer services or served by the county in which the town is located when such service or services are provided pursuant to an agreement between the town and county shall be deemed to be providing such water and sewer services itself, or (ii) constitutes a special school district and is operated as a special school district under a town school board of three members appointed by the town council. Any county, city or town may provide for an exemption from the tax for any public safety answering point as defined in § 58.1-3813.1. Any municipality required to collect a tax imposed under authority of this section for another city or county or town shall be entitled to a reasonable fee for such collection. D. In a consolidated county wherein a tier-city exists, any county tax imposed hereunder shall apply within the limits of any tier-city located in such county, as may be provided in the agreement or plan of consolidation, and such tier-city may impose a tier-city tax on the same consumers of utility service or services, provided that the combined county and tier-city rates do not exceed the maximum permitted by state law. E. The tax authorized by this section shall not apply to: 1. Utility sales of products used as motor vehicle fuels; or 2. Natural gas used to generate electricity by a public utility as defined in § 56-265.1 or an electric cooperative as defined in § 56-231.15. F. 1. Any county, city or town may impose a tax on consumers of electricity provided by electric suppliers as defined in § 58.1-400.2. The tax so imposed shall be based on kilowatt hours delivered monthly to consumers, and shall not exceed the limits set forth in this subsection. The provider of billing services shall bill the tax to all users who are subject to the tax and to whom it bills for electricity service, and shall remit such tax to the appropriate locality in accordance with § 58.1-2901. Any locality that imposed a tax pursuant to this section prior to January 1, 2001, based on the monthly revenue amount charged to consumers of electricity shall convert its tax to a tax based on kilowatt hours delivered monthly to consumers, taking into account minimum billing charges. The kilowatt hour tax rates shall, to the extent practicable: (i) avoid shifting the amount of the tax among electricity consumer classes and (ii) maintain annual revenues being received by localities from such tax at the time of the conversion. The current service provider shall provide to localities no later than August 1, 2000, information to enable localities to convert their tax. The maximum amount of tax imposed on residential consumers as a result of the conversion shall be limited to $3 per month, except any locality that imposed a higher maximum tax on July 1, 1972, may continue to impose such higher maximum tax on residential consumers at an amount no higher than the maximum tax in effect prior to January 1, 2001, as converted to kilowatt hours. For nonresidential consumers, the initial maximum rate of tax imposed as a result of the conversion shall be based on the annual amount of revenue received from each class of nonresidential consumers in calendar year 1999 for the kilowatt hours used that year. Kilowatt hour tax rates imposed on nonresidential consumers shall be based at a class level on such factors as existing minimum charges, the amount of kilowatt hours used, and the amount of consumer utility tax paid in calendar year 1999 on the same kilowatt hour usage. The limitations in this section on kilowatt hour rates for nonresidential consumers shall not apply after January 1, 2004. On or before October 31, 2000, any locality imposing a tax on consumers of electricity shall duly amend its ordinance under which such tax is imposed so that the ordinance conforms to the requirements of subsections C through J. Notice of such amendment shall be provided to service providers in a manner consistent with subsection B except that "registered agent of the provider of billing services" shall be substituted for "registered agent of the utility corporation." Any conversion of a tax to conform to the requirements of this subsection shall not be effective before the first meter reading after December 31, 2000, prior to which time the tax previously imposed by the locality shall be in effect. 2. For purposes of this section, "kilowatt hours delivered" shall mean in the case of eligible customer-generators, as defined in § 56-594, those kilowatt hours supplied from the electric grid to such customer-generators, minus the kilowatt hours generated and fed back to the electric grid by such customer-generators. G. Until the consumer pays the tax to such provider of billing services, the tax shall constitute a debt to the locality. If any consumer receives and pays for electricity but refuses to pay the tax on the bill that is imposed by a locality, the provider of billing services shall notify the locality of the name and address of such consumer. If any consumer fails to pay a bill issued by a provider of billing services, including the tax imposed by a locality as stated thereon, the provider of billing services shall follow its normal collection procedures with respect to the charge for electric service and the tax, and upon collection of the bill or any part thereof shall (i) apportion the net amount collected between the charge for electric service and the tax and (ii) remit the tax portion to the appropriate locality. After the consumer pays the tax to the provider of billing services, the taxes shall be deemed to be held in trust by such provider of billing services until remitted to the localities. H. Any county, city or town may impose a tax on consumers of natural gas provided by pipeline distribution companies and gas utilities. The tax so imposed shall be based on CCF delivered monthly to consumers and shall not exceed the limits set forth in this subsection. The pipeline distribution company or gas utility shall bill the tax to all users who are subject to the tax and to whom it delivers gas and shall remit such tax to the appropriate locality in accordance with § 58.1-2905. Any locality that imposed a tax pursuant to this section prior to January 1, 2001, based on the monthly revenue amount charged to consumers of gas shall convert to a tax based on CCF delivered monthly to consumers, taking into account minimum billing charges. The CCF tax rates shall, to the extent practicable: (i) avoid shifting the amount of the tax among gas consumer classes and (ii) maintain annual revenues being received by localities from such tax at the time of the conversion. Current pipeline distribution companies and gas utilities shall provide to localities not later than August 1, 2000, information to enable localities to convert their tax. The maximum amount of tax imposed on residential consumers as a result of the conversion shall be limited to $3 per month, except any locality that imposed a higher maximum tax on July 1, 1972, may continue to impose such higher maximum tax on residential consumers at an amount no higher than the maximum tax in effect prior to January 1, 2001, as converted to CCF. For nonresidential consumers, the initial maximum rate of tax imposed as a result of the conversion shall be based on the annual amount of revenue received and due from each of the nonresidential gas purchase and gas transportation classes in calendar year 1999 for the CCF used that year. CCF tax rates imposed on nonresidential consumers shall be based at a class level on such factors as existing minimum charges, the amount of CCF used, and the amount of consumer utility tax paid and due in calendar year 1999 on the same CCF usage. The initial maximum rate of tax imposed under this section shall continue, unless lowered, until December 31, 2003. Beginning January 1, 2004, nothing in this section shall be construed to prohibit or limit any locality from imposing a consumer utility tax on nonresidential customers up to the amount authorized by subsection A. On or before October 31, 2000, any locality imposing a tax on consumers of gas shall duly amend its ordinance under which such tax is imposed so that the ordinance conforms to the requirements of subsections C through J of this section. Notice of such amendment shall be provided to pipeline distribution companies and gas utilities in a manner consistent with subsection B except that "registered agent of the pipeline distribution company or gas utility" shall be substituted for "registered agent of the utility corporation." Any conversion of a tax to conform to the requirements of this subsection shall not be effective before the first meter reading after December 31, 2000, prior to which time the tax previously imposed by the locality shall be in effect. I. Until the consumer pays the tax to such gas utility or pipeline distribution company, the tax shall constitute a debt to the locality. If any consumer receives and pays for gas but refuses to pay the tax that is imposed by the locality, the gas utility or pipeline distribution company shall notify the localities of the names and addresses of such consumers. If any consumer fails to pay a bill issued by a gas utility or pipeline distribution company, including the tax imposed by a locality, the gas utility or pipeline distribution company shall follow its normal collection procedures with regard to the charge for the gas and the tax and upon collection of the bill or any part thereof shall (i) apportion the net amount collected between the charge for gas service and the tax and (ii) remit the tax portion to the appropriate locality. After the consumer pays the tax to the gas utility or pipeline distribution company, the taxes shall be deemed to be held in trust by such gas utility or pipeline distribution company until remitted to the localities. J. For purposes of this section: "Class of consumers" means a category of consumers served under a rate schedule established by the pipeline distribution company and approved by the State Corporation Commission. "Gas utility" has the same meaning as provided in § 56-235.8. "Pipeline distribution company" has the same meaning as provided in § 58.1-2600. "Service provider" and "provider of billing services" have the same meanings as provided in subsection E of § 58.1-2901, and "class" of consumers means a category of consumers defined as a class by their service provider. K. Nothing in this section shall prohibit a locality from enacting an ordinance or other local law to allow such locality to impose a tax on consumers of natural gas provided by pipeline distribution companies and gas utilities, beginning at such time as natural gas service is first made available in such locality. The maximum amount of tax imposed on residential consumers based on CCF delivered monthly to consumers shall not exceed $3 per month. The maximum tax rate imposed by such locality on nonresidential consumers based on CCF delivered monthly to consumers shall not exceed an average of the tax rates on nonresidential consumers of natural gas in effect (at the time natural gas service is first made available in such locality) in localities whose residents are being provided natural gas from the same pipeline distribution company or gas utility or both that is also providing natural gas to the residents of such locality. Beginning January 1, 2004, the tax rates for residential and nonresidential consumers of natural gas in such locality shall be determined in accordance with the provisions of subsection H. Code 1950, § 58-617.2; 1966, c. 540; 1971, Ex. Sess., c. 90; 1972, cc. 338, 459; 1975, c. 55; 1976, c. 565; 1982, c. 616; 1984, cc. 154, 675, 695; 1986, c. 38; 1992, c. 399; 1995, cc. 553, 590; 1998, c. 337; 1999, c. 971; 2000, cc. 614, 691, 706, 1064; 2001, cc. 737, 748; 2004, cc. 8, 159; 2008, c. 883; 2012, cc. 4, 582.

Va. Code § 58.1-3852

§ 58.1-3852. Incentives for green roofing.A. As used in this article, unless the context clearly shows otherwise, the term or phrase: "Green roof" means a solar roof or a vegetative roof. "Solar roof" means a solar roofing system that generates reusable energy, which reusable energy accounts for at least 2.5 percent of the total electric energy used by the building to which the solar roofing system is attached. "Vegetative roof" means a roofing system designed in accordance with the Virginia Stormwater Management Program's standards and specifications for green roofs, as set forth in the Virginia Stormwater BMP Clearinghouse, in which at least 50 percent of the total roofing area is vegetative. B. Any county, city, or town may, by ordinance, grant incentives or provide regulatory flexibility to encourage the use of green roofs in the construction, repair, or remodeling of residential and commercial buildings. Any such incentive or regulatory flexibility shall require that green roofs be used. C. The incentives or regulatory flexibility may include, but shall not be limited, to (i) a reduction in permit fees when green roofs are used, (ii) a streamlined process for the approval of building permits when green roofs are used, or (iii) a reduction in any gross receipts tax on green roof contractors as defined by the local ordinance. D. The extent and duration of the incentives or regulatory flexibility shall conform to the requirements of the Constitutions of Virginia and of the United States. 2009, cc. 17, 604. Article 12. Local Defense Production Zone.

Va. Code § 58.1-400.2

§ 58.1-400.2. Taxation of electric suppliers, pipeline distribution companies, gas utilities, and gas suppliers.A. Any electric supplier, pipeline distribution company, gas utility, or gas supplier that is subject to income tax pursuant to the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended, except those organized as cooperatives and exempt from federal taxation under § 501 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended, shall be subject to the tax levied pursuant to § 58.1-400. B. Any electric supplier that operates as a cooperative and is exempt from income tax pursuant to § 501 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, shall be subject to tax at the tax rate set forth in § 58.1-400 on all modified net income derived from nonmember sales. Any gas supplier, pipeline distribution company or gas utility which has a taxable year that begins after January 1, 2001, but before January 1, 2002, shall also be subject to the provisions under subsection E. C. The following words and terms when used in this section shall have the following meanings: "Electric supplier" means any corporation, cooperative, partnership or other business entity providing electric service. "Electricity" is deemed tangible personal property for purposes of the corporate income tax pursuant to this article. "Gas supplier" means any person licensed by the State Corporation Commission to engage in the business of selling natural gas. "Gas utility" has the same meaning as provided in § 56-235.8. "Members" means those customers of a cooperative who receive allocations of patronage capital from a cooperative. "Modified net income" means all revenue of a cooperative from the sale of electricity within the Commonwealth with the following subtractions: 1. Revenue attributable to sales of electric power to its members. 2. Nonmember share of all ordinary and necessary expenses paid or incurred during the taxable year in carrying on the sale of electric power to nonmembers. Such nonmember expenses shall be determined by allocating the amount of such expenses between sales of electricity to members and sales of electricity to nonmembers. Such allocation shall be applicable to all tax credits available to an electric supplier. "Nonmember" means those customers which are not members. "Ordinary and necessary expenses paid or incurred" means ordinary and necessary expenses determined according to generally accepted accounting principles. "Pipeline distribution company" has the same meaning as provided in § 58.1-2600. D. The Department of Taxation shall promulgate all regulations necessary to implement the intent of this section. This section shall apply to taxable years beginning on and after January 1, 2001. E. 1. Any gas supplier, pipeline distribution company or gas utility which has a taxable year that begins after January 1, 2001, but before January 1, 2002, shall be required to file an income tax return as if a short taxable year has occurred covering the period beginning January 1, 2001, and ending on the last day prior to the beginning of the gas supplier's, pipeline distribution company's or gas utility's taxable year pursuant to § 58.1-440 A. 2. If a return is required to be made under subdivision 1 of this subsection, federal taxable income will be determined using the methodology prescribed in § 443 of the Internal Revenue Code, as if the gas supplier, pipeline distribution company or gas utility was undergoing a change of annual accounting period, and § 58.1-440 B and the regulations thereunder. 1999, c. 971; 2000, cc. 691, 706.

Va. Code § 58.1-400.3

§ 58.1-400.3. Minimum tax on certain electric suppliers.A. 1. An electric supplier, except for those organized as cooperatives and exempt from federal taxation under § 501 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended, shall be subject to a minimum tax imposed by this section, instead of the corporate income tax imposed by § 58.1-400 if applicable, net of any income tax credits that may be used to offset such tax, if the tax imposed by § 58.1-400 is less than the minimum tax imposed by this subsection. An electric supplier that is organized as a limited liability, partnership, corporation that has made an election under subchapter S of the Internal Revenue Code, or other entity treated as a pass-through entity shall be subject to the minimum tax in the manner prescribed by regulation. 2. The minimum tax imposed by this subsection shall be equal to 1.45 percent of such electric supplier's gross receipts for the calendar year that ends during the taxable year minus the state's portion of the electric utility consumption tax billed to consumers. B. 1. An electric supplier that is organized as a cooperative and exempt from federal taxation under § 501 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended, shall be subject to a minimum tax, instead of the tax on modified net income imposed by § 58.1-400.2, if the tax imposed by § 58.1-400.2, net of any credits that may be used to offset such tax, is less than the minimum tax imposed by this subsection. 2. The minimum tax imposed by this subsection shall be equal to 1.45 percent of such electric supplier's gross receipts from sales to nonmembers for the calendar year that ends during the taxable year minus the consumption tax collected from nonmembers. C. In the case of an income tax return for a period of less than 12 months, the minimum tax shall be based on the gross receipts for the calendar year that ends during the taxable period or, if none, the most recent calendar year that ended before the taxable period. The minimum tax shall be prorated by the number of months in the taxable period. D. The State Corporation Commission shall calculate and certify to the Department for each tax year as defined in § 58.1-2600 the name, address, and minimum tax for each electric supplier. The Commission shall mail or otherwise deliver a copy of the certification to each affected electric supplier. E. When an electric supplier subject to the tax imposed by this section is one of several affiliated corporations that file a consolidated or combined income tax return, the portion of the affiliated corporations' tax liability that is attributable to the electric supplier shall be computed as follows: 1. Each corporation included in the consolidated or combined return shall recompute its corporate income tax liability, net of any income tax credits, as if it were filing a separate return. The separate income tax liability of the electric supplier shall then be compared to the affiliated corporations' tax liability, net of any income tax credits, indicated on the consolidated or combined return. For purposes of this section, the lesser amount shall be deemed to be the corporate income tax imposed by § 58.1-400 and attributable to the electric supplier. 2. a. If such corporate income tax amount is less than the minimum tax of the electric supplier as calculated pursuant to subsection A, the electric supplier shall be subject to the minimum tax in lieu of the corporate income tax imposed by § 58.1-400. b. If such corporate income tax amount exceeds the minimum tax of the electric supplier as calculated pursuant to subsection A, the electric supplier shall not owe the minimum tax. F. The requirements imposed under Article 20 (§ 58.1-500 et seq.) of Chapter 3 of this title regarding the filing of a declaration of estimated income taxes and the payment of such estimated taxes, shall be applicable to electric suppliers regardless of whether such taxpayer expects to be subject to the minimum tax imposed herein or to the corporate income tax imposed by § 58.1-400. For purposes of determining the applicability of the exceptions under which the addition to the tax for the underpayment of any installment of estimated taxes shall not be imposed, it shall be irrelevant whether the tax shown on the return for the preceding taxable year is the corporate income tax or the minimum tax. G. To the extent that a taxpayer is subject to the minimum tax imposed under this section, there shall be allowed a credit against the separate, combined, or consolidated corporate income tax for the total amount of minimum tax paid by the electric supplier in all previous years that is in excess of the tax imposed by § 58.1-400 on the electric supplier for such years. H. 1. To the extent an electric supplier or its parent company has remitted estimated income tax payments in excess of its corporate income tax liability for the taxable years beginning on or after January 1, 2001, but before January 1, 2004, such overpayments shall only be utilized to offset any corporate income tax liabilities incurred pursuant to § 58.1-400 for taxable years beginning on and after January 1, 2004, and shall not be claimed as a refund of overpaid taxes, except as provided in subdivision 2 of this subsection. For the purposes of this subsection, estimated income tax payments shall include any overpayments from a prior taxable year carried forward as an estimated payment to be credited towards a future tax liability. 2. If an electric supplier has had a corporate income tax liability of greater than $0 for each taxable year beginning on or after January 1, 2001, but before January 1, 2003, then such electric supplier may claim a refund of any estimated income tax payments in excess of their taxable year 2003 corporate income tax liability. I. Every electric supplier which owes the minimum tax imposed by this section shall remit such tax payment to the Department of Taxation. J. Notwithstanding any of the foregoing provisions, an electric supplier may not adjust capped rates pursuant to § 56-582 of the Code of Virginia on any portion of the minimum tax due to the Commonwealth. K. The following words and terms, for purposes of this section, shall have the following meanings: "Consumption tax" means the state's portion of the electric utility consumption tax billed pursuant to Chapter 29 (§ 58.1-2900 et seq.) of this title, for which the electric supplier is defined as the "service provider" pursuant to § 58.1-2901 less any amounts billed on behalf of utilities owned and operated by municipalities. "Electric supplier" means an incumbent electric utility in the Commonwealth that, prior to July 1, 1999, supplied electric energy to retail customers located in an exclusive service territory established by the State Corporation Commission. However, "electric supplier" also includes an offshore wind affiliate as defined in § 56-585.1:11. "Gross receipts" has the same meaning as defined in § 58.1-2600 less receipts from sales to federal, state and local governments for their own use. "Nonmember" has the same meaning as defined in § 58.1-400.2. 2004, c. 716; 2009, cc. 37, 152; 2023, c. 510.

Va. Code § 58.1-433.1

§ 58.1-433.1. Virginia Coal Employment and Production Incentive Tax Credit.A. For taxable years beginning on and after January 1, 2001, but before January 1, 2022, every electricity generator in the Commonwealth shall be allowed a $3-per-ton credit against the tax imposed by § 58.1-400 or 58.1-400.2 for each ton of coal purchased and consumed by such electricity generator, provided such coal was mined in Virginia as certified by such seller. Notwithstanding any other provision of law, no electricity generator shall be allowed more than a $3-per-ton coal tax credit and shall be subject to all limitations set forth in § 58.1-400.2. In no event shall the credit allowed hereunder exceed the total amount of tax liability of such taxpayer. Any tax credit not usable for the taxable year may be carried over to the extent usable for the next 10 succeeding taxable years or until the full credit is utilized, whichever is sooner. For the purposes of the credit provided by this section, "electricity generator" means any person who produces electricity for self-consumption or for sale. B. For each such ton of coal described in subsection A that is purchased on or after January 1, 2006, but before January 1, 2022, from any person with an economic interest in coal as defined under § 58.1-439.2, the $3-per-ton credit allowed under subsection A may be allocated between such electricity generator and such person with an economic interest in coal. The allocation of the $3-per-ton credit may be provided in the contract between such parties for the sale of such coal. Such allocation may be amended by the execution of a written instrument by the parties prior to December 31 of the year of purchase of such coal. Such contracts and written instruments shall be subject to audit by the Department of Taxation to ensure the proper application of credits. In no case shall the credit allocated for each such ton of coal among such electricity generators and such persons with an economic interest in coal exceed $3 per ton. All credits earned on or after January 1, 2006, but before January 1, 2022, that are allocated to persons with an economic interest in coal as provided under this subsection may be used as tax credits by such persons against the tax imposed by § 58.1-400 and any other tax imposed by the Commonwealth. If the credits earned on or after January 1, 2006, but before January 1, 2022, exceed the state tax liability for the applicable taxable year of such person with an economic interest in coal, the excess shall be redeemable by the Tax Commissioner as set forth in subsection D of § 58.1-439.2, provided that the ability of persons with an economic interest in coal to redeem with the Tax Commissioner credits received pursuant to an allocation under this section shall expire for credits earned under this section on or after July 1, 2016. C. If tax credits were earned under the provisions of this section prior to January 1, 2022, such credits may continue to be claimed on a return for taxable years on and after January 1, 2022, but only pursuant to the applicable carryover period specified in this section. A taxpayer claiming credits pursuant to the provisions of this subsection shall not claim more than $1 million in credits for a single taxable year. No taxpayer shall amend a return for a taxable year prior to January 1, 2022, to claim more in credits earned under the provisions of this section than such taxpayer stated on such return before amending it. 1999, c. 971; 2000, c. 929; 2006, cc. 788, 803; 2011, cc. 294, 851; 2021, Sp. Sess. I, cc. 553, 554. §§ 58.1-434, 58.1-435. Repealed.Repealed by Acts 2016, c. 305, cl. 2.

Va. Code § 58.1-440.1

§ 58.1-440.1. Accounting-deferred taxes.In the case of a pipeline distribution company, a gas utility, a gas supplier or an electric supplier, as defined in § 58.1-400.2, that was subject to the tax imposed under § 58.1-2626 with respect to its gross receipts received during the year commencing January 1, 2000, and that on or after January 1, 2001, becomes subject to the corporate income tax pursuant to Article 10 (§ 58.1-400 et seq.) of this chapter, net income shall be computed by taking into account the following adjustments: In addition to the deductions for depreciation, amortization, or other cost recovery currently allowed by this Code, there shall be allowed deductions for the amortization of the Virginia tax basis of assets that are recoverable for financial accounting and/or income tax purposes placed in service prior to the adjustment date. For purposes of this section, (i) "Virginia tax basis" means the aggregate adjusted book basis less the aggregate adjusted tax basis of such assets as recorded on the company's books of accounts as of the last day of the tax year immediately preceding the adjustment date and (ii) "adjustment date" means the first day of the tax year in which such pipeline distribution company, gas utility, gas supplier or electric supplier becomes subject to the tax imposed by § 58.1-400.2 A. The amortization of the Virginia tax basis shall be computed using the straight-line method over a period of thirty years, beginning on the adjustment date. Gain or loss on the disposition or retirement of any such asset shall be computed using its adjusted federal tax basis, and the amortization of the Virginia tax basis shall continue thereafter without adjustment. The Department of Taxation shall promulgate regulations describing a reasonable method of allocating the Virginia tax basis in the event that a portion of the operations of a pipeline distribution company, gas utility, gas supplier or electric supplier are separated, spun-off, transferred to a separate company or otherwise disaggregated. For gas suppliers, pipeline distribution companies or gas utilities which are required to file an income tax return for a short taxable year pursuant to subsection E of § 58.1-400.2, a portion of the amortized Virginia tax basis will be disallowed based on the proration in computing Virginia taxable income. Such portion will be recovered as a deduction in the first taxable year after which this deduction is no longer applicable. For rate-making and accounting purposes, the State Corporation Commission shall not require a pipeline distribution company or gas utility to amortize these deferred taxes over a period other than the thirty-year period prescribed herein, nor shall the State Corporation Commission require the treatment of accelerated depreciation different from that allowed for federal income taxes. 1999, c. 971; 2000, cc. 691, 706.

Va. Code § 58.1-504

§ 58.1-504. Failure to pay estimated income tax.A. In case of any underpayment of estimated tax by a corporation, except as provided in subsection D, there shall be added to the tax for the taxable year an amount determined at the rate established for interest under § 58.1-15, upon the amount of the underpayment (determined under subsection B) for the period of the underpayment (determined under subsection C). B. For purposes of subsection A, the amount of the underpayment shall be the excess of: 1. The amount of the installment which would be required to be paid if the estimated tax were equal to ninety percent of the tax shown on the return for the taxable year or, if no return was filed, ninety percent of the tax for such year, over 2. The amount, if any, of the installment paid on or before the last date prescribed for payment. C. The period of the underpayment shall run from the date the installment was required to be paid to whichever of the following dates is the earlier: 1. The fifteenth day of the fourth month following the close of the taxable year. 2. With respect to any portion of the underpayment, the date on which such portion is paid. For purposes of this subdivision, a payment of estimated tax on any installment date shall be considered a payment of any previous underpayment only to the extent such payment exceeds the amount of the installment determined under subdivision B 1 for such installment date. D. Notwithstanding the provisions of subsections A, B and C, the addition to the tax with respect to any underpayment of any installment shall not be imposed if the total amount of all payments of estimated tax made on or before the last date prescribed for the payment of such installment equals or exceeds the amount which would have been required to be paid on or before such date if the estimated tax were whichever of the following is the lesser: 1. The tax shown on the return of the corporation for the preceding taxable year, if a return showing a liability for tax was filed by the corporation for the preceding taxable year and such preceding year was a taxable year of twelve months. 2. An amount equal to the tax computed at the rate applicable to the taxable year but otherwise on the basis of the facts shown on the return of the corporation for, and the law applicable to, the preceding taxable year. 3. An amount equal to ninety percent of the tax for the taxable year computed by placing on an annualized basis the taxable income: a. For the first three months of the taxable year, in the case of the installment required to be paid in the fourth month, b. For the first three months or for the first five months of the taxable year, in the case of the installment required to be paid in the sixth month, c. For the first six months or for the first eight months of the taxable year, in the case of the installment required to be paid in the ninth month, and d. For the first nine months or for the first eleven months of the taxable year, in the case of the installment required to be paid in the twelfth month of the taxable year. For purposes of this subdivision, the taxable income shall be placed on an annualized basis by (i) multiplying by twelve the taxable income referred to in subdivision D 3 and (ii) dividing the resulting amount by the number of months in the taxable year (three, five, six, eight, nine, or eleven, as the case may be) referred to in subsection A. E. For purposes of subsection B, subdivisions D 2 and D 3, the term "tax" means the excess of the tax imposed by this chapter over the sum of any credits allowable against the tax. F. The application of this to taxable years of less than twelve months shall be in accordance with regulations prescribed by the Commissioner. G. Pipeline distribution companies as defined in § 58.1-2600 and gas utilities, gas suppliers and electric suppliers as defined in § 58.1-400.2 that become subject to taxation under this chapter and prior thereto paid the annual license tax based on gross receipts, shall make estimated tax payments during the first year, or short taxable year under subsection E of § 58.1-400.2, they are so subject, and notwithstanding subsection D, any excesses described in subsection B shall constitute an underpayment for such year. Code 1950, § 58-151.40; 1968, c. 14; 1977, c. 396; 1983, c. 575; 1984, c. 675; 1999, c. 971; 2000, cc. 691, 706. Article 20.1. Virginia Land Conservation Incentives Act of 1999.

Va. Code § 58.1-604.1

§ 58.1-604.1. (Contingent effective date -- see note) Use tax on motor vehicles, machinery, tools and equipment brought into Virginia for use in performing contracts.In addition to the use tax levied pursuant to § 58.1-604 and notwithstanding the provisions of § 58.1-611, a use tax is levied upon the storage or use of all motor vehicles, machines, machinery, tools or other equipment brought, imported or caused to be brought into this Commonwealth for use in constructing, building or repairing any building, highway, street, sidewalk, bridge, culvert, sewer or water system, drainage or dredging system, railway system, reservoir or dam, hydraulic or power plant, transmission line, tower, dock, wharf, excavation, grading, or other improvement or structure, or any part thereof. The rate of tax is three and one-half percent through midnight on July 31, 2004, and four percent beginning on and after August 1, 2004, on all tangible personal property except motor vehicles, which shall be taxed at the rate of three percent; aircraft, which shall be taxed at the rate of two percent; and watercraft, which shall be taxed at the rate of two percent with a maximum tax of $1,000. For purposes of this section, the words "motor vehicle" mean any vehicle which is self-propelled and designed primarily for use upon the highways, any vehicle which is propelled by electric power obtained from trolley wires but not operated upon rails, and any vehicle designed to run upon the highways which is pulled by a self-propelled vehicle, but shall not include any implement of husbandry, farm tractor, road construction or maintenance machinery or equipment, special mobile equipment or any vehicle designed primarily for use in work off the highway. The tax shall be computed on the basis of such proportion of the original purchase price of such property as the duration of time of use in this Commonwealth bears to the total useful life thereof. For purposes of this section, the word "use" means use, storage, consumption and "stand-by" time occasioned by weather conditions, controversies or other causes. The tax shall be computed upon the basis of the relative time each item of equipment is in this Commonwealth rather than upon the basis of actual use. In the absence of satisfactory evidence as to the period of use intended in this Commonwealth, it will be presumed that such property will remain in this Commonwealth for the remainder of its useful life, which shall be determined in accordance with the experiences and practices of the building and construction trades. A transaction taxed under § 58.1-604, 58.1-605, 58.1-1402, 58.1-1502, 58.1-1736 or 58.1-2402 shall not also be taxed under this section, nor shall the same transaction be taxed more than once under any section. 1988, c. 379; 2004, Sp. Sess. I, c. 3; 2011, cc. 405, 639. This section is set out twice because the 14th enactment of Chapter 766 of the Acts of Assembly of 2013 states: "That the provisions of this act that generate additional revenue through state taxes or fees for transportation (i) throughout the Commonwealth and in Planning District 8 and Planning District 23 or (ii) in any other Planning District that becomes subject to the state taxes or fees imposed solely in Planning Districts pursuant to this act shall expire on December 31 of any year in which the General Assembly appropriates any of such additional revenues for any non-transportation-related purpose or transfers any of such additional revenues that are to be deposited into the Commonwealth Transportation Fund or any subfund thereof pursuant to general law for a non-transportation-related purpose. In the event a local government of any county or city wherein the additional taxes and fees are levied appropriates or allocates any of such additional revenues to a non-transportation purpose, such locality shall not be the direct beneficiary of any of the revenues generated by the taxes or fees in the year immediately succeeding the year in which revenues were appropriated or allocated to a non-transportation purpose."

Va. Code § 58.1-609.1

§ 58.1-609.1. Governmental and commodities exemptions.The tax imposed by this chapter or pursuant to the authority granted in §§ 58.1-605 and 58.1-606 shall not apply to the following: 1. Fuels which are subject to the tax imposed by Chapter 22 (§ 58.1-2200 et seq.). Persons who are refunded any such fuel tax shall, however, be subject to the tax imposed by this chapter, unless such taxes would be specifically exempted pursuant to any provision of this section. 2. Motor vehicles, trailers, semitrailers, mobile homes and travel trailers. 3. Gas, electricity, or water when delivered to consumers through mains, lines, or pipes. 4. Tangible personal property for use or consumption by the Commonwealth, any political subdivision of the Commonwealth, or the United States. This exclusion shall not apply to sales and leases to privately owned financial and other privately owned corporations chartered by the United States. Further, this exemption shall not apply to tangible personal property which is acquired by the Commonwealth or any of its political subdivisions and then transferred to private businesses for their use in a facility or real property improvement to be used by a private entity or for nongovernmental purposes other than tangible personal property acquired by the Herbert H. Bateman Advanced Shipbuilding and Carrier Integration Center and transferred to a Qualified Shipbuilder as defined in the third enactment of Chapter 790 of the 1998 Acts of the General Assembly. 5. Aircraft subject to tax under Chapter 15 (§ 58.1-1500 et seq.). 6. a. Motor fuels and alternative fuels for use in a commercial watercraft, as defined in § 58.1-2201, upon which a fuel tax is refunded pursuant to § 58.1-2259. b. Fuels transactions upon which a fuel tax is refunded pursuant to subdivision A 22 of § 58.1-2259. 7. Sales by a government agency of the official flags of the United States, the Commonwealth of Virginia, or of any county, city or town. 8. Materials furnished by the State Board of Elections pursuant to §§ 24.2-404 through 24.2-407. 9. Watercraft as defined in § 58.1-1401. 10. Tangible personal property used in and about a marine terminal under the supervision of the Virginia Port Authority for handling cargo, merchandise, freight and equipment. This exemption shall apply to agents, lessees, sublessees or users of tangible personal property owned by or leased to the Virginia Port Authority and to property acquired or used by the Authority or by a nonstock, nonprofit corporation that operates a marine terminal or terminals on behalf of the Authority. 11. Sales by prisoners confined in state correctional facilities of artistic products personally made by the prisoners as authorized by § 53.1-46. 12. Tangible personal property for use or consumption by the Virginia Department for the Blind and Vision Impaired or any nominee, as defined in § 51.5-60, of such Department. 13. [Expired.] 14. Tangible personal property sold to residents and patients of the Virginia Veterans Care Center at a canteen operated by the Department of Veterans Services. 15. Tangible personal property for use or consumption by any nonprofit organization whose members include the Commonwealth and other states and which is organized for the purpose of fostering interstate cooperation and excellence in government. 16. Tangible personal property purchased for use or consumption by any soil and conservation district which is organized in accordance with the provisions of Article 3 (§ 10.1-506 et seq.) of Chapter 5 of Title 10.1. 17. Tangible personal property sold or leased to Alexandria Transit Company, Greater Lynchburg Transit Company, GRTC Transit System, or Greater Roanoke Transit Company, or to any other transit company that is owned, operated, or controlled by any county, city, or town, or any combination thereof, that provides public transportation services, and/or tangible personal property sold or leased to any county, city, or town, or any combination thereof, that is transferred to any of the companies set forth in this subdivision owned, operated, or controlled by any county, city, or town, or any combination thereof, that provides public transportation services. 18. [Expired.] 19. Effective through June 30, 2025, gold, silver, or platinum bullion or legal tender coins. "Gold, silver, or platinum bullion" means gold, silver, or platinum, and any combination thereof, that has gone through a refining process and is in a state or condition such that its value depends on its mass and purity and not on its form, numismatic value, or other value. Gold, silver, or platinum bullion may contain other metals or substances, provided that the other substances by themselves have minimal value compared with the value of the gold, silver, or platinum. "Legal tender coins" means coins of any metal content issued by a government as a medium of exchange or payment of debts. "Gold, silver, or platinum bullion" and "legal tender coins" do not include jewelry or works of art. 20. Tangible personal property sold by a sheriff at a correctional facility pursuant to § 53.1-127.1 and sales of prepared food within such correctional facility. 1993, c. 310; 1995, cc. 617, 664; 1998, c. 812; 1999, cc. 401, 471, 762, 776; 2000, cc. 487, 493, 729, 758; 2002, c. 877; 2003, cc. 657, 670; 2005, cc. 46, 116; 2007, cc. 176, 817; 2008, c. 554; 2011, c. 165; 2012, cc. 95, 276; 2015, cc. 42, 382, 620, 629; 2016, cc. 34, 392; 2017, cc. 48, 445; 2022, cc. 12, 634, 643.

Va. Code § 58.1-609.3

§ 58.1-609.3. Commercial and industrial exemptions.The tax imposed by this chapter or pursuant to the authority granted in §§ 58.1-605 and 58.1-606 shall not apply to the following: 1. Personal property purchased by a contractor which is used solely in another state or in a foreign country, which could be purchased by such contractor for such use free from sales tax in such other state or foreign country, and which is stored temporarily in Virginia pending shipment to such state or country. 2. (i) Industrial materials for future processing, manufacturing, refining, or conversion into articles of tangible personal property for resale where such industrial materials either enter into the production of or become a component part of the finished product; (ii) industrial materials that are coated upon or impregnated into the product at any stage of its being processed, manufactured, refined, or converted for resale; (iii) machinery or tools or repair parts therefor or replacements thereof, fuel, power, energy, or supplies, used directly in processing, manufacturing, refining, mining or converting products for sale or resale; (iv) materials, containers, labels, sacks, cans, boxes, drums or bags for future use for packaging tangible personal property for shipment or sale; or (v) equipment, printing or supplies used directly to produce a publication described in subdivision 3 of § 58.1-609.6 whether it is ultimately sold at retail or for resale or distribution at no cost. Machinery, tools and equipment, or repair parts therefor or replacements thereof, shall be exempt if the preponderance of their use is directly in processing, manufacturing, refining, mining or converting products for sale or resale. The provisions of this subsection do not apply to the drilling or extraction of oil, gas, natural gas and coalbed methane gas. In addition, the exemption provided herein shall not be applicable to any machinery, tools, and equipment, or any other tangible personal property used by a public service corporation in the generation of electric power, except for raw materials that are inputs to production of electricity, including fuel, or for machinery, tools, and equipment used to generate energy derived from sunlight or wind. The exemption for machinery, tools, and equipment used to generate energy derived from sunlight or wind shall expire June 30, 2027. 3. Tangible personal property sold or leased to a public service corporation engaged in business as a common carrier of property or passengers by railway, for use or consumption by such common carrier directly in the rendition of its public service. 4. Ships or vessels, or repairs and alterations thereof, used or to be used exclusively or principally in interstate or foreign commerce; fuel and supplies for use or consumption aboard ships or vessels plying the high seas, either in intercoastal trade between ports in the Commonwealth and ports in other states of the United States or its territories or possessions, or in foreign commerce between ports in the Commonwealth and ports in foreign countries, when delivered directly to such ships or vessels; or tangible personal property used directly in the building, conversion or repair of the ships or vessels covered by this subdivision. This exemption shall include dredges, their supporting equipment, attendant vessels, and fuel and supplies for use or consumption aboard such vessels, provided the dredges are used exclusively or principally in interstate or foreign commerce. 5. Tangible personal property purchased for use or consumption directly and exclusively in basic research or research and development in the experimental or laboratory sense. 6. Notwithstanding the provisions of subdivision 20 of § 58.1-609.10, all tangible personal property sold or leased to an airline operating in intrastate, interstate or foreign commerce as a common carrier providing scheduled air service on a continuing basis to one or more Virginia airports at least one day per week, for use or consumption by such airline directly in the rendition of its common carrier service. 7. Meals furnished by restaurants or food service operators to employees as a part of wages. 8. Tangible personal property including machinery and tools, repair parts or replacements thereof, and supplies and materials used directly in maintaining and preparing textile products for rental or leasing by an industrial processor engaged in the commercial leasing or renting of laundered textile products. 9. Certified pollution control equipment and facilities as defined in § 58.1-3660, except for any equipment that has not been certified to the Department of Taxation by a state certifying authority or subdivision certifying authority pursuant to such section. 10. Parts, tires, meters and dispatch radios sold or leased to taxicab operators for use or consumption directly in the rendition of their services. 11. High speed electrostatic duplicators or any other duplicators which have a printing capacity of 4,000 impressions or more per hour purchased or leased by persons engaged primarily in the printing or photocopying of products for sale or resale. 12. From July 1, 1994, and ending July 1, 2024, raw materials, fuel, power, energy, supplies, machinery or tools or repair parts therefor or replacements thereof, used directly in the drilling, extraction, or processing of natural gas or oil and the reclamation of the well area. For the purposes of this section, the term "natural gas" shall mean "gas," "natural gas," and "coalbed methane gas" as defined in § 45.2-1600. For the purposes of this section, "drilling," "extraction," and "processing" shall include production, inspection, testing, dewatering, dehydration, or distillation of raw natural gas into a usable condition consistent with commercial practices, and the gathering and transportation of raw natural gas to a facility wherein the gas is converted into such a usable condition. Machinery, tools and equipment, or repair parts therefor or replacements thereof, shall be exempt if the preponderance of their use is directly in the drilling, extraction, refining, or processing of natural gas or oil for sale or resale, or in well area reclamation activities required by state or federal law. 13. Beginning July 1, 1997, (i) the sale, lease, use, storage, consumption, or distribution of an orbital or suborbital space facility, space propulsion system, space vehicle, satellite, or space station of any kind possessing space flight capability, including the components thereof, irrespective of whether such facility, system, vehicle, satellite, or station is returned to this Commonwealth for subsequent use, storage or consumption in any manner when used to conduct spaceport activities; (ii) the sale, lease, use, storage, consumption or distribution of tangible personal property placed on or used aboard any orbital or suborbital space facility, space propulsion system, space vehicle, satellite or space station of any kind, irrespective of whether such tangible personal property is returned to this Commonwealth for subsequent use, storage or consumption in any manner when used to conduct spaceport activities; (iii) fuels of such quality not adapted for use in ordinary vehicles, being produced for, sold and exclusively used for space flight when used to conduct spaceport activities; (iv) the sale, lease, use, storage, consumption or distribution of machinery and equipment purchased, sold, leased, rented or used exclusively for spaceport activities and the sale of goods and services provided to operate and maintain launch facilities, launch equipment, payload processing facilities and payload processing equipment used to conduct spaceport activities. For purposes of this subdivision, "spaceport activities" means activities directed or sponsored at a facility owned, leased, or operated by or on behalf of the Virginia Commercial Space Flight Authority. The exemptions provided by this subdivision shall not be denied by reason of a failure, postponement or cancellation of a launch of any orbital or suborbital space facility, space propulsion system, space vehicle, satellite or space station of any kind or the destruction of any launch vehicle or any components thereof. 14. Semiconductor cleanrooms or equipment, fuel, power, energy, supplies, or other tangible personal property used primarily in the integrated process of designing, developing, manufacturing, or testing a semiconductor product, a semiconductor manufacturing process or subprocess, or semiconductor equipment without regard to whether the property is actually contained in or used in a cleanroom environment, touches the product, is used before or after production, or is affixed to or incorporated into real estate. 15. Semiconductor wafers for use or consumption by a semiconductor manufacturer. 16. Railroad rolling stock when sold or leased by the manufacturer thereof. 17. Computer equipment purchased or leased on or before June 30, 2011, used in data centers located in a Virginia locality having an unemployment rate above 4.9 percent for the calendar quarter ending November 2007, for the processing, storage, retrieval, or communication of data, including but not limited to servers, routers, connections, and other enabling hardware when part of a new investment of at least $75 million in such exempt property, when such investment results in the creation of at least 100 new jobs paying at least twice the prevailing average wage in that locality, so long as such investment was made in accordance with a memorandum of understanding with the Virginia Economic Development Partnership Authority entered into or amended between January 1, 2008, and December 31, 2008. The exemption shall also apply to any such computer equipment purchased or leased to upgrade, add to, or replace computer equipment purchased or leased in the initial investment. The exemption shall not apply to any computer software sold separately from the computer equipment, nor shall it apply to general building improvements or fixtures. 18. a. Beginning July 1, 2010, and ending June 30, 2035, except as provided in subdivision 19, computer equipment or enabling software purchased or leased for the processing, storage, retrieval, or communication of data, including but not limited to servers, routers, connections, and other enabling hardware, including chillers and backup generators used or to be used in the operation of the equipment exempted in this paragraph, provided that such computer equipment or enabling software is purchased or leased for use in a data center, which includes any data center facilities located in the same locality as the data center that are under common ownership or affiliation of the data center operator, that (i) is located in a Virginia locality; (ii) results in a new capital investment on or after January 1, 2009, of at least $150 million; and (iii) results in the creation on or after July 1, 2009, of at least 50 new jobs by the data center operator and the tenants of the data center, collectively, associated with the operation or maintenance of the data center provided that such jobs pay at least one and one-half times the prevailing average wage in that locality. The requirement of at least 50 new jobs is reduced to 10 new jobs if the data center is located in a distressed locality at the time of the execution of a memorandum of understanding with the Virginia Economic Development Partnership Authority. Additionally, the requirement of a $150 million capital investment shall be reduced to $70 million for data centers that qualify for the reduced jobs requirement. This exemption applies to the data center operator and the tenants of the data center if they collectively meet the requirements listed in this section. Prior to claiming such exemption, any qualifying person claiming the exemption, including a data center operator on behalf of itself and its tenants, must enter into a memorandum of understanding with the Virginia Economic Development Partnership Authority that at a minimum provides the details for determining the amount of capital investment made and the number of new jobs created, the timeline for achieving the capital investment and new job goals, the repayment obligations should those goals not be achieved, and any conditions under which repayment by the qualifying data center or data center tenant claiming the exemption may be required. In addition, the exemption shall apply to any such computer equipment or enabling software purchased or leased to upgrade, supplement, or replace computer equipment or enabling software purchased or leased in the initial investment. The exemption shall not apply to any other computer software otherwise taxable under Chapter 6 of Title 58.1 that is sold or leased separately from the computer equipment, nor shall it apply to general building improvements or other fixtures. b. For purposes of this subdivision 18, "distressed locality" means: (1) From July 1, 2021, until July 1, 2023, any locality that had (i) an annual unemployment rate for calendar year 2019 that was greater than the final statewide average unemployment rate for that calendar year and (ii) a poverty rate for calendar year 2019 that exceeded the statewide average poverty rate for that year; and (2) From and after July 1, 2023, any locality that has (i) an annual unemployment rate for the most recent calendar year for which such data is available that is greater than the final statewide average unemployment rate for that calendar year and (ii) a poverty rate for the most recent calendar year for which such data is available that exceeds the statewide average poverty rate for that year. c. For so long as a data center operator is claiming an exemption pursuant to this subdivision 18, such operator shall be required to submit an annual report to the Virginia Economic Development Partnership Authority on behalf of itself and, if applicable, its participating tenants that includes their employment levels, capital investments, average annual wages, qualifying expenses, and tax benefit, and such other information as the Virginia Economic Development Partnership Authority determines is relevant, pursuant to procedures developed by the Virginia Economic Development Partnership Authority. The annual report shall be submitted by the data center operator in a format prescribed by the Virginia Economic Development Partnership Authority. The Virginia Economic Development Partnership Authority shall share all information collected with the Department. The Department, in collaboration with the Virginia Economic Development Partnership Authority, shall publish a biennial report on the exemption that shall include aggregate information on qualifying expenses claimed under this exemption, the total value of the tax benefit, a return on investment analysis that includes direct and indirect jobs created by data center investment, state and local tax revenues generated, and any other information the Department and the Virginia Economic Development Partnership Authority deem appropriate to demonstrate the costs and benefits of the exemption. The report shall not include, and the Department and the Virginia Economic Development Partnership Authority shall not publish or disclose, any such information if it is unaggregated or if such report or publication could be used to identify a business or individual. The Department shall submit the report to the Chairmen of the Senate Committee on Finance and Appropriations and the House Committees on Appropriations and Finance. The Virginia Economic Development Partnership Authority may publish on its website and distribute annual information indicating the job creation and ranges of capital investments made by a data center operator and, if applicable, its participating tenants, in a format to be developed in consultation with data center operators. 19. a. Notwithstanding any provision of subdivision 18 to the contrary, the exemption set forth in subdivision 18 may be extended for the purchase or lease of computer equipment or enabling software by or on behalf of data center operators for use in data centers in the Commonwealth that are under common ownership or affiliation with the data center operator as set forth in this subdivision 19. For purposes of this subdivision 19, a data center operator shall be considered to own a data center if it is operated on behalf of the data center operator pursuant to a long-term lease of at least ten years. b. To qualify for an extension pursuant to this subdivision 19, a data center operator shall enter into a memorandum of understanding with the Virginia Economic Development Partnership Authority on or after January 1, 2023, that at a minimum provides the details for determining the amount of capital investment made and the number of new jobs created; the locality or localities in which the capital investment shall be made and new jobs shall be created in order to qualify for the extension; and the timeline for making the capital investment and creating the new jobs in each specified locality. A data center operator shall only be required to enter into one memorandum of understanding pursuant to this subdivision 19 in order to qualify for the extension pursuant to both subdivisions c and d. c. If on or after January 1, 2023, but before July 1, 2035, a data center operator that has entered into a memorandum of understanding pursuant to subdivision b (i) makes or causes to be made a capital investment of at least $35 billion in data centers in localities identified in a memorandum of understanding and (ii) creates at least 1,000 new full-time jobs, as defined in § 59.1-284.42, at such data centers, of which at least 100 of such jobs shall pay at least one and one-half times the prevailing average wage in the Commonwealth, the data center operator shall be eligible to continue to utilize the exemption set forth in subdivision 18 through June 30, 2040. d. If on or after January 1, 2023, but before July 1, 2040, a data center operator that has entered into a memorandum of understanding pursuant to subdivision b (i) makes a total capital investment of at least $100 billion, inclusive of any investment made pursuant to subdivision c, in data centers in the localities identified in such memorandum of understanding and (ii) creates a total of at least 2,500 new full-time jobs, as defined in § 59.1-284.42, at such data centers, of which at least 100 of such jobs shall pay at least one and one-half times the prevailing average wage in the Commonwealth, inclusive of any new full-time jobs created pursuant to subdivision c, the data center operator shall be eligible to utilize the exemption set forth in subdivision 18 through June 30, 2050. e. The extension provided in this subdivision 19 shall apply to the computer equipment or enabling software purchased or leased for use in the data centers subject to the capital investment and job requirements set forth herein, as well as to any such computer equipment or enabling software purchased or leased to upgrade, supplement, or replace computer equipment or enabling software purchased or leased in the initial investment. The extension shall also apply to any computer equipment or software purchased or leased in data centers under common ownership or affiliation with the data center operator for which the data center operator entered into a memorandum of understanding with the Virginia Economic Development Partnership Authority to qualify for the exemption set forth in subdivision 18. f. The reporting requirements set forth in subdivision 18 shall continue to apply to a data center operator for the duration of any extension granted pursuant to this subdivision 19. 20. If the preponderance of their use is in the manufacture of beer by a brewer licensed pursuant to subdivision 3 or 4 of § 4.1-206.1, (i) machinery, tools, and equipment, or repair parts therefor or replacements thereof, fuel, power, energy, or supplies; (ii) materials for future processing, manufacturing, or conversion into beer where such materials either enter into the production of or become a component part of the beer; and (iii) materials, including containers, labels, sacks, cans, bottles, kegs, boxes, drums, or bags for future use, for packaging the beer for shipment or sale. 21. If the preponderance of their use is in advanced recycling, as defined in § 58.1-439.7, (i) machinery, tools, and equipment, or repair parts therefor or replacements thereof, fuel, power, energy, or supplies; (ii) materials for processing, manufacturing, or conversion for resale where such materials either are recycled or recovered; and (iii) materials, including containers, labels, sacks, cans, boxes, drums, or bags used for packaging recycled or recovered material for shipment or resale. 1993, c. 310; 1994, cc. 365, 381; 1995, cc. 101, 204, 719; 1996, c. 816; 1997, c. 834; 2001, cc. 429, 468, 769; 2003, c. 859; 2004, Sp. Sess. I, c. 3; 2006, cc. 385, 519, 524, 541, 618; 2007, c. 751; 2008, cc. 558, 764; 2010, cc. 784, 826; 2011, cc. 183, 286; 2012, cc. 613, 655; 2013, c. 10; 2016, cc. 343, 346, 673, 709, 712; 2017, c. 714; 2020, cc. 789, 1113, 1114; 2021, Sp. Sess. I, cc. 367, 368; 2022, cc. 14, 501; 2023, cc. 144, 671, 678.

Va. Code § 58.1-623.2

§ 58.1-623.2. Cigarette exemption certificate.A. 1. Notwithstanding any other provision of law, all sales of cigarettes, as defined in § 58.1-1031, bearing Virginia revenue stamps in the Commonwealth shall be subject to the tax until the contrary is established. The burden of proving that a sale is not taxable is upon the dealer unless he takes from the taxpayer a cigarette exemption certificate issued by the Department to the taxpayer to the effect that the cigarettes are exempt under this chapter for the purposes of resale in the Commonwealth. 2. The cigarette exemption certificate mentioned in this section shall relieve the person who takes such certificate from any liability for the payment or collection of the tax on the sale of cigarettes, except upon notice from the Tax Commissioner or the taxpayer that such certificate is no longer acceptable. 3. If a taxpayer who gives a cigarette exemption certificate under this section makes any use of the property other than an exempt use or retention, demonstration, or display while holding the property for resale or distribution in the regular course of business, such use shall be deemed a taxable sale by the taxpayer as of the time the property or service is first used by him, and the cost of the property to him shall be deemed the sales price of such retail sale. B. 1. Prior to issuing a cigarette exemption certificate under this section, the Department shall conduct a background investigation on the taxpayer for the certificate. The Department shall not issue a cigarette exemption certificate until at least 30 days have passed from the receipt of the application, unless the taxpayer qualifies for the expedited process set forth in subdivision 3, or any other expedited process set forth in guidelines issued pursuant to subsection L. If the taxpayer does not qualify for the expedited process, the Department shall inspect each location listed in the application and verify that any location that resells cigarettes meets the requirements prescribed in subsection E. 2. A taxpayer shall be required to pay an application fee, not to exceed $50, to the Department for a cigarette exemption certificate. 3. A taxpayer shall be eligible for an expedited process to receive a cigarette exemption certificate if the taxpayer possesses, at the time of filing an application for a cigarette exemption certificate, (i) an active license, in good standing, issued by the Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control pursuant to Title 4.1, as verified by electronic or other means by the Department, or (ii) an active tobacco products tax distributor's license, in good standing, issued by the Department pursuant to § 58.1-1021.04:1. The Department may identify other categories of taxpayers who qualify for an expedited process through guidelines issued pursuant to subsection L. Taxpayers that qualify for an expedited process shall not be subject to the background check or the waiting period set forth in subdivision 1, nor shall such taxpayers be required to pay the application fee set forth in subdivision 2. 4. If a taxpayer has been denied a cigarette exemption certificate, or has been issued a cigarette exemption certificate that has subsequently been suspended or revoked, the Department shall not consider an application from the taxpayer for a new cigarette exemption certificate for six months from the date of the denial, suspension, or revocation. C. The Department shall deny an application for a cigarette exemption certificate, or suspend or revoke a cigarette exemption certificate previously issued to a taxpayer, if the Department determines that: 1. The taxpayer is a person who is not 18 years of age or older; 2. The taxpayer is a person who is physically unable to carry on the business for which the application for a cigarette exemption certificate is filed, or has been adjudicated incapacitated; 3. The taxpayer has not resided in the Commonwealth for at least one year immediately preceding the application, unless in the opinion of the Department, good cause exists for the taxpayer to have not resided in the Commonwealth for the immediately preceding year; 4. The taxpayer has not established a physical place of business in the Commonwealth, as described in subsection E; 5. A court or administrative body having jurisdiction has found that the physical place of business occupied by the taxpayer, as described in subsection E, does not conform to the sanitation, health, construction, or equipment requirements of the governing body of the county, city, or town in which such physical place is located, or to similar requirements established pursuant to the laws of the Commonwealth; 6. The physical place of business occupied by the taxpayer, as described in subsection E, is not constructed, arranged, or illuminated so as to allow access to and reasonable observation of, any room or area in which cigarettes are to be sold; 7. The taxpayer is not an authorized representative of the business; 8. The taxpayer made a material misstatement or material omission in the application; 9. The taxpayer has defrauded, or attempted to defraud, the Department, or any federal, state, or local government or governmental agency or authority, by making or filing any report, document, or tax return required by statute or regulation that is fraudulent or contains a false representation of material fact, or the taxpayer has willfully deceived or attempted to deceive the Department, or any federal, state, or local government or governmental agency or authority, by making or maintaining business records required by statute or regulation that are false or fraudulent; 10. The Tax Commissioner has determined that the taxpayer has misused the certificate; 11. The taxpayer has knowingly and willfully allowed any individual, other than an authorized representative, to use the certificate; 12. The taxpayer has failed to comply with or has been convicted under any of the provisions of this chapter or Chapter 10 (§ 58.1-1000 et seq.) or any of the rules of the Department adopted or promulgated under the authority of this chapter or Chapter 10; however, no certificate shall be denied, suspended, or revoked on the basis of a failure to file a retail sales and use tax return or remit retail sales and use tax unless the taxpayer is more than 30 days delinquent in any filing or payment and has not entered into an installment agreement pursuant to § 58.1-1817; or 13. The taxpayer has been convicted under the laws of any state or of the United States of (i) any robbery, extortion, burglary, larceny, embezzlement, gambling, perjury, bribery, treason, racketeering, money laundering, other crime involving fraud under Chapter 6 (§ 18.2-168 et seq.) of Title 18.2, or crime that has the same elements of the offenses set forth in § 58.1-1017 or 58.1-1017.1, or (ii) a felony. D. The provisions of § 58.1-623.1 shall apply to the suspension and revocation of exemption certificates issued pursuant to this section, mutatis mutandis. E. A cigarette exemption certificate shall only be issued to a taxpayer who: 1. Has a physical place of business in the Commonwealth, owned or leased by him, where a substantial portion of the sales activity of the retail cigarette sales activity of the business is routinely conducted and that (i) satisfies all local zoning regulations; (ii) has sales and office space of at least 250 square feet in a permanent, enclosed building not used as a house, apartment, storage unit, garage, or other building other than a building zoned for retail business; (iii) houses all records required to be maintained pursuant to § 58.1-1007; (iv) is equipped with office equipment, including but not limited to, a desk, a chair, a Point of Sale System, filing space, a working telephone listed in the name of the taxpayer or his business, working utilities, including electricity and provisions for space heating, and an Internet connection and email address; (v) displays a sign and business hours and is open to the public during the listed business hours; and (vi) does not occupy the same physical place of business of any other taxpayer who has been issued a cigarette exemption certificate; 2. Possesses a copy of the (i) corporate charter and articles of incorporation in the case of a corporation, (ii) partnership agreement in the case of a partnership, or (iii) organizational registration from the Virginia State Corporation Commission in the case of an LLC; and 3. Possesses a local business license, if such local business license is required by the locality where the taxpayer's physical place of business is located. F. A taxpayer with more than one physical place of business shall be required to complete only one application for a cigarette exemption certificate but shall list on the application every physical place of business in the Commonwealth where cigarettes are purchased, stored, or resold by the taxpayer or his affiliate. Upon approval of the application, the Department shall issue a cigarette exemption certificate to the taxpayer. The taxpayer shall be authorized to resell cigarettes only at the locations listed on the application. No cigarette exemption certificate shall be transferrable. For purposes of this subsection, a taxpayer shall be considered to have more than one physical place of business if the taxpayer owns or leases two or more physical locations in the Commonwealth where cigarettes are purchased, stored, or resold. G. A cigarette exemption certificate issued to a taxpayer shall bear the address of the physical place of business occupied or to be occupied by the taxpayer in conducting the business of purchasing cigarettes in the Commonwealth. In the event that a taxpayer intends to move the physical place of business listed on a certificate to a new location, he shall provide written notice to the Department at least 30 days in advance of the move. A successful inspection of the new physical place of business shall be required by the Department prior to the issuance of a new cigarette exemption certificate bearing the updated address. If the taxpayer intends to change any of the required information relating to the physical places of business contained in the application for the cigarette exemption certificate submitted pursuant to subsection F, the taxpayer shall file an amendment to the application at least 30 days in advance of such change. The certificate with the original address shall become invalid upon the issuance of the new certificate, or 30 days after notice of the move is provided to the Department, whichever occurs sooner. A taxpayer shall not be required to pay a fee to the Department for the issuance of a new cigarette exemption certificate pursuant to this subsection. H. The privilege of a taxpayer issued a cigarette exemption certificate to purchase cigarettes shall extend to any authorized representative of such taxpayer. The taxpayer issued a cigarette exemption certificate may be held liable for any violation of this chapter, Chapter 10 (§ 58.1-1000 et seq.), Chapter 10.1 (§ 58.1-1031 et seq.), or any related Department guidelines by such authorized representative. I. A taxpayer issued a cigarette exemption certificate shall comply with the recordkeeping requirements prescribed in § 58.1-1007 and shall make such records available for audit and inspection as provided therein. A taxpayer issued a cigarette exemption certificate who fails to comply with such requirements shall be subject to the penalties provided in § 58.1-1007. J. A cigarette exemption certificate granted by the Department shall be valid for five years from the date of issuance. At the end of the five-year period, the cigarette exemption certificate of a taxpayer who qualifies for the expedited application process set forth in subdivision B 3 shall be automatically renewed and no fee shall be required. If a taxpayer does not qualify for the expedited application process, then such taxpayer shall apply to the Department to renew the new cigarette exemption certificate as set forth in subdivision B 1 and shall pay an application fee not to exceed $50 as set forth in subdivision B 2; however, the 30-day waiting period set forth in subdivision B 1 shall not apply. K. No taxpayer issued a cigarette exemption certificate shall display the certificate, or a copy thereof, in the physical place of business where a substantial portion of the retail cigarette sales activity of the business is routinely conducted. L. The Tax Commissioner shall develop guidelines implementing the provisions of this section, including but not limited to (i) defining categories of taxpayers who qualify for the expedited process, (ii) prescribing the form of the application for the cigarette exemption certificate, (iii) prescribing the form of the application for the expedited cigarette exemption certificate, (iv) establishing procedures for suspending and revoking the cigarette exemption certificate, and (v) establishing procedures for renewing the cigarette exemption certificate. Such guidelines shall be exempt from the provisions of the Administrative Process Act (§ 2.2-4000 et seq.). M. For the purposes of this section: "Authorized representative" means an individual who has an ownership interest in or is a current employee of the taxpayer who possesses a valid cigarette exemption certificate pursuant to this section. 2017, cc. 112, 453.

Va. Code § 58.1-639.1

§ 58.1-639.1. (Effective until July 1, 2030) Annual retail sales and use tax holiday.A. Each year there shall be a three-day period that begins on the first Friday in August and ends at 11:59 p.m. the following Sunday, during which time certain items shall be exempt from the taxes imposed by this chapter or pursuant to the authority granted in § 58.1-605 or 58.1-606. B. Pursuant to subsection A, the taxes imposed by this chapter or pursuant to the authority granted in § 58.1-605 or 58.1-606 shall not apply to the following: 1. Certain school supplies with a selling price of $20 or less, including dictionaries, notebooks, pens, pencils, notebook paper, and calculators; 2. Clothing and footwear with a selling price of $100 or less designed to be worn on or about the human body; 3. Qualified products designated as Energy Star or WaterSense with a sales price of $2,500 or less per product purchased for noncommercial home or personal use. For the purposes of this exemption, an Energy Star-qualified product is any dishwasher, clothes washer, air conditioner, ceiling fan, compact fluorescent light bulb, dehumidifier, programmable thermostat, or refrigerator, the energy efficiency of which has been designated by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the U.S. Department of Energy as meeting or exceeding each such agency's requirements under the Energy Star program; 4. Portable generators with a selling price of $1,000 or less used to provide light or communications or preserve food in the event of a power outage; and 5. Certain other hurricane preparedness equipment, including blue ice, carbon monoxide detectors, cell phone batteries, cell phone chargers, gas or diesel fuel tanks, nonelectric food storage coolers, portable self-powered light sources, portable self-powered radios, two-way radios, weather band radios, storm shutter devices, tarpaulins or other flexible waterproof sheeting, ground anchor systems or tie-down kits, gas-powered chain saws and chain saw accessories, and packages of AAA-cell, AA-cell, C-cell, D-cell, 6-volt, or 9-volt batteries, excluding automobile and boat batteries. As used in this section, "storm shutter" means materials and products manufactured, rated, and marketed specifically for the purpose of preventing window damage from storms. The tax exemption shall apply to each gas-powered chain saw with a selling price of $350 or less and each article of other hurricane preparedness equipment with a selling price of $60 or less. C. Any discount, coupon, or other credit offered either by the retailer or by a vendor of the retailer to reduce the final price to the customer shall be taken into account in determining the selling price for purposes of this exemption. D. The Department shall develop guidelines that describe the items of merchandise that qualify for the exemption and make such guidelines available no later than July 15 of each year. 2024, cc. 628, 663. Chapter 6.1. Virginia Tire Recycling Fee.

Va. Code § 59.1-116.1

§ 59.1-116.1. Definitions.As used in this article, unless the context requires a different meaning: "Authorized scrap metal purchaser" has the same meaning as provided for the term "scrap metal purchaser" in § 59.1-136.1. "Authorized scrap seller" means any licensed plumber, electrical contractor, HVAC contractor, or building and construction contractor. "Building material" means any secondhand heating or plumbing fixture or supplies, electric fixtures, or any wiring, gas fixtures or appliances, water faucets, pipes, locks, or any other secondhand fixtures of any kind or description used in the construction of a building. "Junk dealer" means a person who regularly engages in the business of purchasing, acquiring, or canvassing secondhand building material, including all nonferrous scrap metal, proprietary articles, or both, for the purpose of resale and has conducted transactions involving, or has offered for sale, more than 600 pounds combined weight of secondhand building material or enters into more than 26 combined transactions annually. "Junk dealer" does not include a "scrap metal purchaser" as defined in § 59.1-136.1. "Person" means any individual, corporation, partnership, association, cooperative, limited liability company, trust, joint venture, or other private commercial entity. "Regularly engaged" with respect to purchasing or acquiring secondhand building material means having conducted transactions involving, or having offered for sale, more than 600 pounds combined weight of secondhand building material or enters into more than 26 combined transactions annually. 2011, c. 836; 2013, c. 414.

Va. Code § 59.1-117

§ 59.1-117. Permit required for trading in secondhand building fixtures.Except as otherwise provided in this chapter, no person shall offer for sale or acquire any secondhand heating or plumbing fixtures or supplies, electric fixtures or any wiring, gas fixtures or appliances, water faucets, pipes, locks, bathtubs, gutters, downspouts, or other secondhand fixtures of whatever kind or description pertaining to a building or structure, without first obtaining a permit for the sale or acquisition of the same from the chief of police of the city or town or the sheriff of the county in which such property is offered for sale or acquisition. Code 1950, § 59-145; 1968, c. 439; 2010, c. 805; 2011, c. 836; 2013, c. 414.

Va. Code § 59.1-125

§ 59.1-125. When unlawful to buy.It shall be unlawful for any person, firm or corporation to barter, purchase, exchange, or buy from any person whomsoever, except plumbers, the owner of buildings from which the material is taken, railroad, coal mining, industrial, manufacturing and public utility companies, or the authorized agents of such companies, lawful owners and junk dealers, licensed in this Commonwealth, any secondhand steel, copper, copper wire, aluminum, aluminum wire, brass, brass bearings or fittings, electric light or gas fixtures, locks or other builders hardware, plumbing fixtures, bell or bell fixtures, lead or brass water pipes or any part of such fixtures or pipes, or any wire, cable, lead, solder, copper, iron or brass used by or belonging to a railroad, telephone, telegraph, coal mining, industrial, manufacturing or public utility company; provided that this section shall not apply to any person, firm or corporation which shall barter, purchase, exchange, buy or accept any secondhand grooved or figure-eight copper trolley wire, bare or insulated heavy stranded copper or aluminum feeder wire, high voltage copper or aluminum transmission wire, or bare or insulated mining machine copper cables, but § 59.1-128 shall be applicable thereto. Code 1950, § 59-153; 1958, c. 614; 1968, c. 439; 2011, c. 836.

Va. Code § 59.1-128

§ 59.1-128. When unlawful to buy, exchange, etc., secondhand copper or aluminum wire.It shall be unlawful for any person, firm or corporation to barter, purchase, exchange, buy or accept from any person whomsoever, except the manufacturer thereof or his authorized agent, railroad, coal mining, industrial, manufacturing and public utility companies, or the authorized agents of such companies, governmental agencies, and licensed junk dealers, licensed scrap metal dealers, licensed electrical contractors and licensed merchants, any secondhand grooved or figure-eight copper trolley wire, bare or insulated heavy stranded copper or aluminum feeder wire, high voltage copper or aluminum transmission wire, or bare or insulated mining machine copper cables. Code 1950, § 59-155.1; 1958, c. 614; 1968, c. 439.

Va. Code § 59.1-129

§ 59.1-129. Requirements when articles mentioned in § 59.1-128 are bought, exchanged, etc.A. Any person, firm or corporation which shall barter, purchase, exchange, buy or accept any of the articles mentioned in § 59.1-128, shall comply with the provisions of § 59.1-126 and shall, in addition, tag each lot of said articles with the name of the seller and the date of receipt and shall retain each such lot in his possession so tagged for 30 days in such manner that its separate identity shall be preserved; provided that the requirements of this section for tagging said articles and retaining them in possession shall not be applicable if the receipt or bill of sale required by § 59.1-126 shall contain an authorization naming the agent who delivers the articles and signed by an officer, or by the proprietor, of the manufacturer, or coal mining, industrial, manufacturing, public utility company, governmental agency, licensed junk dealer, licensed scrap metal dealer, licensed electrical contractor or licensed merchant, giving such authorization. B. Notwithstanding anything in subsection A to the contrary, the provisions of this article shall not apply to scrap metal processors as provided in Article 4 (§ 59.1-136.1 et seq.). Code 1950, § 59-155.2; 1958, c. 614; 1968, c. 439; 2007, c. 917.

Va. Code § 59.1-136.1

§ 59.1-136.1. Definitions.For the purpose of this article: "Authorized scrap seller" means licensed plumbers, electricians, HVAC contractors, building and construction contractors, demolition contractors, construction and demolition debris contractors, public utilities, transportation companies, industrial and manufacturing companies, marine, automobile, and aircraft salvage and wrecking companies, and government entities. "Broker" means any person or his authorized agent who negotiates, purchases, sells, or offers for sale any scrap metal either directly or through an authorized agent without obtaining title to or ownership of the scrap metal. "Ferrous scrap" means any scrap metal consisting primarily of iron, steel, or both, but excluding any scrap metal consisting primarily of stainless steel. Ferrous scrap includes large manufactured articles such as automobile bodies that may contain other substances to be removed and sorted during normal operations of scrap metal processors. "Metal article" means any manufactured item, consisting of metal, that is usable for its originally intended purpose without processing, repairs, or alteration and that is not otherwise excluded by the definitions in this section. Examples include, without limitation, railings, copper or aluminum wire, copper pipe and tubing, plumbing fixtures, copper and aluminum gutters, copper and aluminum downspouts, and cast-iron radiators. "Nonferrous scrap" means any scrap metal consisting primarily of (i) stainless steel or (ii) any metal other than iron or steel. Nonferrous scrap does not include aluminum beverage cans; postconsumer household items such as pots, pans, barbecue grills, and lawn chairs; used flashing removed during building renovation or demolition; or small quantities of nonferrous metals contained in large manufactured articles, such as automobile bodies and appliances. "Proprietary article" means (i) any metal article stamped, engraved, stenciled, or otherwise marked so as to identify it as being or having been the property of a governmental entity or public utility or transportation, shipbuilding, ship repair, mining, or manufacturing company; (ii) any hard drawn copper electrical conductor, cable, or wire that is three-eighths of one inch or greater in diameter, stranded or solid; (iii) any aluminum conductor, cable, or wire three quarters of one inch or greater in diameter, stranded or solid; (iv) stainless steel beer kegs; (v) any catalytic converter from a motor vehicle exhaust system that has been detached from a motor vehicle; (vi) any telecommunications cable that is one-half of one inch or greater in diameter and that contains 50 or more individual strands of solid, insulated, color-coded copper wire, including such telecommunication cable that has been unsheathed or burned; (vii) any manhole cover; (viii) any bronze or copper cemetery plaque, urn, or marker; (ix) aluminum bleacher seats or guardrails; or (x) any mining cable that is one-half inch or greater in diameter and is composed of one or more stranded copper conductors and stamped, engraved, stenciled, or otherwise marked with "Mine Safety and Health Administration" or "MSHA." "Scrap metal" means any manufactured item or article consisting of or containing metal; any metal removed from or obtained by cutting, demolishing, or disassembling any building, structure, manufactured item, or article; and any other metal that is no longer used for its original purpose and that can be processed for reuse in mills, foundries, and other manufacturing facilities. "Scrap metal processor" means a business entity in good standing authorized to conduct business in the Commonwealth that regularly utilizes machinery and equipment at one or more established locations in the normal course of business for processing and manufacturing scrap metal into prepared grades for sale as raw material to mills, foundries, and other manufacturing facilities. "Scrap metal purchaser" means any person or business, other than an authorized scrap seller or a broker buying or selling processed scrap metal, who purchases scrap metal either directly or through an authorized agent in excess of $20,000 during any 12-month period. 2007, c. 917; 2009, c. 657; 2010, c. 805; 2012, c. 449; 2013, c. 414.

Va. Code § 59.1-137

§ 59.1-137. Definition.Whenever used in this chapter: "Explosives" means any chemical compound, mechanical mixture or device the primary or common purpose of which is to function by explosion. The term includes, but is not limited to dynamite and other high explosives, black blasting powder, pellet powder, initiating explosives, blasting caps, electric blasting caps, detonators, safety fuse, fuse igniters, fuse lighters, squibs, cordeau detonant fuse, instantaneous fuse, detonating cord, igniter cord, igniters and those materials included in the list published annually in the Federal Register by the Department of the Treasury pursuant to the Organized Crime Control Act of 1970 (18 U.S.C. § 841 et seq.). Code 1950, § 59-222; 1960, c. 578; 1968, c. 439; 1976, c. 250.

Va. Code § 59.1-280.1

§ 59.1-280.1. Enterprise zone real property investment tax credit.A. As used in this section: "Large qualified zone resident" means a qualified zone resident making qualified zone investments in excess of $100 million when such qualified zone investments result in the creation of at least 200 permanent full-time positions. "Permanent full-time position" means a job of an indefinite duration at a business firm located within an enterprise zone requiring the employee to report for work within the enterprise zone, and requiring either (i) a minimum of 35 hours of an employee's time a week for the entire normal year of the business firm's operations, which "normal year" must consist of at least 48 weeks, (ii) a minimum of 35 hours of an employee's time a week for the portion of the taxable year in which the employee was initially hired for, or transferred to, the business firm, or (iii) a minimum of 1,680 hours per year if the standard fringe benefits are paid by the business firm for the employee. Seasonal or temporary positions, or a position created when a job function is shifted from an existing location in the Commonwealth to a business firm located within an enterprise zone shall not qualify as permanent full-time positions. "Qualified zone improvements" means the amount expended for improvements to rehabilitate or expand depreciable real property placed in service during the taxable year within an enterprise zone, provided that the total amount of such improvements equals or exceeds (i) $50,000 and (ii) the assessed value of the original facility immediately prior to the rehabilitation or expansion. "Qualified zone expenditures" includes any such expenditure regardless of whether it is considered properly chargeable to a capital account or deductible as a business expense under federal Treasury Regulations. Qualified zone improvements include expenditures associated with any exterior, structural, mechanical, or electrical improvements necessary to expand or rehabilitate a building for commercial or industrial use and excavations, grading, paving, driveways, roads, sidewalks, landscaping, or other land improvements. Qualified zone improvements shall include, but not be limited to, costs associated with demolition, carpentry, sheetrock, plaster, painting, ceilings, fixtures, doors, windows, fire suppression systems, roofing and flashing, exterior repair, cleaning, and cleanup. Qualified zone improvements shall not include: 1. The cost of acquiring any real property or building; however, the cost of any newly constructed depreciable nonresidential real property (excluding land, land improvements, paving, grading, driveways, and interest) shall be considered to be a qualified zone improvement eligible for the credit if the total amount of such expenditure is at least $250,000 with respect to a single facility. 2. (i) The cost of furnishings; (ii) any expenditure associated with appraisal, architectural, engineering and interior design fees; (iii) loan fees, points, or capitalized interest; (iv) legal, accounting, realtor, sales and marketing, or other professional fees; (v) closing costs, permits, user fees, zoning fees, impact fees, and inspection fees; (vi) bids, insurance, signage, utilities, bonding, copying, rent loss, or temporary facilities incurred during construction; (vii) utility hook-up or access fees; (viii) outbuildings; or (ix) the cost of any well or septic or sewer system. 3. The basis of any property: (i) for which a credit under this section was previously granted; (ii) which was previously placed in service in Virginia by the taxpayer, a related party as defined by Internal Revenue Code § 267 (b), or a trade or business under common control as defined by Internal Revenue Code § 52 (b); or (iii) which was previously in service in Virginia and has a basis in the hands of the person acquiring it, determined in whole or in part by reference to the basis of such property in the hands of the person from whom acquired or Internal Revenue Code § 1014 (a). "Qualified zone investments" means the sum of qualified zone improvements and the cost of machinery, tools and equipment used in manufacturing tangible personal property within an enterprise zone. For purposes of this section, machinery, tools and equipment shall only be deemed to include the cost of such property which is placed in service in the enterprise zone on or after July 1, 1995. Machinery, tools and equipment shall not include the basis of any property: (i) for which a credit under this section was previously granted; (ii) which was previously placed in service in Virginia by the taxpayer, a related party as defined by Internal Revenue Code § 267 (b), or a trade or business under common control as defined by Internal Revenue Code § 52 (b); or (iii) which was previously in service in Virginia and has a basis in the hands of the person acquiring it, determined in whole or part by reference to the basis of such property in the hands of the person from whom acquired, or Internal Revenue Code § 1014 (a). "Qualified zone resident" means an owner or tenant of real property located in an enterprise zone who expands or rehabilitates such real property to facilitate the conduct of a trade or business within the enterprise zone. "Real property investment tax credit" means a credit against the taxes imposed by Articles 2 (§ 58.1-320 et seq.) and 10 (§ 58.1-400 et seq.) of Chapter 3, Chapter 12 (§ 58.1-1200 et seq.), Article 1 (§ 58.1-2500 et seq.) of Chapter 25, or Article 2 (§ 58.1-2620 et seq.) of Chapter 26 of Title 58.1. "Small qualified zone resident" means any qualified zone resident other than a large qualified zone resident. B. For all taxable years beginning on and after July 1, 1995, but before July 1, 2005, a qualified zone resident shall be allowed a real property investment tax credit as set forth in this section. C. For any small qualified zone resident, a real property investment tax credit shall be allowed in an amount equaling 30 percent of the qualified zone improvements. Any tax credit granted pursuant to this subsection is refundable; however, in no event shall the cumulative credit allowed to a small qualified zone resident pursuant to this subsection exceed $125,000 in any five-year period. D. For any large qualified zone resident, a real property investment tax credit shall be allowed in an amount of up to five percent of such qualified zone investments. The percentage amount of the real property investment tax credit granted to a large qualified zone resident shall be determined by agreement between the Department and the large qualified zone resident, provided such percentage amount shall not exceed five percent. The real property investment tax credit provided by this subsection shall not exceed the tax imposed for such taxable year, but any credit not usable for the taxable year generated may be carried over until the full amount of such credit has been utilized. E. The Department shall certify the nature and amount of qualified zone improvements and qualified zone investments eligible for a real property investment tax credit in any taxable year. Only qualified zone improvements and qualified zone investments that have been properly certified shall be eligible for the credit. Any form filed with the Department of Taxation or State Corporation Commission for the purpose of claiming the credit shall be accompanied by a copy of the certification furnished to the taxpayer by the Department. Any certification by the Department pursuant to this section shall not impair the authority of the Department of Taxation or State Corporation Commission to deny in whole or in part any claimed tax credit if the Department of Taxation or State Corporation Commission determines that the taxpayer is not entitled to such tax credit. The Department of Taxation or State Corporation Commission shall notify the Department in writing upon determining that a taxpayer is ineligible for such tax credit. F. In the case of a partnership, limited liability company or S corporation, the term "qualified zone resident" as used in this section means the partnership, limited liability company or S corporation. Credits granted to a partnership, limited liability company or S corporation shall be passed through to the partners, members or shareholders, respectively. G. The Tax Commissioner shall have the authority to issue regulations relating to the computation and carryover of the credit provided under this section. H. In the first taxable year only, the credit provided in this section shall be prorated equally against the taxpayer's estimated payments made in the third and fourth quarters and the final payment, if such taxpayer is required to make quarterly payments. I. Tax credits awarded under this section and under § 59.1-280 shall not exceed $7.5 million annually until the end of fiscal year 2019. J. The provisions of this section shall apply only as follows: 1. To those large qualified zone residents that have initiated use of enterprise zone tax credits pursuant to this section on or before July 1, 2005; 2. To those large qualified zone residents that have signed agreements with the Commonwealth regarding the use of enterprise zone tax credits in accordance with this section on or before July 1, 2005. 1995, c. 792; 1997, cc. 517, 634, 669; 1998, c. 759; 2005, cc. 863, 884; 2017, c. 451.

Va. Code § 59.1-284.42

§ 59.1-284.42. Cloud Computing Cluster Infrastructure Grant Fund.A. As used in this chapter, unless the context requires a different meaning: "Affiliate" means an entity that directly or indirectly through one or more intermediaries controls, is controlled by, or is under common control with a qualified company. "Capital investment" means an investment by or on behalf of a qualified company on or after January 1, 2023, but prior to July 1, 2040, in real property, tangible personal property, or both, at a facility that is properly chargeable to a capital account or would be so chargeable with a proper election. "Construction cost" means any capital investment, except for the purchase of land, by a qualified company on or after January 1, 2023, in real or tangible personal property to develop or support a data center in a locality identified in a memorandum of understanding. "Construction cost" includes infrastructure costs. "Facility" means the one or more buildings, group of buildings, and ancillary facilities and equipment that are located in a locality or localities identified in a memorandum of understanding and that are owned, occupied, or otherwise operated by or for the qualified company for data center and cloud computing cluster operations. "Fund" means the Cloud Computing Cluster Infrastructure Grant Fund. "Grant" means a grant from the Fund awarded to a qualified company that is intended to pay or reimburse the qualified company for (i) infrastructure costs related to the construction and support of facilities and (ii) costs for workforce development, recruiting, and training. "Infrastructure costs" includes the costs related to fiber, water, wastewater, and stormwater facilities; gas pipelines; electrical transmission and distribution lines; and site clearing, grading, and other improvements to support the construction and development of a facility. "Locality" means a county or city in the Commonwealth in which a company makes an eligible investment in a facility and creates new full-time jobs, that is identified in a memorandum of understanding, and that has entered into a performance agreement. "Local match" means the funds committed by a locality identified in a memorandum of understanding to a qualified company related to the construction and operation of a facility. The local match shall be at least twice the amount provided from the Fund to the qualified company related to the construction of, and creation of new full-time jobs at, the facility in such locality, as set forth in a performance agreement. Expenditures by a locality that the Secretary has certified as infrastructure costs incurred by the locality at the request of the qualified company may be counted toward the local match obligation. "MEI Commission" means the MEI Project Approval Commission established pursuant to Chapter 47 (§ 30-309 et seq.) of Title 30. "Memorandum of understanding" means a memorandum of understanding entered into on or after January 1, 2023, between a qualified company, the Commonwealth, and VEDP that sets forth (i) the grant amount that the qualified company shall be eligible to receive for each new full-time job created and each $1 million of capital investment in construction costs made; (ii) the total aggregate amount of grants that the qualified company shall be eligible to receive; (iii) the performance date; (iv) the requirements and timing for capital investment and new full-time job creation by the qualified company; (v) the identification of the locality or localities in which such investment and job creation shall take place; and (vi) any other terms and conditions deemed necessary or appropriate to be eligible for grant payments from the Fund. "New full-time jobs" means job positions created on or after January 1, 2023, but prior to July 1, 2040, in which the employee of a qualified company works at a facility, for which the average annual wage is at least one and one-half times the prevailing wage of the locality where the job is located, and for which the qualified company provides standard fringe benefits. Such position shall require a minimum of either (i) 35 hours of an employee's time per week for the entire normal year of the employer's operations, which normal year shall consist of at least 48 weeks, or (ii) 1,680 hours per year. Seasonal or temporary positions shall not qualify as new full-time jobs. Positions created after January 1, 2023, by contractors that are dedicated full-time to providing operational services after the opening of a facility may constitute new full-time jobs of the qualified company but shall not exceed 20 percent of the number used to meet any performance criteria for the creation of new full-time jobs. A position created when a job function is shifted from an existing location in the Commonwealth to a new facility shall qualify as a new full-time job if the qualified company certifies that it has hired a new employee or contractor to fill substantially the same job at the existing location as that performed by the transferred position. Such jobs shall be in addition to any full-time jobs that a qualified company had in the Commonwealth as of January 1, 2023. "Performance agreement" means an agreement entered into on or after January 1, 2023, between a qualified company, a locality identified in a memorandum of understanding, and VEDP that commits the locality to provide local funds, either as annual cash grants or via the expenditure of local funds, for infrastructure costs related to the qualified company. The local commitment shall equal at least twice the amount of grants from the Fund committed by the Commonwealth for capital investment and the creation of new full-time jobs in such locality. Such performance agreement may also include commitments related to accelerated permitting, property tax classifications, and other such issues to which the parties agree. "Performance date" means the date set forth in a memorandum of understanding by which capital investment and new full-time job creation targets shall be met in order to qualify for grants from the Fund. "Qualification" means the process by which a company becomes a qualified company eligible to enter into a memorandum of understanding and receive grants from the Fund. Qualification shall require: 1. An endorsement by the MEI Commission that the company be approved by the General Assembly to receive grants from the Fund. Such endorsement shall include a recommendation by the MEI Commission as to the grant amount that the company shall receive for each new full-time job created and each $1 million of capital investment in construction costs made, as well as a recommendation as to the total, aggregate amount of grants from the Fund that the company shall be eligible to receive. The recommendation regarding the amount of the grants shall be based upon information provided by VEDP to the MEI Commission based upon a return-on-investment analysis; and 2. Approval by the General Assembly in a general appropriation act, including approval of the specific grant amount that the company shall receive for each new full-time job created and each $1 million of capital investment in construction costs made, as well as the total, aggregate amount of grants from the Fund that the company shall be eligible to receive and the date of endorsement by the MEI Commission. If the MEI Commission endorses a company to receive grants from the Fund, and legislation to implement the MEI Commission's recommendation is introduced in a subsequent session of the General Assembly, the specific grant amount recommended and any other recommended legislative changes shall become public at such time as the company publicly declares its intention to make or cause to be made a capital investment at facilities of at least $50 billion and to create at least 1,500 new full-time jobs that pay an average annual wage of at least one and one-half times the prevailing wage of the locality where the job is located, but in no case later than the first day of the session of the General Assembly in which approval is sought. "Qualified company" means a company, including its affiliates, that, after qualification, enters into a memorandum of understanding and is expected by the performance date to (i) make or cause to be made a capital investment at facilities in localities identified in the memorandum of understanding of at least $50 billion and (ii) create at least 1,500 new full-time jobs that pay an average annual wage of at least one and one-half times the prevailing wage of the locality where the job is located. "Secretary" means the Secretary of Commerce and Trade or his designee. "VEDP" means the Virginia Economic Development Partnership Authority. B. There is hereby created in the state treasury a special nonreverting fund to be known as the Cloud Computing Cluster Infrastructure Grant Fund. The Fund shall be established on the books of the Comptroller. All funds appropriated for the Fund shall be paid into the state treasury and credited to the Fund. Interest earned on moneys in the Fund shall remain in the Fund and be credited to it. Any moneys remaining in the Fund, including interest thereon, at the end of each fiscal year shall not revert to the general fund but shall remain in the Fund. Moneys in the Fund shall be used solely for the purpose of making grant payments pursuant to this chapter. Expenditures and disbursements from the Fund shall be made by the State Treasurer on warrants issued by the Comptroller pursuant to subsection F. C. A qualified company shall be eligible to receive grant payments for each fiscal year beginning with the Commonwealth's fiscal year starting on July 1, 2025, and ending no later than the Commonwealth's fiscal year starting on July 1, 2044, based upon its actual investments and the number of new full-time jobs created prior to the performance date in localities that have entered into a performance agreement. The grant payments under this section shall be paid to the qualified company from the Fund, subject to appropriation by the General Assembly, during each such fiscal year, contingent upon the qualified company meeting the requirements for receiving grant payments set forth in this section and in the memorandum of understanding. The amount of the grant payment in each fiscal year shall be calculated based upon the grant amount approved for the qualified company for each new full-time job created by the qualified company in the prior calendar year and each $1 million of capital investment in construction costs by the qualified company in the prior calendar year, as approved by the General Assembly and included in the memorandum of understanding. The total aggregate amount of all grants paid to a qualified company shall not exceed the amount approved by the General Assembly and included in the memorandum of understanding. D. Capital investments made by a qualified company and new full-time jobs created in a locality that (i) was not identified in the memorandum of understanding and (ii) did not enter into a performance agreement shall not qualify for grant payments pursuant to this chapter. E. A qualified company applying for a grant payment pursuant to this chapter shall provide evidence, satisfactory to the Secretary, of (i) the capital investment in construction costs as of the last day of the calendar year that immediately precedes the application date; (ii) the aggregate number of new full-time jobs created and maintained as of the last day of the calendar year that immediately precedes the date of the application; and (iii) an average annual wage of the new full-time jobs of at least one and one-half times the prevailing wage of the locality where the job is located. The application and evidence shall be filed with the Secretary in person, by mail, or as otherwise agreed upon in the memorandum of understanding, by no later than April 1 of each year following the end of the calendar year upon which the evidence set forth is based. Failure to meet the filing deadline shall result in a deferral of a scheduled grant payment. For filings by mail, the postmark cancellation shall govern the date of the filing determination. F. Within 60 days of receiving the application and evidence pursuant to subsection E, the Secretary shall certify to the Comptroller and the qualified company the verification of the information contained in the application and the resulting amount of the grant payments to which the grant-eligible company may be entitled for payment. Such grant payments shall be made annually by check or electronic payment issued by the State Treasurer on warrant of the Comptroller in each fiscal year following the submission of such application, as provided in the memorandum of understanding. The Comptroller shall not draw any warrants to issue checks or electronic payments for grant payments under this chapter without a specific appropriation for the same. G. As a condition for the receipt of a grant payment, a qualified company shall make available for inspection to the Secretary, upon request, documents relevant and applicable to determining whether the qualified company has met the requirements for the receipt of a grant payment as set forth in this chapter and subject to the memorandum of understanding. Copies of the performance agreement and a certification by each locality subject to a performance agreement and the qualified company that the provisions of such agreement have been fulfilled shall also be provided to the Secretary. 2023, cc. 671, 678. Chapter 22.22. Financial Services Expansion Grant Fund.

Va. Code § 59.1-296

§ 59.1-296. Definitions.As used in this chapter, unless the context requires a different meaning: "Automated external defibrillator" means a device that combines a heart monitor and defibrillator and (i) has been approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration; (ii) is capable of recognizing the presence or absence of ventricular fibrillation or rapid ventricular tachycardia; (iii) is capable of determining, without intervention by an operator, whether defibrillation should be performed; and (iv) automatically charges and requests delivery of an electrical impulse to an individual's heart upon determining that defibrillation should be performed. "Business day" means any day except a Sunday or a legal holiday. "Buyer" means a natural person who enters into a health club contract. "Commissioner" means the Commissioner of Agriculture and Consumer Services, or a member of his staff to whom he may delegate his duties under this chapter. "Comparable alternate facility" means a health club facility that is reasonably of like kind, in nature and quality, to the health club facility originally contracted, whether such facility is in the same location but owned or operated by a different health club or is at another location of the same health club. "Contract price" means the sum of the initiation fee, if any, and all monthly fees except interest required by the health club contract. "Facility" means a location where health club services are offered as designated in a health club contract. "Health club" means any person, firm, corporation, organization, club or association whose primary purpose is to engage in the sale of memberships in a program consisting primarily of physical exercise with exercise machines or devices, or whose primary purpose is to engage in the sale of the right or privilege to use exercise machines or devices. The term "health club" shall not include the following: (i) bona fide nonprofit organizations, including, but not limited to, the Young Men's Christian Association, Young Women's Christian Association, or similar organizations whose functions as health clubs are only incidental to their overall functions and purposes; (ii) any private club owned and operated by its members; (iii) any organization primarily operated for the purpose of teaching a particular form of self-defense such as judo or karate; (iv) any facility owned or operated by the United States; (v) any facility owned or operated by the Commonwealth of Virginia or any of its political subdivisions; (vi) any nonprofit public or private school or institution of higher education; (vii) any club providing tennis or swimming facilities located in a residential planned community or subdivision, developed in conjunction with the development of such community or subdivision, and deriving at least 80 percent of its membership from residents of such community or subdivision; and (viii) any facility owned and operated by a private employer exclusively for the benefit of its employees, retirees, and family members and which facility is only incidental to the overall functions and purposes of the employer's business and is operated on a nonprofit basis. "Health club contract" means an agreement whereby the buyer of health club services purchases, or becomes obligated to purchase, health club services. "Health club services" means and includes services, privileges, or rights offered for sale or provided by a health club. "Initiation fee" means a nonrecurring fee charged at or near the beginning of a health club membership, and includes all fees or charges not part of the monthly fee. "Monthly fee" means the total consideration, including but not limited to, equipment or locker rental, credit check, finance, medical and dietary evaluation, class and training fees, and all other similar fees or charges and interest, but excluding any initiation fee, to be paid by a buyer, divided by the total number of months of health club service use allowed by the buyer's contract, including months or time periods called "free" or "bonus" months or time periods and such months or time periods that are described in any other terms suggesting that they are provided free of charge, which months or time periods are given or contemplated when the contract is initially executed. "Out of business" means the status of a facility that is permanently closed and for which there is no comparable alternate facility. "Prepayment" means payment of any consideration for services or the use of facilities made prior to the day on which the services or facilities of the health club are fully open and available for regular use by the members. "Relocation" means the provision of health club services by the health club that entered into the membership contract at a location other than that designated in the member's contract. 1984, c. 738; 1985, c. 585; 1986, c. 187; 1990, cc. 392, 433; 1991, c. 149; 1992, c. 102; 2003, c. 344; 2007, c. 683; 2010, c. 439; 2014, c. 459; 2020, c. 628.

Va. Code § 59.1-326

§ 59.1-326. Membership camping operator's disclosure statement.A. Every membership camping operator, salesperson, or other person who is in the business of offering for sale or transfer the rights under existing membership camping contracts for a fee shall deliver to his purchaser a current membership camping operator's disclosure statement before execution by the purchaser of the membership camping contract and no later than the date shown on such contract. B. The membership camping operator's disclosure statement shall consist of the following items in the order as presented: 1. A cover page stating: a. The words "Membership Camping Operator's Disclosure Statement" printed in boldfaced type of a minimum size of 10 points; b. The name and principal business address of the membership camping operator; c. A statement that the membership camping operator is in the business of offering for sale membership camping contracts; d. The following statement printed in boldfaced type of a minimum size of 10 points: THIS DISCLOSURE STATEMENT CONTAINS IMPORTANT MATTERS TO BE CONSIDERED IN THE EXECUTION OF A MEMBERSHIP CAMPING CONTRACT. THE MEMBERSHIP CAMPING OPERATOR IS REQUIRED BY LAW TO DELIVER TO YOU A COPY OF THIS DISCLOSURE STATEMENT BEFORE YOU EXECUTE A MEMBERSHIP CAMPING CONTRACT. THE STATEMENTS CONTAINED HEREIN ARE ONLY SUMMARY IN NATURE. YOU AS A PROSPECTIVE PURCHASER SHOULD REVIEW ALL REFERENCES, EXHIBITS, CONTRACT DOCUMENTS, AND SALES MATERIALS. YOU SHOULD NOT RELY UPON ANY ORAL REPRESENTATIONS AS BEING CORRECT. REFER TO THIS DOCUMENT AND TO THE ACCOMPANYING EXHIBITS FOR CORRECT REPRESENTATIONS. THE MEMBERSHIP CAMPING OPERATOR IS PROHIBITED FROM MAKING ANY REPRESENTATIONS WHICH CONFLICT WITH THOSE CONTAINED IN THE CONTRACT AND THIS DISCLOSURE STATEMENT. e. The following statement printed in boldfaced type of a minimum size of 10 points: SHOULD YOU EXECUTE A MEMBERSHIP CAMPING CONTRACT, YOU HAVE THE UNQUALIFIED RIGHT TO CANCEL SUCH CONTRACT. THIS RIGHT OF CANCELLATION CANNOT BE WAIVED. THE RIGHT TO CANCEL EXPIRES AT MIDNIGHT ON THE 7TH CALENDAR DAY FOLLOWING THE DATE ON WHICH THE CONTRACT WAS EXECUTED. TO CANCEL THE MEMBERSHIP CAMPING CONTRACT, YOU AS THE PURCHASER MUST MAIL NOTICE OF YOUR INTENT TO CANCEL BY CERTIFIED UNITED STATES MAIL TO THE MEMBERSHIP CAMPING OPERATOR AT THE ADDRESS SHOWN IN THE MEMBERSHIP CAMPING CONTRACT, POSTAGE PREPAID. THE CAMPING OPERATOR IS REQUIRED BY LAW TO RETURN ALL MONEYS PAID BY YOU IN CONNECTION WITH THE EXECUTION OF THE MEMBERSHIP CAMPING CONTRACT, UPON YOUR PROPER AND TIMELY CANCELLATION OF THE CONTRACT. IN ADDITION, AFTER THE INITIAL 7-CALENDAR-DAY CANCELLATION PERIOD, YOU THE PURCHASER OR YOUR SUCCESSOR IN INTEREST MAY TERMINATE YOUR LIABILITY UNDER THE MEMBERSHIP CAMPING CONTRACT INCLUDING PAYMENT OF ANY MEMBERSHIP FEES, DUES, AND ASSESSMENTS UPON YOUR GIVING PROPER AND EFFECTIVE NOTICE TO THE MEMBERSHIP CAMPING OPERATOR. TO BE EFFECTIVE, THE NOTICE MUST BE IN WRITING AND SENT BY CERTIFIED MAIL, RETURN RECEIPT REQUESTED AND IT MUST CONTAIN: (1) YOUR TRANSFER OF ANY AND ALL RIGHTS, TITLE, AND INTEREST YOU HAVE IN THE MEMBERSHIP CAMPING CONTRACT AND CAMPGROUND BACK TO THE MEMBERSHIP CAMPING OPERATOR; (2) A RECORDABLE DEED, DULY EXECUTED AND NOTARIZED, AND THE RECORDING FEE, IF YOU RECEIVED A RECORDED DEED FROM THE MEMBERSHIP CAMPING OPERATOR; (3) PAYMENTS OF (i) THE UNPAID BALANCE OF THE PURCHASE PRICE AND ANY ACCRUED UNPAID INTEREST THEREON AND (ii) ALL UNPAID MEMBERSHIP FEES, DUES, AND ASSESSMENTS WITH ACCRUED INTEREST THEREON PERMITTED BY THE MEMBERSHIP CAMPING CONTRACT; AND (4) PAYMENT OF ALL OTHER UNPAID FINANCIAL OBLIGATIONS OWED BY YOU THE PURCHASER PURSUANT TO THE MEMBERSHIP CAMPING CONTRACT. f. The following statement: "Registration of the membership camping operator with the Commissioner of the Virginia Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services does not constitute an approval or endorsement by the Commissioner of the membership camping operator, his membership camping contract, or his campground." 2. The name of the membership camping operator and the address of his principal place of business and the following information: a. The name, principal occupation, and address of every director, partner, or trustee of the membership camping operator; b. The name and address of each person owning or controlling an interest of 10 percent or more in the membership camping operator; c. The particulars of any indictment, conviction, judgment, decree, or order of any court or administrative agency against the membership camping operator or its managing entity arising out of the violation or alleged violation of any federal, state, local, or foreign law or regulation in connection with activities relating to the sale of campground memberships, land sales, land investments, security sales, construction, or sale of homes or improvements or any similar or related activity; and d. A statement of any unsatisfied judgments against the membership camping operator or its managing entity, the status of any pending suits involving the sale of membership camping contracts or the management of campgrounds to which the membership camping operator or its managing entity is a party and the status of any pending suits, administrative proceedings, or indictments of significance to the campground; 3. A brief description of the nature of the purchaser's right or license to use the campground and the facilities that are to be available for use by purchasers; 4. A brief description of the membership camping operator's experience in the membership camping business, including the length of time the operator has been in the membership camping business; 5. The location of each of the campgrounds that is to be available for use by purchasers and a brief description of the facilities at each campground that are currently available for use by purchasers. Facilities that are planned, incomplete, or not yet available for use shall be clearly identified as incomplete or unavailable. A brief description of any facilities that are or will be available to nonpurchasers shall also be provided; 6. As to all memberships offered by the membership camping operator at each campground: a. The form of membership offered; b. The types and duration of memberships along with a summary of the major privileges, restrictions, and limitations applicable to each type; and c. Provisions, if any, that have been made for public utilities at each campsite including water, electricity, telephone, and sewerage facilities; 7. A statement regarding any initial or special fee due from the purchaser together with a description of the purpose and method of calculating the fee; 8. A description of any liens, defects, or encumbrances affecting the campground; 9. A general description of any financing offered or available through the membership camping operator; 10. A statement that the purchaser has until midnight of the seventh calendar day following the signing of the membership campground contract to cancel the contract by proper notice to the membership camping operator; 11. A description of the insurance coverage that the membership camping operator provides for the benefit of purchasers, if any; 12. A statement regarding any fees or charges that purchasers are or may be required to pay for the use of the campground or any facilities; 13. The extent to which financial arrangements, if any, have been provided for the completion of facilities together with a statement of the membership camping operator's obligation to complete planned facilities. The statement shall include a description of any restrictions or limitations on the membership camping operator's obligation to begin or to complete such facilities; 14. The name of the managing entity, if there is one, and the significant terms of any management contract, including but not limited to the circumstances under which the membership camping operator may terminate the management contract; 15. A statement regarding any services that the membership camping operator currently provides or expenses he pays that are expected to become the responsibility of the purchasers, including the projected liability that each such service or expense may impose on each purchaser; 16. A brief description of the ownership in or other right to use the campground that is to be transferred to each purchaser, together with the duration of any lease, license, franchise, or reciprocal agreement entitling the membership camping operator or purchasers from him to use the campground, and any provisions in any such agreements that restrict or limit a purchaser's use of the campground; 17. a. A copy, whether by way of supplement or otherwise, of the rules, restrictions, or covenants regulating the purchaser's use of the campground in Virginia and its facilities that are to be available for use by the purchasers, including a statement of whether and how the rules, restrictions, or covenants may be changed; b. A summary, whether by way of supplement or otherwise, of the rules, restrictions, or covenants regulating the purchaser's use of any other campgrounds, facilities, or any other amenities resulting from the purchase of, or used as an inducement to influence the purchase of, the membership camping contract; 18. A description of any restraints on the transfer of the membership camping contract; 19. A brief description of the policies covering the availability of camping sites, the availability of reservations and the conditions under which they are made; 20. A brief description of any grounds for forfeiture of a purchaser's membership camping contract; 21. A statement of whether the membership camping operator has the right to withdraw permanently from use all or any portion of any campground devoted to membership camping and, if so, the conditions under which such withdrawal is to be permitted; 22. A statement describing the material terms and conditions of any reciprocal program to be available to the purchaser, including a statement concerning whether the purchaser's participation in any reciprocal program is dependent upon the continued affiliation of the membership camping operator with that reciprocal program and whether the membership camping operator reserves the right to terminate such affiliation; 23. The following statement printed in boldfaced type of a minimum size of 10 points: "The purchase of this membership camping contract should not be based on any representations that it is an investment or that it can be resold. The resale of a membership may be difficult"; and 24. A statement that contains in boldfaced type the name, address, and telephone number of the Virginia Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services and that states that that agency is the regulatory agency that handles consumer complaints regarding membership campgrounds. C. The membership camping operator shall promptly amend his membership camping operator's disclosure statement to reflect any material change in the campground or its facilities. He shall also promptly file any such amendments with the Commissioner. 1985, c. 409; 1992, c. 545; 2013, c. 24.

Va. Code § 59.1-400

§ 59.1-400. Prohibited acts, administration of drugs, etc.; penalty.Any person who, with the intent to defraud, acts to alter the outcome of a race by (i) the administration of any substance foreign to the natural horse, except those substances specifically permitted by the regulations of the Virginia Racing Commission, or (ii) the use of any device, electrical or otherwise, except those specifically permitted by the regulations of the Virginia Racing Commission, shall be guilty of a Class 4 felony. Any person who, with the intent to defraud, influences or conspires with another to alter the outcome of a race by (i) the administration of any substance foreign to the natural horse, except those substances specifically permitted by the regulations of the Virginia Racing Commission, or (ii) the use of any device, electrical or otherwise, except those specifically permitted by the regulations of the Virginia Racing Commission, shall be guilty of a Class 4 felony. Any person who (i) administers any substance foreign to the natural horse, except those substances specifically permitted by the regulations of the Virginia Racing Commission, when the horse is entered to start, or (ii) at any time, exposes any substance foreign to the natural horse with the intent of impeding or increasing the speed, endurance, health, or condition of a horse, shall be guilty of a Class 4 felony. 1988, c. 855; 1990, c. 366.

Va. Code § 59.1-407

§ 59.1-407. Definitions.As used in this chapter: "Covered equipment" means any mechanical equipment or hoisting equipment, any part of which is capable of vertical, lateral or swinging motion that could cause the equipment to be operated within ten feet of an overhead high voltage line, including but not limited to cranes, derricks, power shovels, drilling rigs, excavating equipment, hay loaders, hay stackers, combines, grain augers and mechanical cotton pickers. "Notice" means actual notification in the manner prescribed in § 59.1-411. "Overhead high voltage line" means all above ground bare or insulated electrical conductors of voltage in excess of 600 volts measured between conductors or measured between a conductor and the ground, except those conductors that are de-energized and grounded or that are enclosed in rigid metallic conduit or flexible armored conduit. "Person" means natural person, firm, business association, company, partnership, corporation or other legal entity. "Person responsible for the work" means the person performing or controlling the work. "Warning sign" means a weather-resistant sign of not less than five inches by seven inches with a yellow background and black lettering reading as follows: "WARNING -- UNLAWFUL TO OPERATE THIS EQUIPMENT WITHIN 10 FEET OF OVERHEAD HIGH VOLTAGE LINES" or such other equally effective warning signs as may be approved for use by the Virginia Safety and Health Codes Board or the Commissioner of Labor and Industry. "Work" means the physical act of performing or preparing to perform any activity under, over, by, or near overhead high voltage lines, including, but not limited to, the operation, erection, handling, storage, or transportation of any tools, machinery, ladders, antennas, equipment, covered equipment, supplies, materials, or apparatus, or the moving of any house or other structure, whenever such activity is done by a person or entity in pursuit of his trade or business. "Working day" means every day except Saturdays, Sundays, and legal state and federal holidays. 1989, c. 341; 2003, c. 364.

Va. Code § 59.1-413

§ 59.1-413. Exemptions.This chapter shall not apply to the construction, reconstruction, operation, and maintenance of overhead electrical or communication circuits or conductors and their supporting structures and associated equipment of (i) rail transportation systems, (ii) electrical generating, transmission or distribution systems, (iii) communication systems, including cable television, or (iv) any other publicly or privately owned system provided that such work on any of the foregoing systems is performed by the employees of the owner or operator of the systems or independent contractors engaged on behalf of the owner or operator of the system to perform the work. This chapter also shall not apply to electrical or communications circuits or conductors on the premises of coal or other mines which are subject to the provisions of the Federal Mine Safety and Health Act of 1977 (30 U.S.C. § 801 et seq.) and regulations adopted pursuant to that Act by the Mine Safety and Health Administration. 1989, c. 341.

Va. Code § 59.1-444.2

§ 59.1-444.2. Security freezes.A. As used in this section, "security freeze" means a notice placed in a consumer's credit report, at the request of the consumer and subject to certain exceptions, that prohibits the consumer reporting agency from releasing the consumer's credit report or score relating to the extension of credit. B. A consumer may request that a security freeze be placed on his or her credit report by sending a request in writing by certified mail, or such other secure method authorized by a consumer reporting agency, to a consumer reporting agency at an address designated by the consumer reporting agency to receive such requests. This subsection does not prevent a consumer reporting agency from advising a third party that a security freeze is in effect with respect to the consumer's credit report. C. A consumer reporting agency shall place a security freeze on a consumer's credit report no later than three business days after receiving from the consumer: 1. A written request described in subsection B; and 2. Proper identification. A consumer reporting agency shall place a security freeze on a consumer's credit report no later than one business day after receiving such a request, if such request is made electronically at an address designated by the consumer reporting agency to receive such requests. D. The consumer reporting agency shall send a written confirmation of the placement of the security freeze to the consumer within 10 business days. Upon placing the security freeze on the consumer's credit report, the consumer reporting agency shall provide the consumer with a unique personal identification number or password, or similar device to be used by the consumer when providing authorization for the release of his credit report for a specific period of time or for a specific party. E. If the consumer wishes to allow his credit report to be accessed for a specific period of time or for a specific party while a freeze is in place, he shall contact the consumer reporting agency using a point of contact designated by the consumer reporting agency, request that the freeze be temporarily lifted, and provide the following: 1. Proper identification; 2. The unique personal identification number or password provided by the consumer reporting agency pursuant to subsection D; and 3. The proper information regarding the time period or the specific party for which the report shall be available to users of the credit report. F. A consumer reporting agency: 1. Shall comply with a request made under subsection E: a. Within three business days after receiving the request if the request is made at a postal address designated by the agency to receive such requests; or b. Within 15 minutes after the consumer's request is received by the consumer reporting agency through the electronic contact method chosen by the consumer reporting agency in accordance with this section; 2. Is not required to temporarily lift a security freeze within the time provided in subdivision 1 b if: a. The consumer fails to meet the requirements of subsection E; or b. The consumer reporting agency's ability to temporarily lift the security freeze within 15 minutes is prevented by: (1) An act of God, including fire, earthquakes, hurricanes, storms, or similar natural disaster or phenomena; (2) Unauthorized or illegal acts by a third party, including terrorism, sabotage, riot, vandalism, labor strikes or disputes disrupting operations, or similar occurrence; (3) Operational interruption, including electrical failure, unanticipated delay in equipment or replacement part delivery, computer hardware or software failures inhibiting response time, or similar disruption; (4) Governmental action, including emergency orders or regulations, judicial or law-enforcement action, or similar directives; (5) Regularly scheduled maintenance, during other than normal business hours, of, or updates to, the consumer reporting agency's systems; or (6) Commercially reasonable maintenance of, or repair to, the consumer reporting agency's systems that is unexpected or unscheduled; and 3. May develop procedures involving the use of telephone, fax, the Internet, or other electronic media to receive and process a request from a consumer to temporarily lift a freeze on a credit report pursuant to subsection E in an expedited manner. G. A consumer reporting agency shall remove or temporarily lift a freeze placed on a consumer's credit report only in the following cases: 1. Upon a consumer request, pursuant to subsection E or subsection J; or 2. If the consumer's credit report was frozen due to a material misrepresentation of fact by the consumer. If a consumer reporting agency intends to remove a freeze upon a consumer's credit report pursuant to this subdivision, the consumer reporting agency shall notify the consumer in writing prior to removing the freeze on the consumer's credit report. H. If a third party requests access to a consumer credit report on which a security freeze is in effect, and this request is in connection with an application for credit or any other use, and the consumer does not allow his or her credit report to be accessed for that period of time, the third party may treat the application as incomplete. I. If a consumer requests a security freeze, the consumer reporting agency shall disclose the process of placing and temporarily lifting a freeze and the process for allowing access to information from the consumer's credit report for a period of time while the freeze is in place. J. A security freeze shall remain in place until the consumer requests, using a point of contact designated by the consumer reporting agency, that the security freeze be removed. A consumer reporting agency shall remove a security freeze within three business days of receiving a request for removal from the consumer, who provides: 1. Proper identification; and 2. The unique personal identification number or password or similar device provided by the consumer reporting agency pursuant to subsection D. K. A consumer reporting agency shall require proper identification of the person making a request to place or remove a security freeze. L. The provisions of this section do not apply to the use of a consumer credit report by any of the following: 1. A person or entity, or a subsidiary, affiliate, or agent of that person or entity, or an assignee of a financial obligation owing by the consumer to that person or entity, or a prospective assignee of a financial obligation owing by the consumer to that person or entity in conjunction with the proposed purchase of the financial obligation, with which the consumer has or had prior to assignment an account or contract, including a demand deposit account, or to whom the consumer issued a negotiable instrument, for the purposes of reviewing the account or collecting the financial obligation owing for the account, contract, or negotiable instrument. For purposes of this paragraph, "reviewing the account" includes activities related to account maintenance, monitoring, credit line increases, and account upgrades and enhancements; 2. A subsidiary, affiliate, agent, assignee, or prospective assignee of a person to whom access has been granted for purposes of facilitating the extension of credit or other permissible use; 3. Any state or local agency, law-enforcement agency, trial court, or private collection agency acting pursuant to a court order, warrant, or subpoena; 4. A child support agency acting pursuant to Title IV-D of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. § 654 et seq.); 5. The Commonwealth or its agents or assigns acting to investigate fraud or acting to investigate or collect delinquent taxes or unpaid court orders or to fulfill any of its other statutory responsibilities provided such responsibilities are consistent with a permissible purpose under 15 U.S.C. § 1681b; 6. The use of credit information for the purposes of prescreening or postscreening as provided for by the federal Fair Credit Reporting Act; 7. Any person or entity administering a credit file monitoring subscription or similar service to which the consumer has subscribed; 8. Any person or entity for the purpose of providing a consumer with a copy of his credit report or score upon the consumer's request; 9. Any person or entity for use in setting or adjusting a rate, adjusting a claim, or underwriting for insurance purposes; or 10. Any employer in connection with any application for employment with the employer. M. A consumer reporting agency shall not charge a fee for any service performed under this section. N. If a security freeze is in place, a consumer reporting agency shall not change any of the following official information in a consumer credit report without sending a written confirmation of the change to the consumer within 30 days of the change being posted to the consumer's file: name, date of birth, social security number, and address. Written confirmation is not required for technical modifications of a consumer's official information, including name and street abbreviations, complete spellings, or transposition of numbers or letters. In the case of an address change, the written confirmation shall be sent to both the new address and to the former address. O. The following entities are not required to place a security freeze on a credit report: 1. A consumer reporting agency that acts only as a reseller of credit information by assembling and merging information contained in the database of another consumer reporting agency or multiple consumer credit reporting agencies, and does not maintain a permanent database of credit information from which new consumer credit reports are produced. However, a consumer reporting agency acting as a reseller shall honor any security freeze placed on a consumer credit report by another consumer reporting agency; 2. A check services or fraud prevention services company, which issues reports on incidents of fraud or authorizations for the purpose of approving or processing negotiable instruments, electronic funds transfers, or similar methods of payments; 3. A deposit account information service company, which issues reports regarding account closures due to fraud, substantial overdrafts, ATM abuse, or similar negative information regarding a consumer, to inquiring banks or other financial institutions for use only in reviewing a consumer request for a deposit account at the inquiring bank or financial institution; and 4. A consumer reporting agency's database or file that consists of information concerning, and used for, one or more of the following: criminal record information, fraud prevention or detection, personal loss history information, and employment, tenant, or background screening. P. At any time a consumer is required to receive a summary of rights required under 15 U.S.C. § 1681g(d), the following notice shall be included: "Virginia Consumers Have the Right to Obtain a Security Freeze. You have a right to place a "security freeze" on your credit report, which will prohibit a consumer reporting agency from releasing information in your credit report without your express authorization. A security freeze must be requested in writing by certified mail. The security freeze is designed to prevent credit, loans, and services from being approved in your name without your consent. However, you should be aware that using a security freeze to take control over who gets access to the personal and financial information in your credit report may delay, interfere with, or prohibit the timely approval of any subsequent request or application you make regarding a new loan, credit, mortgage, government services or payments, rental housing, employment, investment, license, cellular phone, utilities, digital signature, Internet credit card transaction, or other services, including an extension of credit at point of sale. When you place a security freeze on your credit report, you will be provided a personal identification number or password to use if you choose to remove the freeze on your credit report or authorize the release of your credit report for a period of time or for a specific party after the freeze is in place. To provide that authorization you must contact the consumer reporting agency and provide all of the following: 1. The personal identification number or password; 2. Proper identification to verify your identity; and 3. The proper information regarding the period of time or the specific party for which the report shall be available. A consumer reporting agency must authorize the release of your credit report no later than three business days after receiving the above information. A consumer credit reporting agency must authorize the release of your credit report no later than 15 minutes after receiving the request. A security freeze does not apply to a person or entity, or its affiliates, or collection agencies acting on behalf of the person or entity, with which you have an existing account, that requests information in your credit report for the purposes of reviewing or collecting the account. Reviewing the account includes activities related to account maintenance, monitoring, credit line increases, and account upgrades and enhancements. You have a right to bring civil action against anyone, including a consumer reporting agency, who improperly obtains access to a file, knowingly or willfully misuses file data, or fails to correct inaccurate file data. A consumer reporting agency does not have the right to charge you a fee to place a freeze on your credit report." Q. Any person who willfully fails to comply with any requirement imposed under this section or § 59.1-444.3 with respect to any consumer is liable to that consumer in an amount equal to the sum of: 1. Any actual damages sustained by the consumer as a result of the failure or damages of not less than $100 and not more than $1,000; 2. Such amount of punitive damages as the court may allow; and 3. In the case of any successful action to enforce any liability under this section, the costs of the action together with reasonable attorney fees as determined by the court. R. Any person who obtains a consumer report, requests a security freeze, requests the temporary lift of a freeze, or requests the removal of a security freeze from a consumer reporting agency under false pretenses or in an attempt to violate federal or state law shall be liable to the consumer reporting agency for actual damages sustained by the consumer reporting agency or $1,000, whichever is greater. S. Any person who is negligent in failing to comply with any requirement imposed under this section with respect to any consumer is liable to that consumer in an amount equal to the sum of: 1. Any actual damages sustained by the consumer as a result of the failure; and 2. In the case of any successful action to enforce any liability under this section, the costs of the action together with reasonable attorney fees as determined by the court. T. Upon a finding by the court that an unsuccessful pleading, motion, or other paper filed in connection with an action under this section was filed in bad faith or for purposes of harassment, the court shall award to the prevailing party attorney fees reasonable in relation to the work expended in responding to the pleading, motion, or other paper. U. Notwithstanding any other provision of law: 1. The exclusive authority to bring an action for any violation of subdivision F 1 b shall be with the Attorney General. In any action brought under this subsection, the Attorney General may cause an action to be brought in the name of the Commonwealth to enjoin the violation and to recover damages for aggrieved consumers consistent with the limits stated in subsections Q and S for such violations. 2. In any action brought under this subsection, if the court finds a willful violation, the court may, in its discretion, also award a civil penalty of not more than $1,000 per violation, to be deposited in the Literary Fund of the Commonwealth. 3. In any action brought under this subsection, the Attorney General may recover any costs, the reasonable expenses incurred in investigating and preparing the case, and attorney fees. 2008, cc. 480, 496; 2009, c. 406; 2014, c. 570; 2018, cc. 264, 303; 2020, c. 243.

Va. Code § 59.1-444.3

§ 59.1-444.3. Security freezes for protected consumers.A. As used in this section, unless the context requires a different meaning: "Protected consumer" means a consumer who is either: 1. Under the age of 16 years at the time a request for the placement of a security freeze is made; or 2. An incapacitated person for whom a guardian or conservator has been appointed in accordance with Chapter 20 (§ 64.2-2000 et seq.) of Title 64.2. "Record" means a compilation of information regarding a specific identified protected consumer, which compilation is created by a consumer reporting agency solely for the purpose of complying with the requirement for a record's establishment set forth in subsection D. "Representative" means a person who provides to a consumer reporting agency sufficient proof of authority to act on behalf of a protected consumer. "Security freeze" means: 1. If a consumer reporting agency does not have a file pertaining to a protected consumer, a restriction that (i) is placed on the protected consumer's record in accordance with this section and (ii) prohibits the consumer reporting agency from releasing the protected consumer's record except as provided in this section; or 2. If a consumer reporting agency has a file pertaining to the protected consumer, a restriction that (i) is placed on the protected consumer's credit report in accordance with this section and (ii) prohibits the consumer reporting agency from releasing the protected consumer's credit report or any information derived from the protected consumer's credit report except as provided in this section. "Sufficient proof of authority" means documentation that shows a representative has authority to act on behalf of a protected consumer. "Sufficient proof of authority" includes (i) an order issued by a court of law, (ii) a lawfully executed and valid power of attorney, (iii) a birth certification; or (iv) a written, notarized statement signed by a representative that expressly describes the authority of the representative to act on behalf of the protected consumer. "Sufficient proof of identification" means information or documentation that identifies a protected consumer or a representative of a protected consumer. "Sufficient proof of identification" includes (i) a social security number or a copy of a social security card issued by the U.S. Social Security Administration; (ii) a certified or official copy of a birth certificate issued by the entity authorized to issue the birth certificate; (iii) a copy of a driver's license, an identification card issued by the Department of Motor Vehicles, or any other government-issued identification; or (iv) a copy of a bill, including a bill for telephone, sewer, septic tank, water, electric, oil, or natural gas services, that shows a name and home address. B. This section does not apply to the use of a protected consumer's credit report or record by: 1. A person administering a credit file monitoring subscription service to which the protected consumer has subscribed or the representative of the protected consumer has subscribed on behalf of the protected consumer; 2. A person providing the protected consumer or the protected consumer's representative with a copy of the protected consumer's credit report on request of the protected consumer or the protected consumer's representative; or 3. An entity listed in subsection O of § 59.1-444.2. C. A consumer reporting agency shall place a security freeze for a protected consumer if: 1. The consumer reporting agency receives a request from the protected consumer's representative for the placement of the security freeze under this section; and 2. The protected consumer's representative: a. Submits the request to the consumer reporting agency at the address or other point of contact and in the manner specified by the consumer reporting agency; b. Provides to the consumer reporting agency sufficient proof of identification of the protected consumer and the representative; and c. Provides to the consumer reporting agency sufficient proof of authority to act on behalf of the protected consumer. D. If a consumer reporting agency does not have a file pertaining to a protected consumer when the consumer reporting agency receives a request under subsection C from the protected consumer's representative for the placement of a security freeze, the consumer reporting agency shall create a record for the protected consumer. A record may not be created or used to consider the protected consumer's creditworthiness, credit standing, credit capacity, character, general reputation, personal characteristics, or mode of living for the purpose of serving as a factor in establishing the consumer's eligibility for (i) credit or insurance to be used primarily for personal, family, or household purposes or (ii) employment. E. Within 30 days after receiving a request that meets the requirements of subsection C, a consumer reporting agency shall place a security freeze for the protected consumer. F. Unless a security freeze for a protected consumer is removed in accordance with subsection H or K, a consumer reporting agency may not release the protected consumer's credit report, any information derived from the protected consumer's credit report, or any record created for the protected consumer. G. A security freeze for a protected consumer placed under subsection E shall remain in effect until: 1. The protected consumer or the protected consumer's representative requests the consumer reporting agency to remove the security freeze in accordance with subsection H; or 2. The security freeze is removed in accordance with subsection K. H. If a protected consumer or a protected consumer's representative wishes to remove a security freeze for the protected consumer, the protected consumer or the protected consumer's representative shall: 1. Submit a request for the removal of the security freeze to the consumer reporting agency at the address or other point of contact and in the manner specified by the consumer reporting agency; and 2. Provide to the consumer reporting agency: a. In the case of a request by the protected consumer: (1) Proof that the sufficient proof of authority for the protected consumer's representative to act on behalf of the protected consumer is no longer valid; and (2) Sufficient proof of identification of the protected consumer; or b. In the case of a request by the representative of a protected consumer: (1) Sufficient proof of identification of the protected consumer and the representative; and (2) Sufficient proof of authority to act on behalf of the protected consumer. I. Within 30 days after receiving a request that meets the requirements of subsection H, the consumer reporting agency shall remove the security freeze for the protected consumer. J. A consumer reporting agency shall not charge a fee for any service performed under this section. K. A consumer reporting agency may remove a security freeze for a protected consumer or delete a record of a protected consumer if the security freeze was placed or the record was created based on a material misrepresentation of fact by the protected consumer or the protected consumer's representative. L. Any person who obtains a consumer report, requests a security freeze, requests the temporary lift of a freeze, or requests the removal of a security freeze from a consumer reporting agency under false pretenses or in an attempt to violate federal or state law shall be liable to the consumer reporting agency for damages sustained by the consumer reporting agency as provided in subsection R of § 59.1-444.2. M. Notwithstanding any other provision of law: 1. The exclusive authority to bring an action for any violation of subsection E shall be with the Attorney General. In any action brought under this subsection, the Attorney General may cause an action to be brought in the name of the Commonwealth to enjoin the violation and to recover damages for aggrieved protected consumers. 2. In any action brought under this subsection, if the court finds a willful violation, the court may, in its discretion, also award a civil penalty of not more than $1,000 per violation, to be deposited in the Literary Fund. 3. In any action brought under this subsection, the Attorney General may recover any costs, the reasonable expenses incurred in investigating and preparing the case, and attorney fees. 2014, c. 570; 2018, cc. 264, 303, 480; 2020, c. 243.

Va. Code § 59.1-480

§ 59.1-480. Definitions.As used in this chapter: (1) "Agreement" means the bargain of the parties in fact, as found in their language or inferred from other circumstances and from rules, regulations, and procedures given the effect of agreements under laws otherwise applicable to a particular transaction. (2) "Automated transaction" means a transaction conducted or performed, in whole or in part, by electronic means or electronic records, in which the acts or records of one or both parties are not reviewed by an individual in the ordinary course in forming a contract, performing under an existing contract, or fulfilling an obligation required by the transaction. (3) "Computer program" means a set of statements or instructions to be used directly or indirectly in an information processing system in order to bring about a certain result. (4) "Contract" means the total legal obligation resulting from the parties' agreement as affected by this chapter and other applicable law. (5) "Electronic" means relating to technology having electrical, digital, magnetic, wireless, optical, electromagnetic, or similar capabilities. (6) "Electronic agent" means a computer program or an electronic or other automated means used independently to initiate an action or respond to electronic records or performances in whole or in part, without review or action by an individual. (7) "Electronic record" means a record created, generated, sent, communicated, received, or stored by electronic means. (8) "Electronic signature" means an electronic sound, symbol, or process attached to or logically associated with a record and executed or adopted by a person with the intent to sign the record. (9) "Information" means data, text, images, sounds, codes, computer programs, software, databases, or the like. (10) "Information processing system" means an electronic system for creating, generating, sending, receiving, storing, displaying, or processing information. (11) "Person" means an individual, corporation, business trust, estate, trust, partnership, limited liability company, association, joint venture, public body, public corporation, or any other legal or commercial entity. (12) "Public body" shall have the same meaning as defined in § 2.2-3701 and shall also include locally elected constitutional officers, and anyone performing the duties of locally elected constitutional officers. (13) "Record" means information that is inscribed on a tangible medium or that is stored in an electronic or other medium and is retrievable in perceivable form. (14) "Security procedure" means a procedure employed for the purpose of verifying that an electronic signature, record, or performance is that of a specific person or for detecting changes or errors in the information in an electronic record. The term includes a procedure that requires the use of algorithms or other codes, identifying words or numbers, encryption, or callback or other acknowledgment procedures. (15) "State" means a state of the United States, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, the United States Virgin Islands, or any territory or insular possession subject to the jurisdiction of the United States. The term includes an Indian tribe or band, or an Alaskan native village, which is recognized by federal law or formally acknowledged by a state. (16) "Transaction" means an action or set of actions occurring between two or more persons relating to the conduct of business, commercial, or governmental affairs. 2000, c. 995; 2005, c. 417.

Va. Code § 59.1-501.2

§ 59.1-501.2. Definitions.(a) As used in this chapter: (1) "Access contract" means a contract to obtain by electronic means access to, or information from, an information processing system of another person, or the equivalent of such access. (2) "Access material" means any information or material, such as a document, address, or access code, that is necessary to obtain authorized access to information or control or possession of a copy. (3) "Aggrieved party" means a party entitled to a remedy for breach of contract. (4) "Agreement" means the bargain of the parties in fact as found in their language or by implication from other circumstances, including course of performance, course of dealing, and usage of trade as provided in this chapter. (5) "Attribution procedure" means a procedure to verify that an electronic authentication, display, message, record, or performance is that of a particular person or to detect changes or errors in information. The term includes a procedure that requires the use of algorithms or other codes, identifying words or numbers, encryption, or callback or other acknowledgment. (6) "Authenticate" means (i) to sign or (ii) with the intent to sign a record, to execute or adopt an electronic symbol, sound, message, or process referring to, attached to, included in, or logically associated or linked with, that record. (7) "Automated transaction" means a transaction in which a contract is formed in whole or part by electronic actions of one or both parties that are not previously reviewed by an individual in the ordinary course. (8) "Cancellation" means the ending of a contract by a party because of breach of contract by another party. (9) "Computer" means an electronic device that accepts information in digital or similar form and manipulates it for a result based on a sequence of instructions. (10) "Computer information" means information in electronic form that is obtained from or through the use of a computer or that is in a form capable of being processed by a computer. The term includes a copy of the information and any documentation or packaging associated with the copy. (11) "Computer information transaction" means an agreement or the performance of it to create, modify, transfer, or license computer information or informational rights in computer information. The term includes a support contract under § 59.1-506.12. The term does not include a transaction merely because the parties' agreement provides that their communications about the transaction will be in the form of computer information. (12) "Computer program" means a set of statements or instructions to be used directly or indirectly in a computer to bring about a certain result. The term does not include separately identifiable informational content. (13) "Consequential damages" resulting from breach of contract includes (i) any loss resulting from general or particular requirements and needs of which the breaching party at the time of contracting had reason to know and which could not reasonably be prevented, and (ii) any injury to an individual or damage to property other than the subject matter of the transaction proximately resulting from breach of warranty. The term does not include direct damages or incidental damages. (14) "Conspicuous," with reference to a term, means so written, displayed, or presented that a reasonable person against which it is to operate ought to have noticed it. A term in an electronic record intended to evoke a response by an electronic agent is conspicuous if it is presented in a form that would enable a reasonably configured electronic agent to take it into account or react to it without review of the record by an individual. With respect to a person, conspicuous terms include (i) a heading in capitals in a size equal to or greater than, or in contrasting type, font, or color to, the surrounding text, (ii) language in the body of a record or display in larger or other contrasting type, font, or color or set off from the surrounding text by symbols or other marks that draw attention to the language, and (iii) a term prominently referenced in an electronic record or display which is readily accessible or reviewable from the record or display. With respect to a person or an electronic agent, conspicuous terms include a term, or reference to a term, that is so placed in a record or display that the person or electronic agent cannot proceed without taking action with respect to the particular term or reference. (15) "Consumer" means an individual who is a licensee of information or informational rights that the individual at the time of contracting intended to be used primarily for personal, family, or household purposes. The term does not include an individual who is a licensee primarily for professional or commercial purposes, including agriculture, business management, and investment management other than management of the individual's personal or family investments. (16) "Consumer contract" means a contract between a merchant licensor and a consumer. (17) "Contract" means the total legal obligation resulting from the parties' agreement as affected by this chapter and other applicable law. (18) "Contract fee" means the price, fee, rent, or royalty payable in a contract under this chapter or any part of the amount payable. (19) "Contractual use term" means an enforceable term that defines or limits the use, disclosure of, or access to licensed information or informational rights, including a term that defines the scope of a license. (20) "Copy" means the medium on which information is fixed on a temporary or permanent basis and from which it can be perceived, reproduced, used, or communicated, either directly or with the aid of a machine or device. (21) "Course of dealing" means a sequence of previous conduct between the parties to a particular transaction which establishes a common basis of understanding for interpreting their expressions and other conduct. (22) "Course of performance" means repeated performances, under a contract that involves repeated occasions for performance, which are accepted or acquiesced in without objection by a party having knowledge of the nature of the performance and an opportunity to object to it. (23) "Court" includes an arbitration or other dispute-resolution forum if the parties have agreed to use of that forum or its use is required by law. (24) "Delivery," with respect to a copy, means the voluntary physical or electronic transfer of possession or control. (25) "Direct damages" means compensation for losses measured by § 59.1-508.8 (b) (1) or § 59.1-508.9 (a) (1). The term does not include consequential damages or incidental damages. (26) "Electronic" means relating to technology having electrical, digital, magnetic, wireless, optical, electromagnetic, or similar capabilities. (27) "Electronic agent" means a computer program, or electronic or other automated means, used independently to initiate an action, or to respond to electronic messages or performances, on the person's behalf without review or action by an individual at the time of the action or response to the message or performance. (28) "Electronic message" means a record or display that is stored, generated, or transmitted by electronic means for the purpose of communication to another person or electronic agent. (29) "Financial accommodation contract" means an agreement under which a person extends a financial accommodation to a licensee and which does not create a security interest governed by Title 8.9A. The agreement may be in any form, including a license or lease. (30) "Financial services transaction" means an agreement that provides for, or a transaction that is, or entails access to, use, transfer, clearance, settlement, or processing of: (A) a deposit, loan, funds, or monetary value represented in electronic form and stored or capable of storage by electronic means and retrievable and transferable by electronic means, or other right to payment to or from a person; (B) an instrument or other item; (C) a payment order, credit card transaction, debit card transaction, funds transfer, automated clearing house transfer, or similar wholesale or retail transfer of funds; (D) a letter of credit, document of title, financial asset, investment property, or similar asset held in a fiduciary or agency capacity; or (E) related identifying, verifying, access-enabling, authorizing, or monitoring information. (31) "Financier" means a person that provides a financial accommodation to a licensee under a financial accommodation contract and either (i) becomes a licensee for the purpose of transferring or sublicensing the license to the party to which the financial accommodation is provided or (ii) obtains a contractual right under the financial accommodation contract to preclude the licensee's use of the information or informational rights under a license in the event of breach of the financial accommodation contract. The term does not include a person that selects, creates, or supplies the information that is the subject of the license, owns the informational rights in the information, or provides support for, modifications to, or maintenance of the information. (32) "Good faith" means honesty in fact and the observance of reasonable commercial standards of fair dealing. (33) "Goods" means all things that are movable at the time relevant to the computer information transaction. The term includes the unborn young of animals, growing crops, and other identified things to be severed from realty which are covered by § 8.2-107. The term does not include computer information, money, the subject matter of foreign exchange transactions, documents, letters of credit, letter-of-credit rights, instruments, investment property, accounts, chattel paper, deposit accounts, or general intangibles. (34) "Incidental damages" resulting from breach of contract: (A) means compensation for any commercially reasonable charges, expenses, or commissions reasonably incurred by an aggrieved party with respect to (i) inspection, receipt, transmission, transportation, care, or custody of identified copies or information that is the subject of the breach; (ii) stopping delivery, shipment, or transmission; (iii) effecting cover or retransfer of copies or information after the breach; (iv) other efforts after the breach to minimize or avoid loss resulting from the breach; and (v) matters otherwise incident to the breach; and (B) does not include consequential damages or direct damages. (35) "Information" means data, text, images, sounds, mask works, or computer programs, including collections and compilations of them. (36) "Information processing system" means an electronic system for creating, generating, sending, receiving, storing, displaying, or processing information. (37) "Informational content" means information that is intended to be communicated to or perceived by an individual in the ordinary use of the information, or the equivalent of that information. (38) "Informational rights" include all rights in information created under laws governing patents, copyrights, mask works, trade secrets, trademarks, publicity rights, or any other law that gives a person, independently of contract, a right to control or preclude another person's use of or access to the information on the basis of the rights holder's interest in the information. (39) "Insurance services transaction" means an agreement between an insurer and an insured that provides for, or a transaction that is or entails access to, use, transfer, clearance, settlement, or processing of: (A) an insurance policy, contract, or certificate; or (B) a right to payment under an insurance policy, contract or certificate. (40) "Knowledge," with respect to a fact, means actual knowledge of the fact. (41) "License" means a contract that authorizes access to, or use, distribution, performance, modification, or reproduction of, information or informational rights, but expressly limits the access or uses authorized or expressly grants fewer than all rights in the information, whether or not the transferee has title to a licensed copy. The term includes an access contract, a lease of a computer program, and a consignment of a copy. The term does not include a reservation or creation of a security interest to the extent the interest is governed by Title 8.9A. (42) "Licensee" means a person entitled by agreement to acquire or exercise rights in, or to have access to or use of, computer information under an agreement to which this chapter applies. A licensor is not a licensee with respect to rights reserved to it under the agreement. (43) "Licensor" means a person obligated by agreement to transfer or create rights in, or to give access to or use of, computer information or informational rights in it under an agreement to which this chapter applies. Between the provider of access and a provider of the informational content to be accessed, the provider of content is the licensor. In an exchange of information or informational rights, each party is a licensor with respect to the information, informational rights, or access it gives. (44) "Mass-market license" means a standard form used in a mass-market transaction. (45) "Mass-market transaction" means a transaction that is: (A) a consumer contract; or (B) any other transaction with an end-user licensee if: (i) the transaction is for information or informational rights directed to the general public as a whole, including consumers, under substantially the same terms for the same information; (ii) the licensee acquires the information or informational rights in a retail transaction under terms consistent with an ordinary transaction in a retail market; and (iii) the transaction is not (a) a contract for redistribution or for public performance or public display of a copyrighted work; (b) a transaction in which the information is customized or otherwise specially prepared by the licensor for the licensee, other than minor customization using a capability of the information intended for that purpose; (c) a site license; or (d) an access contract. (46) "Merchant" means a person: (A) who deals in information or informational rights of the kind involved in the transaction; (B) who by the person's occupation holds himself out as having knowledge or skill peculiar to the relevant aspect of the business practices or information involved in the transaction; or (C) to whom the knowledge or skill peculiar to the practices or information involved in the transaction may be attributed by the person's employment of an agent or broker or other intermediary who by his occupation holds himself out as having the knowledge or skill. (47) "Nonexclusive license" means a license that does not preclude the licensor from transferring to other licensees the same information, informational rights, or contractual rights within the same scope. The term includes a consignment of a copy. (48) "Notice" of a fact means knowledge of the fact, receipt of notification of the fact, or reason to know the fact exists. (49) "Notify" or "give notice" means to take such steps as may be reasonably required to inform the other person in the ordinary course, whether or not the other person actually comes to know of it. (50) "Party" means a person that engages in a transaction or makes an agreement under this chapter. (51) "Person" means an individual, corporation, business trust, estate, trust, partnership, limited liability company, association, joint venture, governmental subdivision, instrumentality, or agency, public corporation, or any other legal or commercial entity. (52) "Published informational content" means informational content prepared for or made available to recipients generally, or to a class of recipients, in substantially the same form. The term does not include informational content that is (i) customized for a particular recipient by one or more individuals acting as or on behalf of the licensor, using judgment or expertise or (ii) provided in a special relationship of reliance between the provider and the recipient. (53) "Receipt" means: (A) with respect to a copy, taking delivery; or (B) with respect to a notice: (i) coming to a person's attention; or (ii) being delivered to and available at a location or system designated by agreement for that purpose or, in the absence of an agreed location or system: (a) being delivered at the person's residence, or the person's place of business through which the contract was made, or at any other place held out by the person as a place for receipt of communications of the kind; or (b) in the case of an electronic notice, coming into existence in an information processing system or at an address in that system in a form capable of being processed by or perceived from a system of that type by a recipient, if the recipient uses, or otherwise has designated or holds out, that place or system for receipt of notices of the kind to be given and the sender does not know that the notice cannot be accessed from that place. (54) "Receive" means to take receipt. (55) "Record" means information that is inscribed on a tangible medium or that is stored in an electronic or other medium and is retrievable in perceivable form. (56) "Release" means an agreement by a party not to object to, or exercise any rights or pursue any remedies to limit, the use of information or informational rights which agreement does not require an affirmative act by the party to enable or support the other party's use of the information or informational rights. The term includes a waiver of informational rights. (57) "Return," with respect to a record containing contractual terms that were rejected, refers only to the computer information and means: (A) in the case of a licensee that rejects a record regarding a single information product transferred for a single contract fee, a right to reimbursement of the contract fee paid from the person to which it was paid or from another person that offers to reimburse that fee, on (i) submission of proof of purchase and (ii) proper redelivery of the computer information and all copies within a reasonable time after initial delivery of the information to the licensee; (B) in the case of a licensee that rejects a record regarding an information product provided as part of multiple information products integrated into and transferred as a bundled whole but retaining their separate identity: 1. a right to reimbursement of any portion of the aggregate contract fee identified by the licensor in the initial transaction as charged to the licensee for all bundled information products which was actually paid, on (i) rejection of the record before or during the initial use of the bundled product; (ii) proper redelivery of all computer information products in the bundled whole and all copies of them within a reasonable time after initial delivery of the information to the licensee; and (iii) submission of proof of purchase; or 2. a right to reimbursement of any separate contract fee identified by the licensor in the initial transaction as charged to the licensee for the separate information product to which the rejected record applies, on (i) submission of proof of purchase and (ii) proper redelivery of that computer information product and all copies within a reasonable time after initial delivery of the information to the licensee; or (C) in the case of a licensor that rejects a record proposed by the licensee, a right to proper redelivery of the computer information and all copies from the licensee, to stop delivery or access to the information by the licensee, and to reimbursement from the licensee of amounts paid by the licensor with respect to the rejected record, on reimbursement to the licensee of contract fees that it paid with respect to the rejected record, subject to recoupment and setoff. (58) "Scope," with respect to terms of a license, means: (A) the licensed copies, information, or informational rights involved; (B) the use or access authorized, prohibited, or controlled; (C) the geographic area, market, or location; or (D) the duration of the license. (59) "Seasonable," with respect to an act, means taken within the time agreed or, if no time is agreed, within a reasonable time. (60) "Send" means, with any costs provided for and properly addressed or directed as reasonable under the circumstances or as otherwise agreed, to deposit a record in the mail or with a commercially reasonable carrier, to deliver a record for transmission to or re-creation in another location or information processing system, or to take the steps necessary to initiate transmission to or re-creation of a record in another location or information processing system. In addition, with respect to an electronic message, the message must be in a form capable of being processed by or perceived from a system of the type the recipient uses or otherwise has designated or held out as a place for the receipt of communications of the kind sent. Receipt within the time in which it would have arrived if properly sent, has the effect of a proper sending. (61) "Standard form" means a record or a group of related records containing terms prepared for repeated use in transactions and so used in a transaction in which there was no negotiated change of terms by individuals except to set the price, quantity, method of payment, selection among standard options, or time or method of delivery. (62) "State" means a State of the United States, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, the United States Virgin Islands, or any territory or insular possession subject to the jurisdiction of the United States. (63) "Term," with respect to an agreement, means that portion of the agreement that relates to a particular matter. (64) "Termination" means the ending of a contract by a party pursuant to a power created by agreement or law otherwise than because of breach of contract. (65) "Transfer": (A) with respect to a contractual interest, includes an assignment of the contract, but does not include an agreement merely to perform a contractual obligation or to exercise contractual rights through a delegate or sublicensee; and (B) with respect to computer information, includes a sale, license, or lease of a copy of the computer information and a license or assignment of informational rights in computer information. (66) "Usage of trade" means any practice or method of dealing that has such regularity of observance in a place, vocation, or trade as to justify an expectation that it will be observed with respect to the transaction in question. (b) The following definitions in other titles apply to this chapter: (1) "Burden of establishing" § 8.1A-201. (2) "Document of title" § 8.1A-201. (3) "Financial asset" § 8.8A-102. (4) "Funds transfer" § 8.4A-104. (5) "Identification" to the contract § 8.2-501. (6) "Instrument" § 8.9A-102. (7) "Investment property" § 8.9A-102. (8) "Item" § 8.4-104. (9) "Letter of credit" § 8.5A-102. (10) "Payment order" § 8.4A-103. (11) "Sale" § 8.2-106. 2000, cc. 101, 996; 2001, c. 763; 2003, c. 353; 2004, c. 794.

Va. Code § 59.1-548

§ 59.1-548. Enterprise zone real property investment grants.A. As used in this section: "Facility" means a complex of buildings, co-located at a single physical location within an enterprise zone, all of which are necessary to facilitate the conduct of the same trade or business. This definition applies to new construction as well as to the rehabilitation and expansion of existing structures. "Major qualified zone investor" means a qualified zone investor making qualified real property investments in excess of $20 million. "Mixed use" means a building incorporating residential uses in which a minimum of 30 percent of the useable floor space will be devoted to commercial, office, or industrial use. "Qualified real property investment" means the amount expended for improvements to rehabilitate, expand, or construct depreciable real property placed in service during the calendar year within an enterprise zone provided that the total amount of such improvements equals or exceeds (i) $100,000 with respect to a single building or a facility in the case of rehabilitation or expansion or (ii) $500,000 with respect to a single building or a facility in the case of new construction. Such real property may include a child day center as such term is defined in § 22.1-289.02. "Qualified real property investment" includes any such expenditure regardless of whether it is considered properly chargeable to a capital account or deductible as a business expense under federal Treasury Regulations. "Qualified real property investment" includes expenditures associated with (a) any exterior, interior, structural, mechanical, or electrical improvements necessary to construct, expand, or rehabilitate a building for commercial, industrial, or mixed use; (b) excavations; (c) grading and paving; (d) installing driveways; and (e) landscaping or land improvements. "Qualified real property investment" includes, but is not limited to, costs associated with demolition, carpentry, sheetrock, plaster, painting, ceilings, fixtures, doors, windows, fire suppression systems, roofing, flashing, exterior repair, cleaning, and cleanup. "Qualified real property investment" does not include: 1. The cost of acquiring any real property or building. 2. Other costs including: (i) the cost of furnishings; (ii) any expenditure associated with appraisal, architectural, engineering, surveying, and interior design fees; (iii) loan fees, points, or capitalized interest; (iv) legal, accounting, realtor, sales and marketing, or other professional fees; (v) closing costs, permits, user fees, zoning fees, impact fees, and inspection fees; (vi) bids, insurance, signage, utilities, bonding, copying, rent loss, or temporary facilities incurred during construction; (vii) utility connection or access fees; (viii) outbuildings; (ix) the cost of any well or septic or sewer system; and (x) roads. 3. The basis of any property: (i) for which a grant under this section was previously provided; (ii) for which a tax credit under § 59.1-280.1 was previously granted; (iii) which was previously placed in service in Virginia by the qualified zone investor, a related party as defined by Internal Revenue Code § 267 (b), or a trade or business under common control as defined by Internal Revenue Code § 52 (b); or (iv) which was previously in service in Virginia and has a basis in the hands of the person acquiring it, determined in whole or in part by reference to the basis of such property in the hands of the person from whom it was acquired or Internal Revenue Code § 1014 (a). "Qualified zone investor" means an owner or tenant of real property located within an enterprise zone who expands, rehabilitates, or constructs such real property for commercial, industrial, or mixed use. In the case of a tenant, the amounts of qualified zone investment specified in this section shall relate to the proportion of the building or facility for which the tenant holds a valid lease. In the case of an owner of an individual unit within a horizontal property regime, the amounts of qualified zone investments specified in this section shall relate to that proportion of the building for which the owner holds title and not to common elements. B. 1. Grants shall be calculated at a rate of 20 percent of the amount of qualified real property investment in excess of $500,000 in the case of the construction of a new building or facility. Grants shall be calculated at a rate of 20 percent of the amount of qualified real property investment in excess of $100,000 in the case of the rehabilitation or expansion of an existing building or facility. For any qualified zone investor making $5 million or less in qualified real property investment, a real property investment grant shall not exceed $100,000 within any five-year period for any individual building or facility. For any qualified zone investor making more than $5 million, but not more than $20 million in qualified real property investment, a real property investment grant shall not exceed $200,000 within any five-year period for any individual building or facility. 2. On and after July 1, 2025, grants to major qualified zone investors shall be calculated at a rate of 25 percent of the amount of qualified real property investment in excess of $500,000 in the case of the construction of a new building or facility. On and after July 1, 2025, grants to major qualified zone investors shall be calculated at a rate of 25 percent of the amount of qualified real property investment in excess of $100,000 in the case of the rehabilitation or expansion of an existing building or facility. A real property investment grant to a major qualified zone investor shall not exceed $300,000 within any five-year period for any individual building or facility. C. A qualified zone investor shall apply for a real property investment grant in the calendar year following the year in which the property was placed in service. 2005, cc. 863, 884; 2007, cc. 242, 287; 2009, cc. 207, 271; 2017, c. 451; 2025, c. 250.

Va. Code § 59.1-607

§ 59.1-607. Definitions.As used in this chapter, unless the context requires a different meaning: "Auction" has the same meaning as provided in § 54.1-600. "Broadband Internet access service" has the same meaning as provided in 47 C.F.R. § 8.1(b). "Cable operator" has the same meaning as provided in 47 U.S.C. § 522. "Clear and conspicuous" and "clearly and conspicuously" have the same meaning as provided for those terms in § 59.1-207.45. "Consumer transaction" has the same meaning as provided in § 59.1-198. "Electric utility" has the same meaning as provided in § 56-576. "Federal broadband consumer requirements" means the broadband consumer requirements adopted by the Federal Communications Commission in FCC 22-86 on November 14, 2022. "Hotel" has the same meaning as provided in § 35.1-1. "Mandatory fees or surcharges" includes any additional fee or surcharge that must be paid in order to purchase the good or service being advertised. "Mandatory fees or surcharges" does not include (i) taxes or fees imposed on the consumer by a government or government-approved entity or assessment fees of a government-created special district or program paid to the government or government-approved entity or (ii) reasonable postage or shipping fees. "Motor vehicle dealer" has the same meaning as provided in § 46.2-1500. "Natural gas utility" has the same meaning as provided in § 56-610. "Price-variable supplier" means a supplier that offers services the total price of which is determined by consumer selections or preferences or dependent on distance or time. "Restaurant" has the same meaning as provided in § 35.1-1. "Settlement services" has the same meaning as provided in 12 U.S.C. § 2602(3). "Supplier" has the same meaning as provided in § 59.1-198. "Telecommunications service provider" has the same meaning as provided in § 56-466.1. 2025, cc. 685, 686.

Va. Code § 59.1-609

§ 59.1-609. Limitations; exclusions.A. It shall not be a violation of this chapter for any supplier to (i) reduce the total price that was previously advertised or displayed; (ii) display a promotion or discount, including an offer to waive one or more mandatory fees; or (iii) advertise or display a price for goods and services in compliance with specific state or federal laws applicable to such supplier. B. No provision of this chapter shall apply to (i) fees authorized by law related to the purchase or lease of a motor vehicle that are charged by a motor vehicle dealer; (ii) fees, surcharges, or costs charged by any electric utility, natural gas utility, or telecommunications service provider; (iii) any fees, surcharges, or other costs associated with settlement services, provided that such associated costs do not include real estate broker commissions and fees; or (iv) the provision of air transportation by air carriers, as such terms are defined in 49 U.S.C. § 40102. C. No provision of this chapter shall apply to a supplier if such application is expressly preempted by federal law. 2025, cc. 685, 686.

Va. Code § 62.1-10

§ 62.1-10. Definitions.As used in this chapter, the following terms shall have the meanings respectively ascribed to them: (a) "Water" includes all waters, on the surface and under the ground, wholly or partially within or bordering the Commonwealth or within its jurisdiction and which affect the public welfare. (b) "Beneficial use" means both instream and offstream uses. Instream beneficial uses include, but are not limited to, the protection of fish and wildlife habitat, maintenance of waste assimilation, recreation, navigation, and cultural and aesthetic values. Offstream beneficial uses include, but are not limited to, domestic (including public water supply), agricultural, electric power generation, commercial and industrial uses. Public water supply uses for human consumption shall be considered the highest priority. Code 1950, § 62-9.1; 1954, c. 330; 1958, c. 413; 1968, c. 659; 1989, c. 410.

Va. Code § 62.1-156

§ 62.1-156. Power of cities to give assurances to United States.In order to execute the purposes and objectives declared in § 62.1-155, the cities therein defined shall have the power to give assurances to the United States of America that they will: 1. Furnish or cause to be furnished free of cost to the United States, when and as required by its duly authorized representatives, lands, easements and rights-of-way and spoil or dredged material disposal areas, unrestricted in disposal elevations, for the shore disposal of material to be initially dredged and for future maintenance of such improvements within and without such cities; 2. Furnish or cause to be furnished, when and as so required, permits or easements for ingress to and egress from highways to such shore disposal areas, and permits or easements to construct pipeline trestles across oyster and clamming grounds and to lay dredge pipelines across lands adjacent to such shore disposal areas within and without such cities; 3. Subject to all applicable laws, secure such releases or permits, either or both, as may be required, holding and saving the United States, its contractors and assigns free from any and all claims for damages to public or privately owned oyster and clamming grounds resulting or attributable to the accomplishment of the initial dredging or subsequent maintenance of such improvements, either or both; 4. Secure such releases or permits, either or both, as may be so required, holding and saving the United States, its contractors and assigns free from any and all claims (a) for damages resulting from any change in the natural course of such rivers, (b) for damages resulting from blasting operations in the removal of rock or changes in ground water levels, and (c) for costs resulting from provision and operation of any bridges or ferries that may be necessary for furnishing connection between the mainland and any islands created by channel cutoffs; 5. Relocate or cause to be relocated, at no cost to the United States, when necessary, roads, bridges, waterfront structures, sewerage, water supply, storm drainage, electric power, and other utility facilities within and without such cities, except those which the United States has theretofore permitted to be constructed in, under or over such rivers; 6. Construct, maintain, expand and operate such terminal facilities within such cities which may be required to accommodate prospective foreign and domestic commerce expected to develop from the improvement of the channel of such rivers, the extent of such facilities to be mutually agreed to by the council of such cities and the duly authorized representatives of the United States; and 7. Contribute funds to the United States necessary to construct, extend and maintain mooring or berthing areas immediately adjacent to river terminals of such cities when necessary because of expansion of such terminal facilities. Code 1950, § 62-117.9; 1958, c. 467; 1968, c. 659.

Va. Code § 62.1-199

§ 62.1-199. Definitions.As used in this chapter, unless the context requires a different meaning: "Authority" means the Virginia Resources Authority created by this chapter. "Board of Directors" means the Board of Directors of the Authority. "Bonds" means any bonds, notes, debentures, interim certificates, bond, grant or revenue anticipation notes, lease and sale-leaseback transactions, or any other obligations of the Authority for the payment of money. "Capital Reserve Fund" means the reserve fund created and established by the Authority in accordance with § 62.1-215. "Cost," as applied to any project financed under the provisions of this chapter, means the total of all costs incurred by the local government as reasonable and necessary for carrying out all works and undertakings necessary or incident to the accomplishment of any project. It includes, without limitation, all necessary developmental, planning and feasibility studies, surveys, plans and specifications, architectural, engineering, financial, legal or other special services, the cost of acquisition of land and any buildings and improvements thereon, including the discharge of any obligations of the sellers of such land, buildings or improvements, real estate appraisals, site preparation and development, including demolition or removal of existing structures, construction and reconstruction, labor, materials, machinery and equipment, the reasonable costs of financing incurred by the local government in the course of the development of the project, including the cost of any credit enhancements, carrying charges incurred before placing the project in service, interest on local obligations issued to finance the project to a date subsequent to the estimated date the project is to be placed in service, necessary expenses incurred in connection with placing the project in service, the funding of accounts and reserves which the Authority may require, and the cost of other items which the Authority determines to be reasonable and necessary. It also includes the amount of any contribution, grant, or aid which a local government may make or give to any adjoining state, the District of Columbia or any department, agency, or instrumentality thereof to pay the costs incident and necessary to the accomplishment of any project, including, without limitation, the items set forth above. "Cost" also includes interest and principal payments pursuant to any installment purchase agreement. "Credit enhancements" means surety bonds, insurance policies, letters of credit, guarantees, and other forms of collateral or security. "Defective drywall" means the same as that term is defined in § 36-156.1. "Federal facility" means any building or infrastructure used or to be used by the federal government, including any building or infrastructure located on lands owned by the federal government. "Federal government" means the United States of America, or any department, agency, or instrumentality, corporate or otherwise, of the United States of America. "Former federal facility" means any federal facility formerly used by the federal government or in transition from use by the federal government to a facility all or part of which is to serve any local government. "Local government" means any county, city, town, municipal corporation, authority, district, commission, or political subdivision created by the General Assembly or pursuant to the Constitution and laws of the Commonwealth or any combination of any two or more of the foregoing. "Local obligations" means any bonds, notes, debentures, interim certificates, bond, grant or revenue anticipation notes, leases, credit enhancements, or any other obligations of a local government for the payment of money. "Minimum capital reserve fund requirement" means, as of any particular date of computation, the amount of money designated as the minimum capital reserve fund requirement which may be established in the resolution of the Authority authorizing the issuance of, or the trust indenture securing, any outstanding issue of bonds or credit enhancement. "Project" means (i) any water supply or wastewater treatment facility, including a facility for receiving and stabilizing septage or a soil drainage management facility, and any solid waste treatment, disposal, or management facility, recycling facility, federal facility or former federal facility, or resource recovery facility located or to be located in the Commonwealth, the District of Columbia, or any adjoining state, all or part of which facility serves or is to serve any local government, and (ii) any federal facility located or to be located in the Commonwealth, provided that both the Board of Directors of the Authority and the governing body of the local government receiving the benefit of the loan, grant, or credit enhancement from the Authority make a determination or finding to be embodied in a resolution or ordinance that the undertaking and financing of such facility is necessary for the location or retention of such facility and the related use by the federal government in the Commonwealth. The term includes, without limitation, water supply and intake facilities; water treatment and filtration facilities; water storage facilities; water distribution facilities; sewage and wastewater (including surface and ground water) collection, treatment, and disposal facilities; drainage facilities and projects; solid waste treatment, disposal, or management facilities; recycling facilities; resource recovery facilities; related office, administrative, storage, maintenance, and laboratory facilities; and interests in land related thereto. The term also includes energy conservation measures and facility technology infrastructure as defined in § 45.2-1702 and other energy objectives as defined in § 45.2-1706.1. The term also means any heavy rail transportation facilities operated by a transportation district created under the Transportation District Act of 1964 (§ 33.2-1900 et seq.) that operates heavy rail freight service, including rolling stock, barge loading facilities, and any related marine or rail equipment. The term also means, without limitation, the design and construction of roads, the construction of local government buildings, including administrative and operations systems and other local government equipment and infrastructure, public parking garages and other public transportation facilities, and facilities for public transportation by commuter rail. In addition, the term means any project as defined in § 5.1-30.1 or 10.1-603.28 and any professional sports facility, including a major league baseball stadium as defined in § 15.2-5800, provided that the specific professional sports facility projects have been designated by the General Assembly as eligible for assistance from the Authority. The term also means any equipment, facilities, and technology infrastructure designed to provide broadband service. The term also means facilities supporting, related to, or otherwise used for public safety, including but not limited to law-enforcement training facilities and emergency response, fire, rescue, and police stations. The term also means the remediation, redevelopment, and rehabilitation of property contaminated by the release of hazardous substances, hazardous wastes, solid wastes, or petroleum, where such remediation has not clearly been mandated by the United States Environmental Protection Agency, the Department of Environmental Quality, or a court pursuant to the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation and Liability Act (42 U.S.C. § 9601 et seq.), the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (42 U.S.C. § 6901 et seq.), the Virginia Waste Management Act (§ 10.1-1400 et seq.), the State Water Control Law (§ 62.1-44.2 et seq.), or other applicable statutory or common law or where jurisdiction of those statutes has been waived. The term also means any program or project for land conservation, parks, park facilities, land for recreational purposes, or land preservation, including but not limited to any program or project involving the acquisition of rights or interests in land for the conservation or preservation of such land. The term also means any dredging program or dredging project undertaken to benefit the economic and community development goals of a local government but does not include any dredging program or dredging project undertaken for or by the Virginia Port Authority. The term also means any oyster restoration project, including planting and replanting with seed oysters, oyster shells, or other material that will catch, support, and grow oysters. The term also means any program or project to perform site acquisition or site development work for the benefit of economic and community development projects for any local government. The term also means any undertaking by a local government to build or facilitate the production or preservation of housing or a recovered gas energy facility and any local government renewable energy project, including solar, wind, biomass, waste-to-energy, and geothermal projects. The term also means any undertaking by a local government to facilitate the remediation of residential properties contaminated by the presence of defective drywall. The term also means any undertaking by a local government to provide grants, loans, financial assistance, or any other incentives pursuant to § 15.2-958. "Recovered gas energy facility" means a facility, located at or adjacent to (i) a solid waste management facility permitted by the Department of Environmental Quality or (ii) a sewerage system or sewage treatment work described in § 62.1-44.18 that is constructed and operated for the purpose of treating sewage and wastewater for discharge to state waters, which facility or work is constructed and operated for the purpose of (a) reclaiming or collecting methane or other combustible gas from the biodegradation or decomposition of solid waste, as defined in § 10.1-1400, that has been deposited in the solid waste management facility or sewerage system or sewage treatment work and (b) either using such gas to generate electric energy or upgrading the gas to pipeline quality and transmitting it off premises for sale or delivery to commercial or industrial purchasers or to a public utility or locality. 1984, c. 699; 1985, c. 67; 1986, c. 331; 1987, cc. 117, 133; 1989, cc. 533, 551; 1990, c. 506; 1998, c. 399; 1999, c. 897; 2000, c. 790; 2001, cc. 652, 661; 2005, cc. 727, 769; 2007, cc. 81, 649, 663; 2008, cc. 3, 24, 238, 259, 504, 605, 613; 2009, cc. 14, 246, 311, 543, 632; 2010, cc. 42, 724, 820; 2011, cc. 270, 616; 2018, c. 153; 2021, Sp. Sess. I, c. 327; 2022, cc. 739, 782; 2023, cc. 440, 441.

Va. Code § 62.1-242

§ 62.1-242. Definitions.As used in this chapter, unless the context requires otherwise: "Beneficial use" means both instream and offstream uses. Instream beneficial uses include but are not limited to protection of fish and wildlife habitat, maintenance of waste assimilation, recreation, navigation, and cultural and aesthetic values. Offstream beneficial uses include but are not limited to domestic (including public water supply), agricultural, electric power generation, commercial, and industrial uses. Domestic and other existing beneficial uses shall be considered the highest priority beneficial uses. "Board" means the State Water Control Board. However, when used outside the context of the promulgation of regulations, including regulations to establish general permits, pursuant to this chapter, "Board" means the Department of Environmental Quality. "Nonconsumptive use" means the use of water withdrawn from a stream in such a manner that it is returned to the stream without substantial diminution in quantity at or near the point from which it was taken and would not result in or exacerbate low flow conditions. "Surface water withdrawal permit" means a document issued by the Board evidencing the right to withdraw surface water. "Surface water management area" means a geographically defined surface water area in which the Board has deemed the levels or supply of surface water to be potentially adverse to public welfare, health and safety. "Surface water" means any water in the Commonwealth, except ground water, as defined in § 62.1-255. 1989, c. 721; 1992, c. 812; 2022, c. 356.

Va. Code § 62.1-44.3

§ 62.1-44.3. Definitions.Unless a different meaning is required by the context, the following terms as used in this chapter shall have the meanings hereinafter respectively ascribed to them: "Beneficial use" means both instream and offstream uses. Instream beneficial uses include, but are not limited to, the protection of fish and wildlife resources and habitat, maintenance of waste assimilation, recreation, navigation, and cultural and aesthetic values. The preservation of instream flows for purposes of the protection of navigation, maintenance of waste assimilation capacity, the protection of fish and wildlife resources and habitat, recreation, cultural and aesthetic values is an instream beneficial use of Virginia's waters. Offstream beneficial uses include, but are not limited to, domestic (including public water supply), agricultural uses, electric power generation, commercial, and industrial uses. "Board" means the State Water Control Board. However, when used outside the context of the promulgation of regulations, including regulations to establish general permits, pursuant to this chapter, "Board" means the Department of Environmental Quality. "Certificate" means any certificate or permit issued by the Department. "Department" means the Department of Environmental Quality. "Director" means the Director of the Department of Environmental Quality. "Establishment" means any industrial establishment, mill, factory, tannery, paper or pulp mill, mine, coal mine, colliery, breaker or coal-processing operations, quarry, oil refinery, boat, vessel, and every other industry or plant or works the operation of which produces industrial wastes or other wastes or which may otherwise alter the physical, chemical or biological properties of any state waters. "Excavate" or "excavation" means ditching, dredging, or mechanized removal of earth, soil or rock. "Industrial wastes" means liquid or other wastes resulting from any process of industry, manufacture, trade, or business or from the development of any natural resources. "Land-disturbance approval" means an approval allowing a land-disturbing activity to commence issued by (i) a Virginia Erosion and Stormwater Management Program authority after the requirements of § 62.1-44.15:34 have been met or (ii) a Virginia Erosion and Sediment Control Program authority after the requirements of § 62.1-44.15:55 have been met. "The law" or "this law" means the law contained in this chapter as now existing or hereafter amended. "Member" means a member of the Board. "Municipal separate storm sewer" means a conveyance or system of conveyances otherwise known as a municipal separate storm sewer system or "MS4," including roads with drainage systems, municipal streets, catch basins, curbs, gutters, ditches, man-made channels, or storm drains, that is: 1. Owned or operated by a federal entity, state, city, town, county, district, association, or other public body, created by or pursuant to state law, having jurisdiction over disposal of sewage, industrial wastes, stormwater, or other wastes, including a special district under state law such as a sewer district, flood control district, drainage district or similar entity, or a designated and approved management agency under § 208 of the federal Clean Water Act (33 U.S.C. § 1251 et seq.) that discharges to surface waters; 2. Designed or used for collecting or conveying stormwater; 3. Not a combined sewer; and 4. Not part of a publicly owned treatment works. "Normal agricultural activities" means those activities defined as an agricultural operation in § 3.2-300 and any activity that is conducted as part of or in furtherance of such agricultural operation but shall not include any activity for which a permit would have been required as of January 1, 1997, under 33 U.S.C. § 1344 or any regulations promulgated pursuant thereto. "Normal silvicultural activities" means any silvicultural activity as defined in § 10.1-1181.1 and any activity that is conducted as part of or in furtherance of such silvicultural activity but shall not include any activity for which a permit would have been required as of January 1, 1997, under 33 U.S.C. § 1344 or any regulations promulgated pursuant thereto. "Other wastes" means decayed wood, sawdust, shavings, bark, lime, garbage, refuse, ashes, offal, tar, oil, chemicals, and all other substances except industrial wastes and sewage which may cause pollution in any state waters. "Owner" means the Commonwealth or any of its political subdivisions, including but not limited to sanitation district commissions and authorities and any public or private institution, corporation, association, firm, or company organized or existing under the laws of this or any other state or country, or any officer or agency of the United States, or any person or group of persons acting individually or as a group that owns, operates, charters, rents, or otherwise exercises control over or is responsible for any actual or potential discharge of sewage, industrial wastes, or other wastes to state waters, or any facility or operation that has the capability to alter the physical, chemical, or biological properties of state waters in contravention of § 62.1-44.5. "Person" means an individual, corporation, partnership, association, governmental body, municipal corporation, or any other legal entity. "Policies" means policies established under subdivisions (3a) and (3b) of § 62.1-44.15. "Pollution" means such alteration of the physical, chemical, or biological properties of any state waters as will or is likely to create a nuisance or render such waters (a) harmful or detrimental or injurious to the public health, safety, or welfare or to the health of animals, fish, or aquatic life; (b) unsuitable with reasonable treatment for use as present or possible future sources of public water supply; or (c) unsuitable for recreational, commercial, industrial, agricultural, or other reasonable uses, provided that (i) an alteration of the physical, chemical, or biological property of state waters or a discharge or deposit of sewage, industrial wastes or other wastes to state waters by any owner which by itself is not sufficient to cause pollution but which, in combination with such alteration of or discharge or deposit to state waters by other owners, is sufficient to cause pollution; (ii) the discharge of untreated sewage by any owner into state waters; and (iii) contributing to the contravention of standards of water quality duly established by the Board, are "pollution" for the terms and purposes of this chapter. "Pretreatment requirements" means any requirements arising under the Board's pretreatment regulations including the duty to allow or carry out inspections, entry, or monitoring activities; any rules, regulations, or orders issued by the owner of a publicly owned treatment works; or any reporting requirements imposed by the owner of a publicly owned treatment works or by the regulations of the Board. "Pretreatment standards" means any standards of performance or other requirements imposed by regulation of the Board upon an industrial user of a publicly owned treatment works. "Reclaimed water" means water resulting from the treatment of domestic, municipal, or industrial wastewater that is suitable for a direct beneficial or controlled use that would not otherwise occur. Specifically excluded from this definition is "gray water." "Reclamation" means the treatment of domestic, municipal, or industrial wastewater or sewage to produce reclaimed water for a direct beneficial or controlled use that would not otherwise occur. "Regulation" means a regulation issued under subdivision (10) of § 62.1-44.15. "Reuse" means the use of reclaimed water for a direct beneficial use or a controlled use that is in accordance with the requirements of the Board. "Rule" means a rule adopted by the Board to regulate the procedure of the Board pursuant to subdivision (7) of § 62.1-44.15. "Ruling" means a ruling issued under subdivision (9) of § 62.1-44.15. "Sewage" means the water-carried human wastes from residences, buildings, industrial establishments or other places together with such industrial wastes and underground, surface, storm, or other water as may be present. "Sewage treatment works" or "treatment works" means any device or system used in the storage, treatment, disposal, or reclamation of sewage or combinations of sewage and industrial wastes, including but not limited to pumping, power, and other equipment, and appurtenances, and any works, including land, that are or will be (i) an integral part of the treatment process or (ii) used for the ultimate disposal of residues or effluent resulting from such treatment. These terms shall not include onsite sewage systems or alternative discharging sewage systems. "Sewerage system" means pipelines or conduits, pumping stations, and force mains, and all other construction, devices, and appliances appurtenant thereto, used for conducting sewage or industrial wastes or other wastes to a point of ultimate disposal. "Special order" means a special order issued under subdivisions (8a), (8b), and (8c) of § 62.1-44.15. "Standards" means standards established under subdivisions (3a) and (3b) of § 62.1-44.15. "State waters" means all water, on the surface and under the ground, wholly or partially within or bordering the Commonwealth or within its jurisdiction, including wetlands. "Wetlands" means those areas that are inundated or saturated by surface or groundwater at a frequency and duration sufficient to support, and that under normal circumstances do support, a prevalence of vegetation typically adapted for life in saturated soil conditions. Wetlands generally include swamps, marshes, bogs and similar areas. Code 1950, § 62.1-15; 1968, c. 659; 1970, c. 638; 1988, c. 167; 1990, c. 717; 1991, c. 702; 2000, cc. 972, 1032, 1054; 2003, c. 614; 2007, c. 659; 2015, cc. 104, 677; 2016, cc. 68, 758; 2022, c. 356.

Va. Code § 62.1-69

§ 62.1-69. Duties of Commission; powers and duties of Water Control Board not affected; dams or structures for production of electric power.The Potomac River Basin Commission of Virginia shall, if and when it shall come into existence as hereinabove provided, act jointly with commissions appointed for a like purpose by the states of West Virginia and Maryland, the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and the District of Columbia, or by such of the same as shall enter into the compact and with an additional three members to be appointed by the President of the United States, as a unit of the Interstate Commission on the Potomac River Basin which shall be constituted as provided by the compact hereinabove mentioned. The Potomac River Basin Commission of Virginia shall perform such further duties as shall be provided by the compact. No provision of this chapter or application thereof shall operate to repeal, limit, affect or impair any provision or application of Chapter 3.1 (§ 62.1-44.2 et seq.) of Title 62.1; and no provision of this chapter shall have any effect upon the powers and duties of the State Water Control Board created by Chapter 3.1 (§ 62.1-44.2 et seq.) of Title 62.1 and the operation of such Board over the waters of the Commonwealth subject to its jurisdiction. Members of the Potomac River Basin Commission of Virginia are prohibited from voting in favor of any measure before the Interstate Potomac River Basin Commission which might have any effect upon the powers and duties of the State Water Control Board without the consent of such Board first had and obtained. Members of the Potomac River Basin Commission of Virginia are prohibited from voting in favor of the construction, with public funds, of any dam or other structure upon the Potomac River or its tributaries in Virginia, which dam or other structure is used or is capable of being used, directly or indirectly, in whole or in part and whether as a single or multiple purpose, for the production by any government or any agency or instrumentality thereof, of electric power and energy. Code 1950, § 62-67; 1968, cc. 542, 659. Chapter 5.1. Potomac River Basin Compact [Repealed]. §§ 62.1-69.1 through 62.1-69.4. Repealed.Repealed by Acts 1990, c. 179. Chapter 5.2. Chesapeake Bay Commission. §§ 62.1-69.5 through 62.1-69.20. Repealed.Repealed by Acts 2004, c. 1000. Chapter 5.3. Rappahannock River Basin Commission.

Va. Code § 62.1-69.52

§ 62.1-69.52. Withdrawal; dissolution.A. A locality may withdraw from the Commission one year after providing written notice to the Commission of its intent to do so. B. The Commission may be dissolved (i) upon three-fourths vote of its members, (ii) if the membership falls below three-fourths of the number of localities eligible for membership in the Commission, or (iii) by repeal or expiration of this chapter. C. Upon the Commission's dissolution, all funds and assets of the Commission, including funds received from private sources, shall be divided and distributed on a pro rata basis to the member local governing bodies. All state funds and assets, if any, shall be transferred to the Office of the Secretary of Natural and Historic Resources for appropriate distribution. 2004, c. 394; 2021, Sp. Sess. I, c. 401. Chapter 7. Water-power Development, Conservation of Hydroelectric Power Dams and Works.

Va. Code § 62.1-80

§ 62.1-80. Declaration of public policy.In order to conserve and utilize the otherwise wasted energy from the water powers in this Commonwealth, it is hereby declared to be the policy of the Commonwealth to encourage the utilization of the water resources in the Commonwealth to the greatest practicable extent and to control the waters of the Commonwealth, as herein defined, and also the construction or reconstruction of a dam in any rivers or streams within the Commonwealth for the generation of hydroelectric energy for use or sale in public service, all as hereinafter provided. Code 1950, § 62-68; 1968, c. 659.

Va. Code § 62.1-83

§ 62.1-83. Dams across waters of Commonwealth.No person, firm, association or corporation, private or municipal, proposing to construct or reconstruct any dam across or in the waters of the Commonwealth, as defined in § 62.1-81, or a dam in any rivers or streams within the Commonwealth when such dam is for the purpose of generating hydroelectric energy for use or sale in public service, shall begin the construction or reconstruction of any such dam unless and until the provisions of this chapter shall have been complied with, and every such dam shall in every respect be subject to the provision of this chapter and such other general laws of the Commonwealth as may be applicable thereto. Nor shall any dam constructed or reconstructed after July 1, 1932, in any waters, rivers or streams within the Commonwealth, without a license under this chapter, be utilized at any time for the purpose of generating hydroelectric energy for use or sale, directly or indirectly, in public service, unless and until licensed or permitted so to do by order of the State Corporation Commission, after hearing, and finding that the public interest will be thereby promoted or will not be detrimentally affected. Code 1950, § 62-71; 1968, c. 659.

Va. Code § 62.1-98

§ 62.1-98. Right of eminent domain of public service corporations.In addition to any right or power of eminent domain that it may have under existing law, every public service corporation engaged in the development of waterpower in this Commonwealth for the production, sale and supply of hydroelectric power and energy to the public shall be vested with the right of eminent domain to the full extent requisite for the acquisition of all lands, property and rights necessary for the purpose of the construction, enlargement, maintenance or operation of any dam, reservoir, power station and/or other structures of any such water-power development, subject to the following provisions: 1. Such corporation may, by the exercise of such right for such purpose, acquire all necessary lands, property and rights of whatsoever nature, whether or not such lands, property or rights have been theretofore appropriated or devoted, or sought to be appropriated or devoted to public use, including but not restricted to, the lands, property and rights necessary for any storage, diversion, regulation, detention, or interference with the flow of any water and for any waterway and including also, but not restricted to, any lands, structures, property or rights owned, used or held by or for public or private, religious, charitable, educational or cemetery purposes; any dwelling houses and any public or private roads and bridges, and any other property, public or private, when necessary for such purpose; provided, however, that the right of eminent domain under this section shall not be available against existing public-carrier railroads; and provided further that, in the event of the condemnation under this chapter of any roads or bridges, the commissioners or jurors in assessing the compensation and damages therefor, shall consider the cost of relocating and constructing such roads or bridges upon other reasonable convenient locations, and the damage, if any, to persons and corporations because of relocation and construction. No such corporation shall impair the drinking water supply of any city or town or acquire any municipal electric light and power or water plant by virtue of any additional powers conferred by this chapter; provided further that the provisions of this section shall not be construed to authorize the acquisition by condemnation or otherwise of any streets or alleys or portions thereof in incorporated cities or towns. 2. When, in the operation of any dam, power station or other structure of a water-power development, any such public service corporation interferes, to an extent beyond its common-law riparian rights, with the flow of water downstream from such structure and by reason of such interference any property or riparian right, or any part thereof or interest therein, is destroyed or damaged, such corporation may exercise the right of eminent domain for the purpose of acquiring such property, right or interest so destroyed or of ascertaining and paying just compensation for any such damage. 3. In connection with the exercise of the right of eminent domain over public and private cemeteries, such corporation shall also have the right to acquire by condemnation proceedings other lands to which to remove the bodies and monuments or other structures from such public or private cemeteries. All the rights of the owners, including the Commonwealth, in and to the lands in such cemeteries shall pass to and vest in such corporation and the title to the lands acquired for the removal of such cemeteries shall vest in the former owners and such others as may have rights therein of such cemeteries so removed. However, before such corporation may flood or otherwise utilize any such cemetery, it shall remove the bodies and monuments or other structures to the lands acquired for such purpose and reinter the bodies and reset the monuments, under the direction and to the satisfaction of the court in which such condemnation proceedings are brought. If the parties in interest fail to agree as to the location and area of the additional lands to be acquired in which to reinter the bodies and on which to rest the monuments and other structures, the same shall be determined by the court. 4. For the purpose of relocating any railway, pipeline, wire line, road or bridge occupying the area on which any such water-power development or enlargement thereof is to be located, such corporation may acquire by the exercise of the right of eminent domain, any needful additional lands or other property, whether within or without the area upon such water-power development or enlargement thereof is to be located, and shall have the right for such purpose and shall convey such lands or other property or rights to the owner of such railway, pipeline, wire line, road or bridge. 5. In all cases of the exercise of such right of eminent domain just compensation shall be paid to the owners and tenants of the property taken or damaged, in the manner provided by law for all property taken or damaged. The proceedings for this purpose shall be in accordance with Chapter 2 (§ 25.1-200 et seq.) of Title 25.1 and other provisions of law. As to any part of the real estate sought to be taken for any of the purposes authorized in this chapter, such corporation may describe in its application for condemnation an estate or interest therein of a fee or less than a fee and, upon payment therefor, such estate or interest as is stated and described in such application shall vest in such corporation; but when less than a fee is taken, the commissioners or jurors in assessing damages shall take into consideration the actual damage that is done or that may be done to the fee by such taking, including the use to which the property so taken will be put by such corporation. However, nothing contained in § 62.1-97 shall deprive any owner of property of any right to receive just compensation and damages as provided by law, upon the exercise of the right of eminent domain by any licensee under this chapter. 6. Any public service corporation that shall exercise any of the additional powers of eminent domain granted in this chapter and not existing under the law in effect January 1, 1928, shall thereby be conclusively deemed to have agreed, as a condition precedent to the exercise of such powers, to be bound by all of the provisions of this chapter. Code 1950, § 62-87; 1968, c. 659; 2003, c. 940; 2006, c. 586; 2010, c. 835.

Va. Code § 63.2-100

§ 63.2-100. Definitions.As used in this title, unless the context requires a different meaning: "Abused or neglected child" means any child less than 18 years of age: 1. Whose parents or other person responsible for his care creates or inflicts, threatens to create or inflict, or allows to be created or inflicted upon such child a physical or mental injury by other than accidental means, or creates a substantial risk of death, disfigurement, or impairment of bodily or mental functions, including, but not limited to, a child who is with his parent or other person responsible for his care either (i) during the manufacture or attempted manufacture of a Schedule I or II controlled substance, or (ii) during the unlawful sale of such substance by that child's parents or other person responsible for his care, where such manufacture, or attempted manufacture or unlawful sale would constitute a felony violation of § 18.2-248; 2. Whose parents or other person responsible for his care neglects or refuses to provide care necessary for his health. However, no child who in good faith is under treatment solely by spiritual means through prayer in accordance with the tenets and practices of a recognized church or religious denomination shall for that reason alone be considered to be an abused or neglected child. Further, a decision by parents who have legal authority for the child or, in the absence of parents with legal authority for the child, any person with legal authority for the child, who refuses a particular medical treatment for a child with a life-threatening condition shall not be deemed a refusal to provide necessary care if (i) such decision is made jointly by the parents or other person with legal authority and the child; (ii) the child has reached 14 years of age and is sufficiently mature to have an informed opinion on the subject of his medical treatment; (iii) the parents or other person with legal authority and the child have considered alternative treatment options; and (iv) the parents or other person with legal authority and the child believe in good faith that such decision is in the child's best interest. No child whose parent or other person responsible for his care allows the child to engage in independent activities without adult supervision shall for that reason alone be considered to be an abused or neglected child, provided that (a) such independent activities are appropriate based on the child's age, maturity, and physical and mental abilities and (b) such lack of supervision does not constitute conduct that is so grossly negligent as to endanger the health or safety of the child. Such independent activities include traveling to or from school or nearby locations by bicycle or on foot, playing outdoors, or remaining at home for a reasonable period of time. Nothing in this subdivision shall be construed to limit the provisions of § 16.1-278.4; 3. Whose parents or other person responsible for his care abandons such child; 4. Whose parents or other person responsible for his care, or an intimate partner of such parent or person, commits or allows to be committed any act of sexual exploitation or any sexual act upon a child in violation of the law; 5. Who is without parental care or guardianship caused by the unreasonable absence or the mental or physical incapacity of the child's parent, guardian, legal custodian or other person standing in loco parentis; 6. Whose parents or other person responsible for his care creates a substantial risk of physical or mental injury by knowingly leaving the child alone in the same dwelling, including an apartment as defined in § 55.1-2000, with a person to whom the child is not related by blood or marriage and who the parent or other person responsible for his care knows has been convicted of an offense against a minor for which registration is required as a Tier III offender pursuant to § 9.1-902; or 7. Who has been identified as a victim of sex trafficking or severe forms of trafficking as defined in the Trafficking Victims Protection Act of 2000, 22 U.S.C. § 7102 et seq., and in the Justice for Victims of Trafficking Act of 2015, 42 U.S.C. § 5101 et seq. If a civil proceeding under this title is based solely on the parent having left the child at a hospital or emergency medical services agency, it shall be an affirmative defense that such parent safely delivered the child within 30 days of the child's birth to (i) a hospital that provides 24-hour emergency services, (ii) an attended emergency medical services agency that employs emergency medical services providers, or (iii) a newborn safety device located at and operated by such hospital or emergency medical services agency. For purposes of terminating parental rights pursuant to § 16.1-283 and placement for adoption, the court may find such a child is a neglected child upon the ground of abandonment. "Adoptive home" means any family home selected and approved by a parent, local board or a licensed child-placing agency for the placement of a child with the intent of adoption. "Adoptive placement" means arranging for the care of a child who is in the custody of a child-placing agency in an approved home for the purpose of adoption. "Adult abuse" means the willful infliction of physical pain, injury or mental anguish or unreasonable confinement of an adult as defined in § 63.2-1603. "Adult day center" means any facility that is either operated for profit or that desires licensure and that provides supplementary care and protection during only a part of the day to four or more adults who are aged or infirm or who have disabilities and who reside elsewhere, except (i) a facility or portion of a facility licensed by the State Board of Health or the Department of Behavioral Health and Developmental Services, and (ii) the home or residence of an individual who cares for only persons related to him by blood or marriage. Included in this definition are any two or more places, establishments or institutions owned, operated or controlled by a single entity and providing such supplementary care and protection to a combined total of four or more adults who are aged or infirm or who have disabilities. "Adult exploitation" means the illegal, unauthorized, improper, or fraudulent use of an adult as defined in § 63.2-1603 or his funds, property, benefits, resources, or other assets for another's profit, benefit, or advantage, including a caregiver or person serving in a fiduciary capacity, or that deprives the adult of his rightful use of or access to such funds, property, benefits, resources, or other assets. "Adult exploitation" includes (i) an intentional breach of a fiduciary obligation to an adult to his detriment or an intentional failure to use the financial resources of an adult in a manner that results in neglect of such adult; (ii) the acquisition, possession, or control of an adult's financial resources or property through the use of undue influence, coercion, or duress; and (iii) forcing or coercing an adult to pay for goods or services or perform services against his will for another's profit, benefit, or advantage if the adult did not agree, or was tricked, misled, or defrauded into agreeing, to pay for such goods or services or to perform such services. "Adult foster care" means room and board, supervision, and special services to an adult who has a physical or mental condition. Adult foster care may be provided by a single provider for up to three adults. "Adult foster care" does not include services or support provided to individuals through the Fostering Futures program set forth in Article 2 (§ 63.2-917 et seq.) of Chapter 9. "Adult neglect" means that an adult as defined in § 63.2-1603 is living under such circumstances that he is not able to provide for himself or is not being provided services necessary to maintain his physical and mental health and that the failure to receive such necessary services impairs or threatens to impair his well-being. However, no adult shall be considered neglected solely on the basis that such adult is receiving religious nonmedical treatment or religious nonmedical nursing care in lieu of medical care, provided that such treatment or care is performed in good faith and in accordance with the religious practices of the adult and there is a written or oral expression of consent by that adult. "Adult protective services" means services provided by the local department that are necessary to protect an adult as defined in § 63.2-1603 from abuse, neglect or exploitation. "Assisted living care" means a level of service provided by an assisted living facility for adults who may have physical or mental impairments and require at least a moderate level of assistance with activities of daily living. "Assisted living facility" means any congregate residential setting that provides or coordinates personal and health care services, 24-hour supervision, and assistance (scheduled and unscheduled) for the maintenance or care of four or more adults who are aged or infirm or who have disabilities and who are cared for in a primarily residential setting, except (i) a facility or portion of a facility licensed by the State Board of Health or the Department of Behavioral Health and Developmental Services, but including any portion of such facility not so licensed; (ii) the home or residence of an individual who cares for or maintains only persons related to him by blood or marriage; (iii) a facility or portion of a facility serving individuals who are infirm or who have disabilities between the ages of 18 and 21, or 22 if enrolled in an educational program for individuals with disabilities pursuant to § 22.1-214, when such facility is licensed by the Department as a children's residential facility under Chapter 17 (§ 63.2-1700 et seq.), but including any portion of the facility not so licensed; and (iv) any housing project for individuals who are 62 years of age or older or individuals with disabilities that provides no more than basic coordination of care services and is funded by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, by the U.S. Department of Agriculture, or by the Virginia Housing Development Authority. Included in this definition are any two or more places, establishments or institutions owned or operated by a single entity and providing maintenance or care to a combined total of four or more adults who are aged or infirm or who have disabilities. Maintenance or care means the protection, general supervision and oversight of the physical and mental well-being of an individual who is aged or infirm or who has a disability. "Auxiliary grants" means cash payments made to certain aged, blind, or disabled individuals who receive benefits under Title XVI of the Social Security Act, as amended, or would be eligible to receive these benefits except for excess income. "Birth family" or "birth sibling" means the child's biological family or biological sibling. "Birth parent" means the child's biological parent and, for purposes of adoptive placement, means parent(s) by previous adoption. "Board" means the State Board of Social Services. "Child" means any natural person who is (i) under 18 years of age or (ii) for purposes of the Fostering Futures program set forth in Article 2 (§ 63.2-917 et seq.) of Chapter 9, under 21 years of age and meets the eligibility criteria set forth in § 63.2-919. "Child-placing agency" means (i) any person who places children in foster homes, adoptive homes or independent living arrangements pursuant to § 63.2-1819, (ii) a local board that places children in foster homes or adoptive homes pursuant to §§ 63.2-900, 63.2-903, and 63.2-1221, or (iii) an entity that assists parents with the process of delegating parental and legal custodial powers of their children pursuant to Chapter 10 (§ 20-166 et seq.) of Title 20. "Child-placing agency" does not include the persons to whom such parental or legal custodial powers are delegated pursuant to Chapter 10 (§ 20-166 et seq.) of Title 20. Officers, employees, or agents of the Commonwealth, or any locality acting within the scope of their authority as such, who serve as or maintain a child-placing agency, shall not be required to be licensed. "Child-protective services" means the identification, receipt and immediate response to complaints and reports of alleged child abuse or neglect for children under 18 years of age. It also includes assessment, and arranging for and providing necessary protective and rehabilitative services for a child and his family when the child has been found to have been abused or neglected or is at risk of being abused or neglected. "Children's advocacy center" means a child-friendly facility that (i) enables law enforcement, child protection, prosecution, mental health, medical, and victim advocacy professionals to work together to investigate child abuse, help children heal from abuse, and hold offenders accountable; (ii) has completed, or is in the process of completing, certain accreditation obligations and requires any forensic interview conducted at such facility to only be conducted by a trained child forensic interviewer in a multidisciplinary team collaborative effort; and (iii) is a member in good standing of the Children's Advocacy Centers of Virginia. "Children's Advocacy Centers of Virginia" means the organizing entity for children's advocacy centers in Virginia. "Child support services" means any civil, criminal or administrative action taken by the Division of Child Support Enforcement to locate parents; establish paternity; and establish, modify, enforce, or collect child support, or child and spousal support. "Child-welfare agency" means a child-placing agency, children's residential facility, or independent foster home. "Children's residential facility" means any facility, child-caring institution, or group home that is maintained for the purpose of receiving children separated from their parents or guardians for full-time care, maintenance, protection and guidance, or for the purpose of providing independent living services to persons between 18 and 21 years of age who are in the process of transitioning out of foster care. Children's residential facility shall not include: 1. A licensed or accredited educational institution whose pupils, in the ordinary course of events, return annually to the homes of their parents or guardians for not less than two months of summer vacation; 2. An establishment required to be licensed as a summer camp by § 35.1-18; and 3. A licensed or accredited hospital legally maintained as such. "Commissioner" means the Commissioner of the Department, his designee or authorized representative. "Department" means the State Department of Social Services. "Department of Health and Human Services" means the Department of Health and Human Services of the United States government or any department or agency thereof that may hereafter be designated as the agency to administer the Social Security Act, as amended. "Disposable income" means that part of the income due and payable of any individual remaining after the deduction of any amount required by law to be withheld. "Energy assistance" means benefits to assist low-income households with their home heating and cooling needs, including, but not limited to, purchase of materials or substances used for home heating, repair or replacement of heating equipment, emergency intervention in no-heat situations, purchase or repair of cooling equipment, and payment of electric bills to operate cooling equipment, in accordance with § 63.2-805, or provided under the Virginia Energy Assistance Program established pursuant to the Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Act of 1981 (Title XXVI of P.L. 97-35), as amended. "Family and permanency team" means the group of individuals assembled by the local department to assist with determining planning and placement options for a child, which shall include, as appropriate, all biological relatives and fictive kin of the child, as well as any professionals who have served as a resource to the child or his family, such as teachers, medical or mental health providers, and clergy members. In the case of a child who is 14 years of age or older, the family and permanency team shall also include any members of the child's case planning team that were selected by the child in accordance with subsection A of § 16.1-281. "Federal-Funded Kinship Guardianship Assistance program" means a program consistent with 42 U.S.C. § 673 that provides, subject to a kinship guardianship assistance agreement developed in accordance with § 63.2-1305, payments to eligible individuals who have received custody of a child of whom they had been the foster parents. "Fictive kin" means persons who are not related to a child by blood or adoption but have an established relationship with the child or his family. "Foster care placement" means placement of a child through (i) an agreement between the parents or guardians and the local board where legal custody remains with the parents or guardians or (ii) an entrustment or commitment of the child to the local board or licensed child-placing agency. "Foster care placement" does not include placement of a child in accordance with a power of attorney pursuant to Chapter 10 (§ 20-166 et seq.) of Title 20. "Foster home" means a residence approved by a child-placing agency or local board in which any child, other than a child by birth or adoption of such person or a child who is the subject of a power of attorney to delegate parental or legal custodial powers by his parents or legal custodian to the natural person who has been designated the child's legal guardian pursuant to Chapter 10 (§ 20-166 et seq.) of Title 20 and who exercises legal authority over the child on a continuous basis for at least 24 hours without compensation, resides as a member of the household. "General relief" means money payments and other forms of relief made to those persons mentioned in § 63.2-802 in accordance with the regulations of the Board and reimbursable in accordance with § 63.2-401. "Independent foster home" means a private family home in which any child, other than a child by birth or adoption of such person, resides as a member of the household and has been placed therein independently of a child-placing agency except (i) a home in which are received only children related by birth or adoption of the person who maintains such home and children of personal friends of such person; (ii) a home in which is received a child or children committed under the provisions of subdivision A 4 of § 16.1-278.2, subdivision 6 of § 16.1-278.4, or subdivision A 13 of § 16.1-278.8; and (iii) a home in which are received only children who are the subject of a properly executed power of attorney pursuant to Chapter 10 (§ 20-166 et seq.) of Title 20. "Independent living" means a planned program of services designed to assist a child age 16 and over and persons who are former foster care children or were formerly committed to the Department of Juvenile Justice and are between the ages of 18 and 21 in transitioning to self-sufficiency. "Independent living arrangement" means placement of (i) a child at least 16 years of age who is in the custody of a local board or licensed child-placing agency by the local board or licensed child-placing agency or (ii) a child at least 16 years of age or a person between the ages of 18 and 21 who was committed to the Department of Juvenile Justice immediately prior to placement by the Department of Juvenile Justice, in a living arrangement in which such child or person does not have daily substitute parental supervision. "Independent living services" means services and activities provided to a child in foster care 14 years of age or older who was committed or entrusted to a local board of social services, child welfare agency, or private child-placing agency. "Independent living services" may also mean services and activities provided to a person who (i) was in foster care on his 18th birthday and has not yet reached the age of 21 years; (ii) is between the ages of 18 and 21 and who, immediately prior to his commitment to the Department of Juvenile Justice, was in the custody of a local board of social services; or (iii) is a child at least 16 years of age or a person between the ages of 18 and 21 who was committed to the Department of Juvenile Justice immediately prior to placement in an independent living arrangement. Such services shall include counseling, education, housing, employment, and money management skills development, access to essential documents, and other appropriate services to help children or persons prepare for self-sufficiency. "Independent physician" means a physician who is chosen by the resident of the assisted living facility and who has no financial interest in the assisted living facility, directly or indirectly, as an owner, officer, or employee or as an independent contractor with the residence. "Intercountry placement" means the arrangement for the care of a child in an adoptive home or foster care placement into or out of the Commonwealth by a licensed child-placing agency, court, or other entity authorized to make such placements in accordance with the laws of the foreign country under which it operates. "Interstate placement" means the arrangement for the care of a child in an adoptive home, foster care placement or in the home of the child's parent or with a relative or nonagency guardian, into or out of the Commonwealth, by a child-placing agency or court when the full legal right of the child's parent or nonagency guardian to plan for the child has been voluntarily terminated or limited or severed by the action of any court. "Kinship care" means the full-time care, nurturing, and protection of children by relatives. "Kinship guardian" means the adult relative of a child in a kinship guardianship established in accordance with § 63.2-1305 or 63.2-1306 who has been awarded custody of the child by the court after acting as the child's foster parent. "Kinship guardianship" means a relationship established in accordance with § 63.2-1305 or 63.2-1306 between a child and an adult relative of the child who has formerly acted as the child's foster parent that is intended to be permanent and self-sustaining as evidenced by the transfer by the court to the adult relative of the child of the authority necessary to ensure the protection, education, care and control, and custody of the child and the authority for decision making for the child. "Local board" means the local board of social services representing one or more counties or cities. "Local department" means the local department of social services of any county or city in the Commonwealth. "Local director" means the director or his designated representative of the local department of the city or county. "Merit system plan" means those regulations adopted by the Board in the development and operation of a system of personnel administration meeting requirements of the federal Office of Personnel Management. "Parental placement" means locating or effecting the placement of a child or the placing of a child in a family home by the child's parent or legal guardian for the purpose of foster care or adoption. "Public assistance" means Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF); auxiliary grants to the aged, blind, and disabled; medical assistance; energy assistance; food stamps; employment services; child care; and general relief. "Qualified assessor" means an entity contracting with the Department of Medical Assistance Services to perform nursing facility pre-admission screening or to complete the uniform assessment instrument for a home and community-based waiver program, including an independent physician contracting with the Department of Medical Assistance Services to complete the uniform assessment instrument for residents of assisted living facilities, or any hospital that has contracted with the Department of Medical Assistance Services to perform nursing facility pre-admission screenings. "Qualified individual" means a trained professional or licensed clinician who is not an employee of the local board of social services or licensed child-placing agency that placed the child in a qualified residential treatment program and is not affiliated with any placement setting in which children are placed by such local board of social services or licensed child-placing agency. "Qualified residential treatment program" means a program that (i) provides 24-hour residential placement services for children in foster care; (ii) has adopted a trauma-informed treatment model that meets the clinical and other needs of children with serious emotional or behavioral disorders, including any clinical or other needs identified through assessments conducted pursuant to clause (viii) of this definition; (iii) employs registered or licensed nursing and other clinical staff who provide care, on site and within the scope of their practice, and are available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week; (iv) conducts outreach with the child's family members, including efforts to maintain connections between the child and his siblings and other family; documents and maintains records of such outreach efforts; and maintains contact information for any known biological family and fictive kin of the child; (v) whenever appropriate and in the best interest of the child, facilitates participation by family members in the child's treatment program before and after discharge and documents the manner in which such participation is facilitated; (vi) provides discharge planning and family-based aftercare support for at least six months after discharge; (vii) is licensed in accordance with 42 U.S.C. § 671(a)(10) and accredited by an organization approved by the federal Secretary of Health and Human Services; and (viii) requires that any child placed in the program receive an assessment within 30 days of such placement by a qualified individual that (a) assesses the strengths and needs of the child using an age-appropriate, evidence-based, validated, and functional assessment tool approved by the Commissioner of Social Services; (b) identifies whether the needs of the child can be met through placement with a family member or in a foster home or, if not, in a placement setting authorized by 42 U.S.C. § 672(k)(2), including a qualified residential treatment program, that would provide the most effective and appropriate level of care for the child in the least restrictive environment and be consistent with the short-term and long-term goals established for the child in his foster care or permanency plan; (c) establishes a list of short-term and long-term mental and behavioral health goals for the child; and (d) is documented in a written report to be filed with the court prior to any hearing on the child's placement pursuant to § 16.1-281, 16.1-282, 16.1-282.1, or 16.1-282.2. "Residential living care" means a level of service provided by an assisted living facility for adults who may have physical or mental impairments and require only minimal assistance with the activities of daily living. The definition of "residential living care" includes the services provided by independent living facilities that voluntarily become licensed. "Sibling" means each of two or more children having one or more parents in common. "Social services" means foster care, adoption, adoption assistance, child-protective services, domestic violence services, or any other services program implemented in accordance with regulations adopted by the Board. Social services also includes adult services pursuant to Article 4 (§ 51.5-144 et seq.) of Chapter 14 of Title 51.5 and adult protective services pursuant to Article 5 (§ 51.5-148) of Chapter 14 of Title 51.5 provided by local departments of social services in accordance with regulations and under the supervision of the Commissioner for Aging and Rehabilitative Services. "Special order" means an order imposing an administrative sanction issued to any party licensed pursuant to this title by the Commissioner that has a stated duration of not more than 12 months. A special order shall be considered a case decision as defined in § 2.2-4001. "State-Funded Kinship Guardianship Assistance program" means a program that provides payments to eligible individuals who have received custody of a relative child subject to a kinship guardianship assistance agreement developed in accordance with § 63.2-1306. "Supervised independent living setting" means the residence of a person 18 years of age or older who is participating in the Fostering Futures program set forth in Article 2 (§ 63.2-917 et seq.) of Chapter 9 where supervision includes a monthly visit with a service worker or, when appropriate, contracted supervision. "Supervised independent living setting" does not include residential facilities or group homes. "Temporary Assistance for Needy Families" or "TANF" means the program administered by the Department through which a relative can receive monthly cash assistance for the support of his eligible children. "Temporary Assistance for Needy Families-Unemployed Parent" or "TANF-UP" means the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families program for families in which both natural or adoptive parents of a child reside in the home and neither parent is exempt from Virginia Initiative for Education and Work (VIEW) participation under § 63.2-609. "Title IV-E Foster Care" means a federal program authorized under §§ 472 and 473 of the Social Security Act, as amended, and administered by the Department through which foster care is provided on behalf of qualifying children. Code 1950, §§ 63-101, 63-222, 63-232, 63-347, 63-351; 1954, cc. 259, 290, 489; 1956, cc. 300, 641; 1960, cc. 331, 390; 1962, cc. 297, 603; 1966, c. 423; 1968, cc. 578, 585, §§ 63.1-87, 63.1-172, 63.1-195, 63.1-220; 1970, c. 721; 1972, cc. 73, 540, 718; 1973, c. 227; 1974, cc. 44, 45, 413, 415, § 63.1-250; 1975, cc. 287, 299, 311, 341, 437, 507, 524, 528, 596, §§ 63.1-238.1, 63.1-248.2; 1976, cc. 357, 649; 1977, cc. 105, 241, 532, 547, 559, 567, 634, 645, §§ 63.1-55.2, 63.1-55.8; 1978, cc. 536, 730, 749, 750; 1979, c. 483; 1980, cc. 40, 284; 1981, cc. 75, 123, 359; 1983, c. 66; 1984, cc. 74, 76, 498, 535, 781; 1985, cc. 17, 285, 384, 488, 518; 1986, cc. 80, 281, 308, 437, 594; 1987, cc. 627, 650, 681; 1988, c. 906; 1989, cc. 307, 647; 1990, c. 760; 1991, cc. 534, 595, 651, 694; 1992 c. 356, § 63.1-194.1; 1993, cc. 730, 742, 957, 993, § 63.1-196.001; 1994, cc. 107, 837, 865, 940; 1995, cc. 401, 520, 649, 772, 826; 1997, cc. 796, 895; 1998, cc. 115, 126, 397, 552, 727, 850; 1999, c. 454; 2000, cc. 61, 290, 500, 830, 845, 1058, § 63.1-219.7; 2002, c. 747; 2003, c. 467; 2004, cc. 70, 196, 245, 753, 814; 2006, c. 868; 2007, cc. 479, 597; 2008, cc. 475, 483; 2009, cc. 705, 813, 840; 2011, cc. 5, 156; 2012, cc. 803, 835; 2013, cc. 5, 362, 564; 2015, cc. 502, 503, 758, 770; 2016, c. 631; 2017, c. 195; 2018, cc. 497, 769, 770; 2019, cc. 210, 282, 297, 688; 2020, cc. 95, 224, 366, 732, 829, 860, 861; 2021, Sp. Sess. I, c. 254; 2022, cc. 80, 81, 366; 2023, cc. 148, 149, 568; 2024, cc. 37, 150, 779, 829.

Va. Code § 63.2-1732

§ 63.2-1732. Regulations for assisted living facilities.A. The Board shall have the authority to adopt and enforce regulations to carry out the provisions of this subtitle and to protect the health, safety, welfare, and individual rights of residents of assisted living facilities and to promote their highest level of functioning. Such regulations shall take into consideration cost constraints of smaller operations in complying with such regulations and shall provide a procedure whereby a licensee or applicant may request, and the Commissioner may grant, an allowable variance to a regulation pursuant to § 63.2-1703. B. Regulations shall include standards for staff qualifications and training; facility design, functional design, and equipment; services to be provided to residents; administration of medicine; allowable medical conditions for which care can be provided; and medical procedures to be followed by staff, including provisions for physicians' services, restorative care, and specialized rehabilitative services. The Board shall adopt regulations on qualifications and training for employees of an assisted living facility in a direct care position. "Direct care position" means supervisors, assistants, aides, or other employees of a facility who assist residents in their daily living activities. C. Regulations for a Medication Management Plan in a licensed assisted living facility shall be developed by the Board, in consultation with the Board of Nursing and the Board of Pharmacy. Such regulations shall (i) establish the elements to be contained within a Medication Management Plan, including a demonstrated understanding of the responsibilities associated with medication management by the facility; standard operating and record-keeping procedures; staff qualifications, training and supervision; documentation of daily medication administration; and internal monitoring of plan conformance by the facility; (ii) include a requirement that each assisted living facility shall establish and maintain a written Medication Management Plan that has been approved by the Department; and (iii) provide that a facility's failure to conform to any approved Medication Management Plan shall be subject to the sanctions set forth in § 63.2-1709 or 63.2-1709.2. D. The Board shall amend 22VAC40-73-450 governing assisted living facility individualized service plans to require (i) that individualized service plans be reviewed and updated (a) at least once every 12 months or (b) sooner if modifications to the plan are needed due to a significant change, as defined in 22VAC40-73-10, in the resident's condition and (ii) that any deviation from the individualized service plan (a) be documented in writing or electronically, (b) include a description of the circumstances warranting deviation and the date such deviation will occur, (c) certify that notice of such deviation was provided to the resident or his legal representative, (d) be included in the resident's file, and (e) in the case of deviations that are made due to a significant change in the resident's condition, be signed by an authorized representative of the assisted living facility and the resident or his legal representative. E. Regulations shall require all licensed assisted living facilities with six or more residents to be able to connect by July 1, 2007, to a temporary emergency electrical power source for the provision of electricity during an interruption of the normal electric power supply. The installation shall be in compliance with the Uniform Statewide Building Code. F. Regulations for medical procedures in assisted living facilities shall be developed in consultation with the State Board of Health and adopted by the Board, and compliance with these regulations shall be determined by Department of Health or Department inspectors as provided by an interagency agreement between the Department and the Department of Health. G. In developing regulations to determine the number of assisted living facilities for which an assisted living facility administrator may serve as administrator of record, the Board shall consider (i) the number of residents in each of the facilities, (ii) the travel time between each of the facilities, and (iii) the qualifications of the on-site manager under the supervision of the administrator of record. H. Regulations shall require that each assisted living facility register with the Department of State Police to receive notice of the registration, reregistration, or verification of registration information of any person required to register with the Sex Offender and Crimes Against Minors Registry pursuant to Chapter 9 (§ 9.1-900 et seq.) of Title 9.1 within the same or a contiguous zip code area in which the facility is located, pursuant to § 9.1-914. I. Regulations shall require that each assisted living facility ascertain, prior to admission, whether a potential resident is required to register with the Sex Offender and Crimes Against Minors Registry pursuant to Chapter 9 (§ 9.1-900 et seq.) of Title 9.1, if the facility anticipates the potential resident will have a length of stay greater than three days or in fact stays longer than three days. J. During a declared public health emergency related to a communicable disease of public health threat, regulations shall require each assisted living facility to establish a protocol to allow residents to receive visits from a rabbi, priest, minister, or clergy of any religious denomination or sect consistent with guidance from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services and subject to compliance with any executive order, order of public health, Department guidance, or any other applicable federal or state guidance having the effect of limiting visitation. Such protocol may restrict the frequency and duration of visits and may require visits to be conducted virtually using interactive audio or video technology. Any such protocol may require the person visiting a resident pursuant to this subsection to comply with all reasonable requirements of the assisted living facility adopted to protect the health and safety of the person, residents, and staff of the assisted living facility. Code 1950, § 63-223; 1954, c. 259; 1968, c. 578, § 63.1-174; 1973, c. 227; 1991, c. 532; 1993, cc. 957, 993; 1995, c. 649; 1997, c. 397; 2000, cc. 804, 808, 845; 2001, c. 161; 2002, c. 747; 2004, c. 673; 2005, cc. 610, 924; 2007, cc. 119, 164; 2020, cc. 829, 938; 2021, Sp. Sess. I, c. 525.

Va. Code § 63.2-1800

§ 63.2-1800. Licensure requirements.A. Each license shall indicate whether the facility is licensed to provide residential living care or residential living and assisted living care. B. Any facility licensed exclusively as an assisted living facility shall not use in its title the words "convalescent," "health," "hospital," "nursing," "sanatorium," or "sanitarium," nor shall such words be used to describe the facility in brochures, advertising, or other marketing material. No facility shall advertise or market a level of care that it is not licensed to provide. Nothing in this subsection shall prohibit the facility from describing services available in the facility. C. Upon initial application for a license, any person applying to operate an assisted living facility who has not previously owned or managed or does not currently own or manage such a facility shall be required to undergo training by the Commissioner. The training programs shall focus on health and safety regulations and resident rights as they pertain to assisted living facilities and shall be completed by the owner or administrator prior to the granting of an initial license. Such training shall be required of those owners and currently employed administrators of an assisted living facility at the time of initial application for a license. The Commissioner may also approve training programs provided by other entities and allow owners or administrators to attend such approved training programs in lieu of training by the Commissioner. The Commissioner may also approve for licensure applicants who meet requisite experience criteria as established by the Board. The Commissioner may, at his discretion, issue a license conditioned upon the owner or administrator's completion of the required training. D. For the purpose of facilitating the prompt restoration of electrical service and prioritization of customers during widespread power outages, the Commissioner shall notify on a quarterly basis all electric utilities serving customers in Virginia as to the location of all assisted living facilities licensed in the Commonwealth. The requirements of this subsection shall be met if the Commissioner maintains such information on an electronic database accessible by electric utilities serving customers in Virginia. Code 1950, § 63-23.1; 1954, c. 259; 1968, c. 578, § 63.1-175; 1972, c. 540; 1973, c. 227; 1979, c. 461; 1981, c. 222; 1983, c. 153; 1991, c. 532; 1992, c. 666; 1993, cc. 957, 993; 1994, c. 686; 1999, c. 964; 2000, cc. 178, 203; 2002, c. 747; 2004, c. 304.

Va. Code § 63.2-1805

§ 63.2-1805. Admissions and discharge; mandatory minimum liability insurance.A. The Board shall adopt regulations: 1. Governing admissions to assisted living facilities; 2. Requiring that each assisted living facility prepare and provide a statement, in a format prescribed by the Department, to any prospective resident and his legal representative, if any, prior to admission and upon request, that discloses information, fully and accurately in plain language, about the (i) services; (ii) fees, including clear information about what services are included in the base fee and any fees for additional services; (iii) admission, transfer, and discharge criteria, including criteria for transfer to another level of care within the same facility or complex; (iv) general number and qualifications of staff on each shift; (v) range, frequency, and number of activities provided for residents; and (vi) ownership structure of the facility; 3. Establishing a process to ensure that each resident admitted or retained in an assisted living facility receives appropriate services and periodic independent reassessments and reassessments when there is a significant change in the resident's condition in order to determine whether a resident's needs can continue to be met by the facility and whether continued placement in the facility is in the best interests of the resident; 4. Governing appropriate discharge planning for residents whose care needs can no longer be met by the facility; 5. Addressing the involuntary discharge of residents. Such regulations shall provide that residents may be involuntarily discharged only (i) in accordance with Board regulations, provided that the assisted living facility has met the requirements of subsection B, as applicable, and the assisted living facility has made reasonable efforts to meet the needs of the resident; (ii) for nonpayment of contracted charges, provided that the resident has been given at least 30 days to cure the delinquency after notice was provided to the resident and the resident's legal representative or designated contact person of such nonpayment; (iii) for the resident's failure to substantially comply with the terms and conditions, as allowed by regulation, of the resident agreement between the resident and assisted living facility; (iv) if the assisted living facility closes in accordance with Board regulations; or (v) when the resident develops a condition or care need that is prohibited by subsection D or Board regulations. Unless an emergency discharge is necessary due to an immediate and serious risk to the health, safety, or welfare of the resident or others, the assisted living facility shall, prior to involuntarily discharging a resident, make reasonable efforts, as appropriate, to resolve any issues with the resident upon which the decision to discharge is based and document such efforts in the resident's file. In addition to providing the written discharge notice to the resident and the resident's legal representative or designated contact person, the assisted living facility shall provide a copy of the notice to the Department and the State Long-Term Care Ombudsman at least 30 days prior to an involuntary discharge unless an emergency discharge is necessary due to an immediate and serious risk to the health, safety, or welfare of the resident or others. Such notice of discharge shall include the reasons for discharge, the date on which the discharge will occur, and information regarding the resident's right to appeal, within the 30-day notice period, the assisted living facility's decision to discharge the resident. In cases of an emergency discharge, such notice shall be provided as soon as possible, but no later than five days after the emergency discharge. Within five days after an emergency discharge, the written discharge notice shall be provided to the resident, the resident's legal representative or designated contact person, the Department, and the State Long-Term Care Ombudsman. A resident may appeal any discharge except discharges pursuant to clause (iv). The Department shall provide the discharge notice form to be used by assisted living facilities to provide notice to a resident of the resident's right to appeal such facility's decision to discharge the resident, which shall also include information regarding the process for initiating an appeal, the number for a toll-free information line, a hearing request form, the facility's obligation to assist the resident in filing an appeal and provide, upon request, a postage prepaid envelope addressed to the Department, and a statement of the resident's right to continue to reside in the facility, free from retaliation, until the appeal has a final Department case decision unless the discharge is an emergency discharge or the resident has developed a condition or care need that is prohibited by subsection D or Board regulations. Where a resident has been removed under an emergency discharge and no longer resides in the facility, the resident retains the right to appeal. Prior to involuntarily discharging a resident, the assisted living facility shall provide relocation assistance to the resident and the resident's legal representative in accordance with Board regulation. The Board shall adopt regulations that establish a process for appeals filed pursuant to this subdivision; 6. Requiring that residents are informed of their rights pursuant to § 63.2-1808 at the time of admission; 7. Establishing a process to ensure that any resident temporarily detained in a facility pursuant to §§ 37.2-809 through 37.2-813 is accepted back in the assisted living facility if the resident is not involuntarily admitted pursuant to §§ 37.2-814 through 37.2-819; 8. Requiring that each assisted living facility train all employees who are mandated to report adult abuse, neglect, or exploitation pursuant to § 63.2-1606 on such reporting procedures and the consequences for failing to make a required report; 9. Requiring that each assisted living facility prepare and provide, upon request, a statement, in a format prescribed by the Board, to any resident or prospective resident and his legal representative, if any, that states the assisted living facility maintains liability insurance in force to compensate residents or other individuals for injuries and losses from the negligent acts of the facility; 10. Establishing the minimum amount of liability insurance coverage to be maintained by an assisted living facility. In establishing such minimum amount of liability insurance, the Board shall consider the number of residents for which an assisted living facility is licensed and establish a minimum amount of liability insurance for the following tiers: Tier I, which shall govern assisted living facilities with no more than 25 residents; Tier II, which shall govern assisted living facilities with more than 25 residents but no more than 75 residents; Tier III, which shall govern assisted living facilities with more than 75 residents but no more than 150 residents; and Tier IV, which shall govern assisted living facilities with more than 150 residents; and 11. Requiring that all assisted living facilities disclose to each prospective resident, or his legal representative, in writing in a document provided to the prospective resident or his legal representative and as evidenced by the written acknowledgment of the resident or his legal representative on the same document, whether the facility has an on-site emergency electrical power source for the provision of electricity during an interruption of the normal electric power supply and, if the assisted living facility does have an on-site emergency electrical power source, (i) the items for which such on-site emergency electrical power source will supply power in the event of an interruption of the normal electric power supply and (ii) whether staff of the assisted living facility have been trained to maintain and operate such on-site emergency electrical power source to ensure the provision of electricity during an interruption of the normal electrical power supply. For the purposes of this subdivision, an on-site emergency electrical power supply shall include both permanent emergency electrical power supply sources and portable emergency electrical power sources, provided that such temporary electrical power supply source remains on the premises of the assisted living facility at all times. Written acknowledgement of the disclosure shall be represented by the signature or initials of the resident or his legal representative immediately following the on-site emergency electrical power source disclosure statement. B. If there are observed behaviors or patterns of behavior indicative of mental illness, intellectual disability, substance abuse, or behavioral disorders, as documented in the uniform assessment instrument completed pursuant to § 63.2-1804, the facility administrator or designated staff member shall ensure that an evaluation of the individual is or has been conducted by a qualified professional as defined in regulations. If the evaluation indicates a need for mental health, developmental, substance abuse, or behavioral disorder services, the facility shall provide (i) a notification of the resident's need for such services to the authorized contact person of record when available and (ii) a notification of the resident's need for such services to the community services board or behavioral health authority established pursuant to Title 37.2 that serves the city or county in which the facility is located, or other appropriate licensed provider. The Department shall not take adverse action against a facility that has demonstrated and documented a continual good faith effort to meet the requirements of this subsection. C. The Department shall not order the removal of a resident from an assisted living facility if (i) the resident, the resident's family, the resident's physician, and the facility consent to the resident's continued stay in the assisted living facility and (ii) the facility is capable of providing, obtaining, or arranging for the provision of necessary services for the resident, including, but not limited to, home health care or hospice care. D. Notwithstanding the provisions of subsection C, assisted living facilities shall not admit or retain an individual with any of the following conditions or care needs: 1. Ventilator dependency. 2. Dermal ulcers III and IV, except those stage III ulcers that are determined by an independent physician to be healing. 3. Intravenous therapy or injections directly into the vein except for intermittent intravenous therapy managed by a health care professional licensed in Virginia or as permitted in subsection E. 4. Airborne infectious disease in a communicable state that requires isolation of the individual or requires special precautions by the caretaker to prevent transmission of the disease, including diseases such as tuberculosis and excluding infections such as the common cold. 5. Psychotropic medications without appropriate diagnosis and treatment plans. 6. Nasogastric tubes. 7. Gastric tubes except when the individual is capable of independently feeding himself and caring for the tube or as permitted in subsection E. 8. An imminent physical threat or danger to self or others is presented by the individual. 9. Continuous licensed nursing care (seven-days-a-week, 24-hours-a-day) is required by the individual. 10. Placement is no longer appropriate as certified by the individual's physician. 11. Maximum physical assistance is required by the individual as documented by the uniform assessment instrument and the individual meets Medicaid nursing facility level-of-care criteria as defined in the State Plan for Medical Assistance, unless the individual's independent physician determines otherwise. Maximum physical assistance means that an individual has a rating of total dependence in four or more of the seven activities of daily living as documented on the uniform assessment instrument. 12. The assisted living facility determines that it cannot meet the individual's physical or mental health care needs. 13. Other medical and functional care needs that the Board determines cannot be met properly in an assisted living facility. E. Except for auxiliary grant recipients, at the request of the resident in an assisted living facility and when his independent physician determines that it is appropriate, (i) care for the conditions or care needs defined in subdivisions D 3 and 7 may be provided to the resident by a licensed physician, a licensed nurse or a nurse holding a multistate licensure privilege under a physician's treatment plan, or a home care organization licensed in Virginia or (ii) care for the conditions or care needs defined in subdivision D 7 may also be provided to the resident by facility staff if the care is delivered in accordance with the regulations of the Board of Nursing for delegation by a registered nurse Part VIII (18VAC90-20-420 et seq.) of 18VAC90-20. The Board shall adopt regulations to implement the provisions of this subsection. F. In adopting regulations pursuant to subsections A, B, C, D, and E, the Board shall consult with the Departments of Health and Behavioral Health and Developmental Services. 1993, cc. 957, 993, § 63.1-174.001; 1995, cc. 649, 844; 2000, c. 176; 2002, c. 747; 2004, c. 49; 2005, cc. 610, 716, 724, 924; 2007, c. 539; 2009, cc. 813, 840; 2012, cc. 476, 507; 2013, c. 320; 2019, c. 602; 2022, c. 706; 2023, c. 580.

Va. Code § 63.2-217.1

§ 63.2-217.1. Board to amend regulations governing emergency response plans of assisted living facilities.A. The Board shall amend its regulations governing emergency preparedness and response plans and temporary emergency electrical power sources of assisted living facilities to require the following: 1. Any assisted living facility that is equipped with an on-site emergency generator shall (i) include in its emergency preparedness and response plan a description of the emergency generator's capacity to provide sufficient power for the operation of lighting, ventilation, temperature control, supplied oxygen, and refrigeration and (ii) test such emergency generator monthly and maintain records of such tests; and 2. Any assisted living facility that is not equipped with an on-site emergency generator shall (i) enter into an agreement with a vendor capable of providing the assisted living facility with an emergency generator for the provision of electricity during an interruption of the normal electric power supply; (ii) enter into at least one agreement with a separate vendor capable of providing an emergency generator in the event that the primary vendor is unable to comply with its agreement with the assisted living facility during an emergency; and (iii) have its temporary emergency electrical power source connection tested at the time of installation and every two years thereafter by a contracted vendor and maintain records of such tests. B. The Department shall provide notice to all licensed assisted living facilities regarding the date by which such assisted living facilities must comply with the regulations promulgated pursuant to this section. 2019, c. 91.

Va. Code § 64.2-116

§ 64.2-116. Definitions.As used in this article, unless the context requires otherwise: "Account" means an arrangement under a terms-of-service agreement in which a custodian carries, maintains, processes, receives, or stores a digital asset of the user or provides goods or services to the user. "Agent" means a person granted authority to act for a principal under a power of attorney, whether denominated an agent, attorney-in-fact, or otherwise. "Agent" includes an original agent, a coagent, a successor agent, and a person to which an agent's authority is delegated. "Carries" means engages in the transmission of an electronic communication. "Catalog of electronic communications" means information that identifies each person with which a user has had an electronic communication, the time and date of the communication, and the electronic address of the person. "Conservator" means a person appointed by a court to manage the estate of a living individual. "Conservator" includes a limited conservator. "Content of an electronic communication" means information concerning the substance or meaning of the communication that (i) has been sent or received by a user; (ii) is in electronic storage by a custodian providing an electronic communication service to the public or is carried or maintained by a custodian providing a remote computing service to the public; and (iii) is not readily accessible to the public. "Court" means the circuit court for the county or city having jurisdiction over the fiduciary in matters relating to the content of this article. "Custodian" means a person who carries, maintains, processes, receives, or stores a digital asset of a user. "Designated recipient" means a person chosen by a user using an online tool to administer digital assets of the user. "Digital asset" means an electronic record in which an individual has a right or interest. "Digital asset" does not include an underlying asset or liability unless the asset or liability is itself an electronic record. "Electronic" means relating to technology having electrical, digital, magnetic, wireless, optical, electromagnetic, or similar capabilities. "Electronic communication" has the same meaning as the definition provided in 18 U.S.C. § 2510(12). "Electronic communication service" means a custodian that provides to a user the ability to send or receive an electronic communication. "Fiduciary" means an original, additional, or successor personal representative, conservator, guardian, agent, or trustee. "Guardian" means a person appointed by a court to manage the person of a living individual adult pursuant to Chapter 20 (§ 64.2-2000 et seq.) or a person appointed by a court to manage the estate of a minor pursuant to Chapter 17 (§ 64.2-1700 et seq.). "Guardian" includes a limited guardian. "Information" means data, text, images, videos, sounds, codes, computer programs, software, databases, or something that is substantially similar. "Online tool" means an electronic service provided by a custodian that allows the user, in an agreement distinct from the terms-of-service agreement between the custodian and user, to provide directions for disclosure or nondisclosure of digital assets to a third person. "Person" means an individual; estate; business or nonprofit entity; public corporation; government or governmental subdivision, agency, or instrumentality; or other legal entity. "Personal representative" means an executor, administrator, curator, designated successor or successor under the Virginia Small Estate Act (§ 64.2-600 et seq.), or person that performs substantially the same function under the laws of the Commonwealth other than this article. "Power of attorney" means a record that grants an agent authority to act in the place of a principal. "Principal" means an individual who grants authority to an agent in a power of attorney. "Protected person" means an individual for whom a conservator or guardian has been appointed. "Protected person" includes an individual for whom an application for the appointment of a conservator or guardian is pending. "Record" means information that is inscribed on a tangible medium or that is stored in an electronic or other medium and is retrievable in perceivable form. "Remote computing service" means a custodian that provides to a user computer-processing services or the storage of digital assets by means of an electronic communications system, as defined in 18 U.S.C. § 2510(14). "Terms-of-service agreement" means an agreement that controls the relationship between a user and a custodian. "Trustee" means a fiduciary with legal title to property under an agreement or declaration that creates a beneficial interest in another. "Trustee" includes a successor trustee. "User" means a person that has an account with a custodian. "Will" includes a codicil, testamentary instrument that only appoints an executor, and instrument that revokes or revises a testamentary instrument. 2017, cc. 33, 80.

Va. Code § 64.2-1600

§ 64.2-1600. Definitions.For the purposes of this chapter, unless the context requires otherwise: "Agent" means a person granted authority to act for a principal under a power of attorney, whether denominated an agent, attorney-in-fact, or otherwise. The term includes an original agent, coagent, successor agent, and a person to which an agent's authority is delegated. "Durable," with respect to a power of attorney, means not terminated by the principal's incapacity. "Electronic" means relating to technology having electrical, digital, magnetic, wireless, optical, electromagnetic, or similar capabilities. "Good faith" means honesty in fact. "Incapacity" means inability of an individual to manage property or business affairs because the individual: 1. Has an impairment in the ability to receive and evaluate information or make or communicate decisions even with the use of technological assistance; or 2. Is missing or outside the United States and unable to return. "Person" means an individual, corporation, business trust, estate, trust, partnership, limited liability company, association, joint venture, public corporation, government or governmental subdivision, agency, or instrumentality, or any other legal or commercial entity. "Power of attorney" means a writing or other record that grants authority to an agent to act in the place of the principal, whether or not the term power of attorney is used. "Presently exercisable general power of appointment," with respect to property or a property interest subject to a power of appointment, means power exercisable at the time in question to vest absolute ownership in the principal individually, the principal's estate, the principal's creditors, or the creditors of the principal's estate. The term includes a power of appointment not exercisable until the occurrence of a specified event, the satisfaction of an ascertainable standard, or the passage of a specified period only after the occurrence of the specified event, the satisfaction of the ascertainable standard, or the passage of the specified period. The term does not include a power exercisable in a fiduciary capacity or only by will. "Principal" means an individual who grants authority to an agent in a power of attorney. "Property" means anything that may be the subject of ownership, whether real or personal, or legal or equitable, or any interest or right therein. "Record" means information that is inscribed on a tangible medium or that is stored in an electronic or other medium and is retrievable in perceivable form. "Sign" means, with present intent to authenticate or adopt a record: (i) to execute or adopt a tangible symbol or (ii) to attach to or logically associate with the record an electronic sound, symbol, or process. "State" means a state of the United States, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, the United States Virgin Islands, or any territory or insular possession subject to the jurisdiction of the United States. "Stocks and bonds" means stocks, bonds, mutual funds, and all other types of securities and financial instruments, whether held directly, indirectly, or in any other manner. The term does not include commodity futures contracts and call or put options on stocks or stock indexes. 2010, cc. 455, 632, § 26-73; 2012, c. 614.

Va. Code § 64.2-701

§ 64.2-701. Definitions.As used in this chapter, unless the context requires a different meaning: "Action," with respect to an act of a trustee, includes a failure to act. "Appointive property" means the property or property interest subject to a power of appointment. "Ascertainable standard" means a standard relating to an individual's health, education, support, or maintenance within the meaning of § 2041(b)(1)(A) or 2514(c)(1) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 and any applicable regulations. "Authorized fiduciary" means (i) a trustee or other fiduciary, other than a settlor, that has discretion to distribute or direct a trustee to distribute part or all of the income or principal of the first trust to one or more current beneficiaries and that is not (a) a current beneficiary of the first trust or a beneficiary to which the net income or principal of the first trust would be distributed if the first trust were terminated, (b) a trustee of the first trust that may be removed and replaced by a current beneficiary who has the power to remove the existing trustee of the first trust and designate as successor trustee a person that may be a related or subordinate party, as defined in 26 U.S.C. § 672(c), with respect to such current beneficiary, or (c) an individual trustee whose legal obligation to support a beneficiary may be satisfied by distributions of income and principal of the first trust; (ii) a special fiduciary appointed under § 64.2-779.6; or (iii) a special-needs fiduciary under § 64.2-779.10. "Beneficiary" means a person that (i) has a present or future, vested or contingent, beneficial interest in a trust; (ii) holds a power of appointment over trust property; or (iii) is an identified charitable organization that will or may receive distributions under the terms of the trust. "Charitable interest" means an interest in a trust that (i) is held by an identified charitable organization and makes the organization a qualified beneficiary; (ii) benefits only charitable organizations and, if the interest were held by an identified charitable organization, would make the organization a qualified beneficiary; or (iii) is held solely for charitable purposes and, if the interest were held by an identified charitable organization, would make the organization a qualified beneficiary. "Charitable organization" means (i) a person, other than an individual, organized and operated exclusively for charitable purposes or (ii) a government or governmental subdivision, agency, or instrumentality, to the extent that it holds funds exclusively for a charitable purpose. "Charitable purpose" means the relief of poverty, the advancement of education or religion, the promotion of health, a municipal or other governmental purpose, or another purpose the achievement of which is beneficial to the community. "Charitable trust" means a trust, or portion of a trust, created for a charitable purpose described in § 64.2-723. "Conservator" means a person appointed by the court to administer the estate of an adult individual. "Court" means the court of the Commonwealth having jurisdiction in matters related to trusts. "Current beneficiary" means a beneficiary that on the date the beneficiary's qualification is determined is a distributee or permissible distributee of trust income or principal. "Current beneficiary" includes the holder of a presently exercisable general power of appointment but does not include a person that is a beneficiary only because the person holds any other power of appointment. "Decanting power" means the power of an authorized fiduciary under the Uniform Trust Decanting Act (§ 64.2-779.1 et seq.) to distribute property of a first trust to one or more second trusts or to modify the terms of the first trust. "Directed trustee" means a trustee that is subject to a trust director's power of direction. "Electronic" means relating to technology having electrical, digital, magnetic, wireless, optical, electromagnetic, or similar capabilities. "Environmental law" means a federal, state, or local law, rule, regulation, or ordinance relating to protection of the environment. "Expanded distributive discretion" means a discretionary power of distribution that is not limited to an ascertainable standard or a reasonably definite standard. "First trust" means a trust over which an authorized fiduciary may exercise the decanting power. "First-trust instrument" means the trust instrument for a first trust. "General power of appointment" means a power of appointment exercisable in favor of a powerholder, the powerholder's estate, a creditor of the powerholder, or a creditor of the powerholder's estate. "Guardian" means a person appointed by the court to make decisions regarding the support, care, education, health, and welfare of a minor or adult individual. The term does not include a guardian ad litem. "Guardian of the estate" means a person appointed by the court to administer the estate of a minor. "Interests of the beneficiaries" means the beneficial interests provided in the terms of the trust. "Jurisdiction," with respect to a geographic area, includes a state or country. "Person" means an individual; estate; business or nonprofit entity; government; governmental subdivision, agency, or instrumentality; public corporation; or other legal entity. "Powerholder" means a person in which a donor creates a power of appointment. "Power of appointment" means a power that enables a powerholder acting in a nonfiduciary capacity to designate a recipient of an ownership interest in or another power of appointment over the appointive property. "Power of appointment" does not include a power of attorney. "Power of direction" means a power over a trust granted to a person by the terms of the trust to the extent the power is exercisable while the person is not serving as a trustee. The term includes a power over the investment, management, or distribution of trust property or other matters of trust administration. The term excludes the powers described in subsection A of § 64.2-779.28. "Power of withdrawal" means a presently exercisable general power of appointment other than a power exercisable by a trustee that is limited by an ascertainable standard, or that is exercisable by another person only upon consent of the trustee or a person holding an adverse interest. "Presently exercisable power of appointment" means a power of appointment exercisable by the powerholder at the relevant time. "Presently exercisable power of appointment" includes a power of appointment exercisable only after the occurrence of a specified event, the satisfaction of an ascertainable standard, or the passage of a specified time, only after (i) the occurrence of the specified event, (ii) the satisfaction of the ascertainable standard, or (iii) the passage of the specified time. "Presently exercisable power of appointment" does not include a power exercisable only at the powerholder's death. "Property" means anything that may be the subject of ownership, whether real or personal, legal or equitable, or any interest therein. "Qualified beneficiary" means a beneficiary who, on the date the beneficiary's qualification is determined, (i) is a distributee or permissible distributee of trust income or principal; (ii) would be a distributee or permissible distributee of trust income or principal if the interests of the distributees described in clause (i) terminated on that date without causing the trust to terminate; or (iii) would be a distributee or permissible distributee of trust income or principal if the trust terminated on that date. "Reasonably definite standard" means a clearly measurable standard under which a holder of a power of distribution is legally accountable within the meaning of § 674(b)(5)(A) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 and any applicable regulations. "Record" means information that is inscribed on a tangible medium or that is stored in an electronic or other medium and is retrievable in perceivable form. "Revocable," as applied to a trust, means revocable by the settlor without the consent of the trustee or a person holding an adverse interest. "Second trust" means (i) a first trust after modification, including a restatement of the first trust, under the Uniform Trust Decanting Act (§ 64.2-779.1 et seq.) or (ii) a trust to which a distribution of property from a first trust is or may be made under the Uniform Trust Decanting Act (§ 64.2-779.1 et seq.). "Second-trust instrument" means the trust instrument for a second trust. "Settlor," except as otherwise provided in § 64.2-779.22, means a person, including a testator, who creates or contributes property to a trust. If more than one person creates or contributes property to a trust, each person is a settlor of the portion of the trust property attributable to that person's contribution except to the extent another person has the power to revoke or withdraw that portion. "Sign" means, with present intent to authenticate or adopt a record, (i) to execute or adopt a tangible symbol or (ii) to attach to or logically associate with the record an electronic symbol, sound, or process. "Spendthrift provision" means a term of a trust that restrains both voluntary and involuntary transfer of a beneficiary's interest. "State" means a state of the United States, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, the United States Virgin Islands, or any territory or insular possession subject to the jurisdiction of the United States. The term includes an Indian tribe or band recognized by federal law or formally acknowledged by a state. "Terms of a trust" means: 1. Except as otherwise provided in subdivision 2, the manifestation of the settlor's intent regarding a trust's provisions as (i) expressed in the trust instrument or (ii) established by other evidence that would be admissible in a judicial proceeding; or 2. The trust's provisions as established, determined, or amended by (i) a trustee or trust director in accordance with applicable law, (ii) court order, or (iii) a nonjudicial settlement agreement under § 64.2-709. "Trust director" means a person that is granted a power of direction by the terms of a trust to the extent the power is exercisable while the person is not serving as a trustee. The person is a trust director whether or not the terms of the trust refer to the person as a trust director and whether or not the person is a beneficiary or settlor of the trust. "Trust instrument" means a record signed by the settlor to create a trust or by any person to create a second trust that contains some or all of the terms of the trust, including any amendments. "Trustee" includes an original, additional, and successor trustee and a cotrustee. 2005, c. 935, § 55-541.03; 2012, c. 614; 2017, c. 592; 2018, c. 476; 2020, c. 768; 2025, c. 74.

Va. Code § 8.01-227.11

§ 8.01-227.11. Definitions.As used in this article, unless the context requires a different meaning: "ANSI Ski Lift Code" means the American National Standard (B77.1-2006): Passenger Ropeways -- Aerial Tramways, Aerial Lifts, Surface Lifts, Tows and Conveyors -- Safety Requirements, as published by the American National Standards Institute, including any supplements thereto or revisions thereof. "Competition" means any contest or event operated by a winter sports area operator or any other party authorized by the operator at a winter sports area involving comparison of skills, including, but not limited to, a ski race, mogul contest, jumping event, freestyle event, snowcross contest, or other similar contest or event. "Competition" includes training sessions or practice for a contest or event. "Competition terrain" means any part of a winter sports area in which an operator has authorized a competition to take place. "Competitor" means a winter sports participant who actually is engaged in a competition in any portion of a winter sports area made available by the winter sports area operator. "Designated trail" means a winter sports area trail on which a participant is permitted by the operator to participate in a winter sport. "Freestyle terrain" and "freestyle terrain park" means any portion of a winter sports area that has been designated as such by the operator for freestyle skiing, freestyle snowboarding, or similar freestyle winter sports and includes, but is not limited to, the terrain park itself and features such as rails, boxes, jumps, hits, jibs, tabletops, spines, ramps, banks, pipes, half-pipes, quarter-pipes, tables, logs, or other man-made features such as buses and other vehicles, propane tanks, and tractor tires; snowcross terrain and features; and other constructed or natural features, but does not include moguls, bumps, or rollers or jumps not built by the operator, unless they are within a designated freestyle terrain park. "Freestyler" means a winter sports participant utilizing freestyle terrain or a freestyle terrain park. "Helmet" means a type of molded headgear equipped with a neck or chin strap specifically designed by the manufacturer to be used while engaged in the winter sport of alpine skiing or snowboarding. "Inherent risks of winter sports" or "inherent risks of the winter sport" include: 1. Existing and changing weather conditions and visibility; 2. Hazards associated with varying surface or subsurface conditions on a single trail or from one trail to another, including but not limited to hazards such as participant use, snow in any condition and changing snow conditions, man-made snow, synthetic snow, ice, synthetic ice, snow or ice falling from a tree or natural or man-made structure, crust, slush, soft spots, ridges, rollers, knobs, holes, grooves, tracks from winter sports area vehicles, bare spots, rocks, boulders, stumps, logs, and brush or other forest growth or debris, or piles thereof; 3. Variations in difficulty of terrain, whether natural or as a result of slope use, slope design, or both; 4. Trails that have, or fall away or drop off toward, natural or man-made obstacles or hazards, including but not limited to sharp corners, ridges, jumps, bumps, rollers, moguls, valleys, dips, compressions, cliffs, ravines, drop-offs, streams, rivers, ponds, lakes, stream beds, open water or water with thin ice, holes, steep, flat, and uphill sections, and all variants and combinations thereof; 5. The potential for collision with other participants or other individuals, including with winter sports area personnel, whether or not those personnel are on duty or off duty; with wild or domestic animals; or with equipment or objects such as winter sports area infrastructure, snowmaking equipment, buildings and posts, and stationary and moving lit or flagged winter sports area vehicles; 6. The potential for a participant to act in a negligent or reckless manner that may cause or contribute to the injury or death of the participant or other individuals or damage to property; 7. The location, construction, design, layout, configuration, and condition of trails, freestyle terrain, and competition terrain; 8. The fact that use of trails, freestyle terrain, and competition terrain and participation in or being near races or other competitions or events, including but not limited to as a participant, employee at a winter sports area, spectator, or observer, involves the risk of serious injury or death or damage to property; 9. The fact that a helmet may not afford protection in all instances and that failure to wear a helmet that is properly sized, fitted, and secured may increase the risk of injury or death or the risk of more severe injury; and 10. The fact that the use of passenger tramways may be hazardous to passengers, including but not limited to risks resulting from loading or unloading a tramway and the potential for a passenger to fall from a tramway. "Operator" or "winter sports area operator" means any person who has responsibility for the operations of a winter sports area, including its officers, directors, and employees and agents acting within the scope of their employment. "Participant" or "winter sports participant" means an individual of any age or physical or mental ability who is an amateur or professional invitee of the operator or a trespasser and who participates in a winter sport at the winter sports area, whether or not consideration is paid to participate in the winter sport and whether or not the participant holds a valid admission ticket for all or a portion of the winter sports area, and any employee of the operator who participates in a winter sport either as part of his employment duties or as recreation. "Participates in a winter sport" or "participating in a winter sport" means: 1. Using a trail or other terrain at a winter sports area to engage in a winter sport; 2. Participating in training or lessons for a winter sport as either an instructor or a student; 3. Being a spectator, observer, bystander, or pedestrian of or to any activity on a trail or other terrain at or near a winter sports area; or 4. Being a passenger on a passenger tramway. "Passenger" means any individual, including a winter sports participant, while being transported or conveyed by a passenger tramway, while waiting in the immediate vicinity for such transportation or conveyance, while moving away from the disembarkation or unloading point of a passenger tramway to clear the way for the following passengers, or while boarding or embarking upon or unloading or disembarking from a passenger tramway. "Passenger tramway" means any ski lift, chairlift, gondola, tramway, cable car, or other aerial lift and any rope tow, conveyor, t-bar, j-bar, handle tow, or other surface lift used by an operator to transport participants, spectators, observers, or pedestrians at a winter sports area, and any associated components including, but not limited to, lift towers, concrete tower foundations, tower bolts, tower ladders, lift terminals, chairs, gondolas, t-bars, j-bars, conveyors, and other structures relating to passenger tramways. "Person" means any individual, corporation, partnership, association, cooperative, limited liability company, trust, joint venture, government, political subdivision, or any other legal or commercial entity and any successor, representative, agent, agency, or instrumentality thereof. "Snowmaking equipment" means any machine used to make snow, including but not limited to snow guns and any associated towers, components, pipe, hydrant, hose, or other structures or equipment, including electrical equipment. "Trail" or "winter sports area trail" means any slope, trail, run, freestyle terrain, or competition terrain located in a winter sports area. "Trail" includes edges and transition areas to other terrain, but does not include a tubing park. "Tubing" means sliding on inflatable tubes, minibobs, sleds, toboggans, or any other comparable devices down a prepared course or lanes at a winter sports area. "Tubing park" means an area designated by an operator for tubing. "Winter sport" means a recreational or sporting activity, including sliding, jumping, walking, or traveling on a winter sports area trail for alpine skiing; Nordic skiing; telemark skiing; freestyle skiing; snowboarding; freestyle snowboarding; snowshoeing; tobogganing; sledding; or use of a snowmobile, minibob, snowbike, or comparable device; or any similar activity or use of a device that takes place at any time of the year on natural snow, man-made snow, ice, synthetic snow, synthetic ice, or any other synthetic surface, including a competition or the use of any device by a disabled or adaptive participant for a winter sport. "Winter sport" does not include ice skating or tubing. "Winter sports area" means all the real and personal property under control of the operator or on the premises of such property that is being occupied by the operator by fee simple, lease, license, easement, permission, or otherwise, including but not limited to any and all trails, freestyle terrain, competition terrain, passenger tramways, or other areas of real property. "Winter sports area" does not include a tubing park except for any passenger tramway serving a tubing park and the immediate vicinity of such a passenger tramway in which individuals embark upon or disembark from the passenger tramway. "Winter sports area infrastructure" means: 1. Passenger tramways; 2. Snowmaking equipment; 3. Towers, buildings, shacks, fixtures, furniture, and other structures, including utility infrastructure, located on the winter sports area property; and 4. Signs, fences, ropes, flags, posts, poles, and any other materials or structures used for posting signs or to manage or direct winter sports participants, spectators, observers, or pedestrians or any combination thereof. "Winter sports area vehicle" means a vehicle used on a winter sports area trail in the operation and maintenance of winter sports areas and competitions and includes, but is not limited to, snowmobiles, all-terrain vehicles, and any other similarly sized vehicles as well as larger maintenance vehicles such as snow grooming equipment. 2012, c. 713.

Va. Code § 8.01-62

§ 8.01-62. Action may embrace liability under both State and federal acts.The motion for judgment or other pleading in any such action may embrace a cause of action growing out of any statute of the United States or this Commonwealth for such injury or death, without being demurrable on this account, and without the plaintiff being required to elect under which statute he claims. Sections 8.01-57 through 8.01-61 shall not apply to electric railways operated wholly within this Commonwealth. Code 1950, § 8-646; 1954, c. 614; 1977, c. 617. Article 7. Motor Vehicle Accidents.

Va. Code § 8.1A-201

§ 8.1A-201. General definitions.(a) Unless the context otherwise requires, words or phrases defined in this section, or in the additional definitions contained in other titles of the Uniform Commercial Code that apply to particular titles or parts thereof, have the meanings stated. (b) Subject to definitions contained in other titles of the Uniform Commercial Code that apply to particular titles or parts thereof: (1) "Action," in the sense of a judicial proceeding, includes recoupment, counterclaim, set-off, suit in equity, and any other proceeding in which rights are determined. (2) "Aggrieved party" means a party entitled to pursue a remedy. (3) "Agreement," as distinguished from "contract," means the bargain of the parties in fact, as found in their language or inferred from other circumstances, including course of performance, course of dealing, or usage of trade as provided in § 8.1A-303. (4) "Bank" means a person engaged in the business of banking and includes a savings bank, savings and loan association, credit union, and trust company. (5) "Bearer" means a person in control of a negotiable electronic document or a person in possession of a negotiable instrument, negotiable tangible document of title, or certificated security that is payable to bearer or endorsed in blank. (6) "Bill of lading" means a document evidencing the receipt of goods for shipment issued by a person engaged in the business of directly or indirectly transporting or forwarding goods. The term does not include a warehouse receipt. (7) "Branch" includes a separately incorporated foreign branch of a bank. (8) "Burden of establishing" a fact means the burden of persuading the trier of fact that the existence of the fact is more probable than its nonexistence. (9) "Buyer in ordinary course of business" means a person that buys goods in good faith, without knowledge that the sale violates the rights of another person in the goods, and in the ordinary course from a person, other than a pawnbroker, in the business of selling goods of that kind. A person buys goods in the ordinary course if the sale to the person comports with the usual or customary practices in the kind of business in which the seller is engaged or with the seller's own usual or customary practices. A person that sells oil, gas, or other minerals at the wellhead or minehead is a person in the business of selling goods of that kind. A buyer in ordinary course of business may buy for cash, by exchange of other property, or on secured or unsecured credit, and may acquire goods or documents of title under a preexisting contract for sale. Only a buyer that takes possession of the goods or has a right to recover the goods from the seller under Title 8.2 may be a buyer in ordinary course of business. "Buyer in ordinary course of business" does not include a person that acquires goods in a transfer in bulk or as security for or in total or partial satisfaction of a money debt. (10) "Conspicuous," with reference to a term, means so written, displayed, or presented that, based on the totality of the circumstances, a reasonable person against whom it is to operate ought to have noticed it. Whether a term is "conspicuous" or not is a decision for the court. (11) "Consumer" means an individual who enters into a transaction primarily for personal, family, or household purposes. (12) "Contract," as distinguished from "agreement," means the total legal obligation that results from the parties' agreement as determined by the Uniform Commercial Code as supplemented by any other applicable laws. (13) "Creditor" includes a general creditor, a secured creditor, a lien creditor, and any representative of creditors, including an assignee for the benefit of creditors, a trustee in bankruptcy, a receiver in equity, and an executor or administrator of an insolvent debtor's or assignor's estate. (14) "Defendant" includes a person in the position of defendant in a counterclaim, cross-claim, or third-party claim. (15) "Delivery," with respect to an electronic document of title means voluntary transfer of control and with respect to an instrument, a tangible document of title, or an authoritative tangible copy of a record evidencing chattel paper, means voluntary transfer of possession. (16) "Document of title" means a record (i) that in the regular course of business or financing is treated as adequately evidencing that the person in possession or control of the record is entitled to receive, control, hold, and dispose of the record and the goods it covers and (ii) that purports to be issued by or addressed to a bailee and to cover goods in the bailee's possession that are either identified or are fungible portions of an identified mass. The term includes a bill of lading, transport document, dock warrant, dock receipt, warehouse receipt, and order for delivery of goods. An electronic document of title means a document of title evidenced by a record consisting of information stored in an electronic medium. A tangible document of title means a document of title evidenced by a record consisting of information that is inscribed on a tangible medium. (16A) "Electronic" means relating to technology having electrical, digital, magnetic, wireless, optical, electromagnetic, or similar capabilities. (17) "Fault" means a default, breach, or wrongful act or omission. (18) "Fungible goods" means: (A) goods of which any unit, by nature or usage of trade, is the equivalent of any other like unit; or (B) goods that by agreement are treated as equivalent. (19) "Genuine" means free of forgery or counterfeiting. (20) "Good faith" means honesty in fact in the conduct or transaction concerned. (21) "Holder" means: (A) the person in possession of a negotiable instrument that is payable either to bearer or to an identified person that is the person in possession; (B) the person in possession of a negotiable tangible document of title if the goods are deliverable either to bearer or to the order of the person in possession; or (C) the person in control, other than pursuant to § 8.7-106 (g), of a negotiable electronic document of title. (22) "Insolvency proceeding" includes an assignment for the benefit of creditors or other proceeding intended to liquidate or rehabilitate the estate of the person involved. (23) "Insolvent" means: (A) having generally ceased to pay debts in the ordinary course of business other than as a result of bona fide dispute; (B) being unable to pay debts as they become due; or (C) being insolvent within the meaning of federal bankruptcy law. (24) "Money" means a medium of exchange that is currently authorized or adopted by a domestic or foreign government. The term includes a monetary unit of account established by an intergovernmental organization or by agreement between two or more countries. The term does not include an electronic record that is a medium of exchange recorded and transferable in a system that existed and operated for the medium of exchange before the medium of exchange was authorized or adopted by the government. (25) "Organization" means a person other than an individual. (26) "Party," as distinguished from "third party," means a person that has engaged in a transaction or made an agreement subject to the Uniform Commercial Code. (27) "Person" means an individual, corporation, business trust, estate, trust, partnership, limited liability company, association, joint venture, government, governmental subdivision, agency, or instrumentality, or any other legal or commercial entity. The term includes a protected series, however denominated, of an entity if the protected series is established under law other than the Commercial Code, Title 8.1A through Title 8.13, that limits, or limits if conditions specified under the law are satisfied, the ability of a creditor of the entity or of any other protected series of the entity to satisfy a claim from assets of the protected series. (28) "Present value" means the amount as of a date certain of one or more sums payable in the future, discounted to the date certain by use of either an interest rate specified by the parties if that rate is not manifestly unreasonable at the time the transaction is entered into or, if an interest rate is not so specified, a commercially reasonable rate that takes into account the facts and circumstances at the time the transaction is entered into. (29) "Purchase" means taking by sale, lease, discount, negotiation, mortgage, pledge, lien, security interest, issue or reissue, gift, or any other voluntary transaction creating an interest in property. (30) "Purchaser" means a person that takes by purchase. (31) "Record" means information that is inscribed on a tangible medium or that is stored in an electronic or other medium and is retrievable in perceivable form. (32) "Remedy" means any remedial right to which an aggrieved party is entitled with or without resort to a tribunal. (33) "Representative" means a person empowered to act for another, including an agent, an officer of a corporation or association, and a trustee, executor, or administrator of an estate. (34) "Right" includes remedy. (35) "Security interest" means an interest in personal property or fixtures that secures payment or performance of an obligation. "Security interest" includes any interest of a consignor and a buyer of accounts, chattel paper, a payment intangible, or a promissory note in a transaction that is subject to Title 8.9A. "Security interest" does not include the special property interest of a buyer of goods on identification of those goods to a contract for sale under § 8.2-401, but a buyer may also acquire a "security interest" by complying with Title 8.9A. Except as otherwise provided in § 8.2-505, the right of a seller or lessor of goods under Title 8.2 or Title 8.2A to retain or acquire possession of the goods is not a "security interest," but a seller or lessor may also acquire a "security interest" by complying with Title 8.9A. The retention or reservation of title by a seller of goods notwithstanding shipment or delivery to the buyer under § 8.2-401 is limited in effect to a reservation of a "security interest." Whether a transaction in the form of a lease creates a "security interest" is determined pursuant to § 8.1A-203. (36) "Send" in connection with a record or notification means: (A) to deposit in the mail, deliver for transmission, or transmit by any other usual means of communication, with postage or cost of transmission provided for, addressed to any address reasonable under the circumstances; or (B) to cause the record or notification to be received within the time it would have been received if properly sent under subparagraph (A). (37) "Sign" means, with present intent to authenticate or adopt a record: (A) execute or adopt a tangible symbol; or (B) attach to or logically associate with the record an electronic symbol, sound, or process. "Signed," "signing," and "signature" have corresponding meanings. (38) "State" means a state of the United States, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, the United States Virgin Islands, or any territory or insular possession subject to the jurisdiction of the United States. (39) "Surety" includes a guarantor or other secondary obligor. (40) "Term" means a portion of an agreement that relates to a particular matter. (41) "Unauthorized signature" means a signature made without actual, implied, or apparent authority. The term includes a forgery. (42) "Warehouse receipt" means a document of title issued by a person engaged in the business of storing goods for hire. (43) "Writing" includes printing, typewriting, or any other intentional reduction to tangible form. "Written" has a corresponding meaning. Code 1950, §§ 6-408, 6-544, 6-550; 1964, c. 219, § 8.1-201; 1973, c. 509; 1984, c. 613; 1991, c. 536; 1992, c. 693; 2000, c. 1007; 2003, c. 353; 2004, c. 200; 2024, c. 652.

Va. Code § 8.4-207.3

§ 8.4-207.3. Encoding and retention warranties.(a) A person who encodes information on or with respect to an item after issue warrants to any subsequent collecting bank and to the payor bank or other payor that the information is correctly encoded. If the customer of a depositary bank encodes, that bank also makes the warranty. (b) A person who undertakes to retain an item pursuant to an agreement for electric presentment warrants to any subsequent collecting bank and to the payor bank or other payor that retention and presentment of the item comply with the agreement. If a customer of a depositary bank undertakes to retain an item, that bank also makes this warranty. (c) A person to whom warranties are made under this section and who took the item in good faith may recover from the warrantor as damages for breach of warranty an amount equal to the loss suffered as a result of the breach, plus expenses and loss of interest incurred as a result of the breach. 1992, c. 693.

Va. Code § 8.9A-102

§ 8.9A-102. Definitions and index of definitions.(a) Title 8.9A definitions. In this title: (1) "Accession" means goods that are physically united with other goods in such a manner that the identity of the original goods is not lost. (2) "Account," except as used in "account for," "account statement," "account to," "commodity account" in paragraph (14), "customer's account," "deposit account" in paragraph (29), "on account of," and "statement of account," means a right to payment of a monetary obligation, whether or not earned by performance, (i) for property that has been or is to be sold, leased, licensed, assigned, or otherwise disposed of, (ii) for services rendered or to be rendered, (iii) for a policy of insurance issued or to be issued, (iv) for a secondary obligation incurred or to be incurred, (v) for energy provided or to be provided, (vi) for the use or hire of a vessel under a charter or other contract, (vii) arising out of the use of a credit or charge card or information contained on or for use with the card, or (viii) health-care-insurance receivables. The term includes controllable accounts. The term does not include (i) chattel paper, (ii) commercial tort claims, (iii) deposit accounts, (iv) investment property, (v) letter-of-credit rights or letters of credit, (vi) rights to payment for money or funds advanced or sold, other than rights arising out of the use of a credit or charge card or information contained on or for use with the card, or (vii) rights to payment evidenced by an instrument. (3) "Account debtor" means a person obligated on an account, chattel paper, or general intangible. The term does not include persons obligated to pay a negotiable instrument, even if the negotiable instrument evidences chattel paper. (4) "Accounting," except as used in "accounting for," means a record: (A) signed by a secured party; (B) indicating the aggregate unpaid secured obligations as of a date not more than 35 days earlier or 35 days later than the date of the record; and (C) identifying the components of the obligations in reasonable detail. (5) "Agricultural lien" means an interest, other than a security interest, in farm products: (A) which secures payment or performance of an obligation for: (i) goods or services furnished in connection with a debtor's farming operation; or (ii) rent on real property leased by a debtor in connection with its farming operation; (B) which is created by statute in favor of a person that: (i) in the ordinary course of its business furnished goods or services to a debtor in connection with a debtor's farming operation; or (ii) leased real property to a debtor in connection with the debtor's farming operation; and (C) whose effectiveness does not depend on the person's possession of the personal property. (6) "As-extracted collateral" means: (A) oil, gas, or other minerals that are subject to a security interest that: (i) is created by a debtor having an interest in the minerals before extraction; and (ii) attaches to the minerals as extracted; or (B) accounts arising out of the sale at the wellhead or minehead of oil, gas, or other minerals in which the debtor had an interest before extraction. (7) [Reserved.] (7A) "Assignee," except as used in "assignee for benefit of creditors," means a person (i) in whose favor a security interest that secures an obligation is created or provided for under a security agreement, whether or not the obligation is outstanding or (ii) to which an account, chattel paper, payment intangible, or promissory note has been sold. The term includes a person to which a security interest has been transferred by a secured party. (7B) "Assignor" means a person that (i) under a security agreement creates or provides for a security interest that secures an obligation or (ii) sells an account, chattel paper, payment intangible, or promissory note. The term includes a secured party that has transferred a security interest to another person. (8) "Bank" means an organization that is engaged in the business of banking. The term includes savings banks, savings and loan associations, credit unions, and trust companies. (9) "Cash proceeds" means proceeds that are money, checks, deposit accounts, or the like. (10) "Certificate of title" means a certificate of title with respect to which a statute provides for the security interest in question to be indicated on the certificate as a condition or result of the security interest's obtaining priority over the rights of a lien creditor with respect to the collateral. The term includes another record maintained as an alternative to a certificate of title by the governmental unit that issues certificates of title if a statute permits the security interest in question to be indicated on the record as a condition or result of the security interest's obtaining priority over the rights of a lien creditor with respect to the collateral. (11) "Chattel paper" means: (A) a right to payment of a monetary obligation secured by specific goods, if the right to payment and security agreement are evidenced by a record; or (B) a right to payment of a monetary obligation owed by a lessee under a lease agreement with respect to specific goods and a monetary obligation owed by the lessee in connection with the transaction giving rise to the lease, if: (i) the right to payment and lease agreement are evidenced by a record; and (ii) the predominant purpose of the transaction giving rise to the lease was to give the lessee the right to possession and use of the goods. The term does not include a right to payment arising out of a charter or other contract involving the use or hire of a vessel or a right to payment arising out of the use of a credit or charge card or information contained on or for use with the card. (12) "Collateral" means the property subject to a security interest or agricultural lien. The term includes: (A) proceeds to which a security interest attaches; (B) accounts, chattel paper, payment intangibles, and promissory notes that have been sold; and (C) goods that are the subject of a consignment. (13) "Commercial tort claim" means a claim arising in tort with respect to which: (A) the claimant is an organization; or (B) the claimant is an individual and the claim: (i) arose in the course of the claimant's business or profession; and (ii) does not include damages arising out of personal injury to or the death of an individual. (14) "Commodity account" means an account maintained by a commodity intermediary in which a commodity contract is carried for a commodity customer. (15) "Commodity contract" means a commodity futures contract, an option on a commodity futures contract, a commodity option, or another contract if the contract or option is: (A) traded on or subject to the rules of a board of trade that has been designated as a contract market for such a contract pursuant to federal commodities laws; or (B) traded on a foreign commodity board of trade, exchange, or market, and is carried on the books of a commodity intermediary for a commodity customer. (16) "Commodity customer" means a person for which a commodity intermediary carries a commodity contract on its books. (17) "Commodity intermediary" means a person that: (A) is registered as a futures commission merchant under federal commodities law; or (B) in the ordinary course of its business provides clearance or settlement services for a board of trade that has been designated as a contract market pursuant to federal commodities law. (18) "Communicate" means: (A) to send a written or other tangible record; (B) to transmit a record by any means agreed upon by the persons sending and receiving the record; or (C) in the case of transmission of a record to or by a filing office, to transmit a record by any means prescribed by filing-office rule. (19) "Consignee" means a merchant to which goods are delivered in a consignment. (20) "Consignment" means a transaction, regardless of its form, in which a person delivers goods to a merchant for the purpose of sale and: (A) the merchant: (i) deals in goods of that kind under a name other than the name of the person making delivery; (ii) is not an auctioneer; and (iii) is not generally known by its creditors to be substantially engaged in selling the goods of others; (B) with respect to each delivery, the aggregate value of the goods is $1,000 or more at the time of delivery; (C) the goods are not consumer goods immediately before delivery; and (D) the transaction does not create a security interest that secures an obligation. (21) "Consignor" means a person that delivers goods to a consignee in a consignment. (22) "Consumer debtor" means a debtor in a consumer transaction. (23) "Consumer goods" means goods that are used or bought for use primarily for personal, family, or household purposes. (24) "Consumer-goods transaction" means a consumer transaction in which: (A) an individual incurs an obligation primarily for personal, family, or household purposes; and (B) a security interest in consumer goods secures the obligation. (25) "Consumer obligor" means an obligor who is an individual and who incurred the obligation as part of a transaction entered into primarily for personal, family, or household purposes. (26) "Consumer transaction" means a transaction in which (i) an individual incurs an obligation primarily for personal, family, or household purposes, (ii) a security interest secures the obligation, and (iii) the collateral is held or acquired primarily for personal, family, or household purposes. The term includes consumer-goods transactions. (27) "Continuation statement" means an amendment of a financing statement which: (A) identifies, by its file number, the initial financing statement to which it relates; and (B) indicates that it is a continuation statement for, or that it is filed to continue the effectiveness of, the identified financing statement. (27A) "Controllable account" means an account evidenced by a controllable electronic record that provides that the account debtor undertakes to pay the person that has control under § 8.12-105 of the controllable electronic record. (27B) "Controllable payment intangible" means a payment intangible evidenced by a controllable electronic record that provides that the account debtor undertakes to pay the person that has control under § 8.12-105 of the controllable electronic record. (28) "Debtor" means: (A) a person having an interest, other than a security interest or other lien, in the collateral, whether or not the person is an obligor; (B) a seller of accounts, chattel paper, payment intangibles, or promissory notes; or (C) a consignee. (29) "Deposit account" means a demand, time, savings, passbook, or similar account maintained with a bank. The term does not include investment property or accounts evidenced by an instrument. (30) "Document" means a document of title or a receipt of the type described in subdivision (2) of § 8.7-201. (31) [Reserved.] (31A) "Electronic money" means money in an electronic form. (32) "Encumbrance" means a right, other than an ownership interest, in real property. The term includes mortgages and other liens on real property. (33) "Equipment" means goods other than inventory, farm products, or consumer goods. (34) "Farm products" means goods, other than standing timber, with respect to which the debtor is engaged in a farming operation and which are: (A) crops grown, growing, or to be grown, including: (i) crops produced on trees, vines, and bushes; and (ii) aquatic goods produced in aquacultural operations; (B) livestock, born or unborn, including aquatic goods produced in aquacultural operations; (C) supplies used or produced in a farming operation; or (D) products of crops or livestock in their unmanufactured states. (35) "Farming operation" means raising, cultivating, propagating, fattening, grazing, or any other farming, livestock, or aquacultural operation. (36) "File number" means the number assigned to an initial financing statement pursuant to subsection (a) of § 8.9A-519. (37) "Filing office" means an office designated in § 8.9A-501 as the place to file a financing statement. (38) "Filing-office rule" means a rule adopted pursuant to § 8.9A-526. (39) "Financing statement" means a record or records composed of an initial financing statement and any filed record relating to the initial financing statement. (40) "Fixture filing" means the filing of a financing statement covering goods that are or are to become fixtures and satisfying subsections (a) and (b) of § 8.9A-502. The term includes the filing of a financing statement covering goods of a transmitting utility which are or are to become fixtures. (41) "Fixtures" means goods that have become so related to particular real property that an interest in them arises under real property law. (42) "General intangible" means any personal property, including things in action, other than accounts, chattel paper, commercial tort claims, deposit accounts, documents, goods, instruments, investment property, letter-of-credit rights, letters of credit, money, and oil, gas, or other minerals before extraction. The term includes controllable electronic records, payment intangibles, and software. (43) "Good faith" means honesty in fact and the observance of reasonable commercial standards of fair dealing. (44) "Goods" means all things that are movable when a security interest attaches. The term includes (i) fixtures, (ii) standing timber that is to be cut and removed under a conveyance or contract for sale, (iii) the unborn young of animals, (iv) crops grown, growing, or to be grown, even if the crops are produced on trees, vines, or bushes, and (v) manufactured homes. The term also includes a computer program embedded in goods and any supporting information provided in connection with a transaction relating to the program if (i) the program is associated with the goods in such a manner that it customarily is considered part of the goods or (ii) by becoming the owner of the goods, a person acquires a right to use the program in connection with the goods. The term does not include a computer program embedded in goods that consist solely of the medium in which the program is embedded. The term also does not include accounts, chattel paper, commercial tort claims, deposit accounts, documents, general intangibles, instruments, investment property, letter-of-credit rights, letters of credit, money, or oil, gas, or other minerals before extraction. (45) "Governmental unit" means a subdivision, agency, department, county, parish, municipality, or other unit of the government of the United States, a State, or a foreign country. The term includes an organization having a separate corporate existence if the organization is eligible to issue debt on which interest is exempt from income taxation under the laws of the United States. (46) "Health-care-insurance receivable" means an interest in or claim under a policy of insurance which is a right to payment of a monetary obligation for health-care goods or services provided. (47) "Instrument" means a negotiable instrument or any other writing that evidences a right to the payment of a monetary obligation, is not itself a security agreement or lease, and is of a type that in ordinary course of business is transferred by delivery with any necessary endorsement or assignment. The term does not include (i) investment property, (ii) letters of credit, (iii) writings that evidence a right to payment arising out of the use of a credit or charge card or information contained on or for use with the card, or (iv) writings that evidence chattel paper. (48) "Inventory" means goods, other than farm products, which: (A) are leased by a person as lessor; (B) are held by a person for sale or lease or to be furnished under a contract of service; (C) are furnished by a person under a contract of service; or (D) consist of raw materials, work in process, or materials used or consumed in a business. (49) "Investment property" means a security, whether certificated or uncertificated, security entitlement, securities account, commodity contract, or commodity account. (50) "Jurisdiction of organization," with respect to a registered organization, means the jurisdiction under whose law the organization is formed or organized. (51) "Letter-of-credit right" means a right to payment or performance under a letter of credit, whether or not the beneficiary has demanded or is at the time entitled to demand payment or performance. The term does not include the right of a beneficiary to demand payment or performance under a letter of credit. (52) "Lien creditor" means: (A) a creditor that has acquired a lien on the property involved by attachment, levy, or the like; (B) an assignee for benefit of creditors from the time of assignment; (C) a trustee in bankruptcy from the date of the filing of the petition; or (D) a receiver in equity from the time of appointment. (53) "Manufactured home" means a structure, transportable in one or more sections, which, in the traveling mode, is eight body feet or more in width or 40 body feet or more in length, or, when erected on site, is 320 or more square feet, and which is built on a permanent chassis and designed to be used as a dwelling with or without a permanent foundation when connected to the required utilities, and includes the plumbing, heating, air-conditioning, and electrical systems contained therein. The term includes any structure that meets all of the requirements of this paragraph except the size requirements and with respect to which the manufacturer voluntarily files a certification required by the United States Secretary of Housing and Urban Development and complies with the standards established under Title 42 of the United States Code. (54) "Manufactured-home transaction" means a secured transaction: (A) that creates a purchase-money security interest in a manufactured home, other than a manufactured home held as inventory; or (B) in which a manufactured home, other than a manufactured home held as inventory, is the primary collateral. (54A) "Money" has the meaning in § 8.1A-102(b)(24), but does not include (i) a deposit account or (ii) money in an electronic form that cannot be subjected to control under § 8.9A-105.1. (55) "Mortgage" means a consensual interest in real property, including fixtures, which secures payment or performance of an obligation. (56) "New debtor" means a person that becomes bound as debtor under subsection (d) of § 8.9A-203 by a security agreement previously entered into by another person. (57) "New value" means (i) money, (ii) money's worth in property, services, or new credit, or (iii) release by a transferee of an interest in property previously transferred to the transferee. The term does not include an obligation substituted for another obligation. (58) "Noncash proceeds" means proceeds other than cash proceeds. (59) "Obligor" means a person that, with respect to an obligation secured by a security interest in or an agricultural lien on the collateral, (i) owes payment or other performance of the obligation, (ii) has provided property other than the collateral to secure payment or other performance of the obligation, or (iii) is otherwise accountable in whole or in part for payment or other performance of the obligation. The term does not include issuers or nominated persons under a letter of credit. (60) "Original debtor," except as used in subsection (c) of § 8.9A-310, means a person that, as debtor, entered into a security agreement to which a new debtor has become bound under subsection (d) of § 8.9A-203. (61) "Payment intangible" means a general intangible under which the account debtor's principal obligation is a monetary obligation. The term includes a controllable payment intangible. (62) "Person related to," with respect to an individual, means: (A) the spouse of the individual; (B) a brother, brother-in-law, sister, or sister-in-law of the individual; (C) an ancestor or lineal descendant of the individual or the individual's spouse; or (D) any other relative, by blood or marriage, of the individual or the individual's spouse who shares the same home with the individual. (63) "Person related to," with respect to an organization, means: (A) a person directly or indirectly controlling, controlled by, or under common control with the organization; (B) an officer or director of, or a person performing similar functions with respect to, the organization; (C) an officer or director of, or a person performing similar functions with respect to, a person described in subparagraph (A); (D) the spouse of an individual described in subparagraph (A), (B), or (C); or (E) an individual who is related by blood or marriage to an individual described in subparagraph (A), (B), (C), or (D) and shares the same home with the individual. (64) "Proceeds," except as used in subsection (b) of § 8.9A-609, means the following property: (A) whatever is acquired upon the sale, lease, license, exchange, or other disposition of collateral; (B) whatever is collected on, or distributed on account of, collateral; (C) rights arising out of collateral; (D) to the extent of the value of collateral, claims arising out of the loss, nonconformity, or interference with the use of, defects or infringement of rights in, or damage to, the collateral; or (E) to the extent of the value of collateral and to the extent payable to the debtor or the secured party, insurance payable by reason of the loss or nonconformity of, defects or infringement of rights in, or damage to, the collateral. (65) "Promissory note" means an instrument that evidences a promise to pay a monetary obligation, does not evidence an order to pay, and does not contain an acknowledgment by a bank that the bank has received for deposit a sum of money or funds. (66) "Proposal" means a record signed by a secured party which includes the terms on which the secured party is willing to accept collateral in full or partial satisfaction of the obligation it secures pursuant to §§ 8.9A-620, 8.9A-621, and 8.9A-622. (67) "Public-finance transaction" means a secured transaction in connection with which: (A) debt securities are issued; (B) all or a portion of the securities issued have an initial stated maturity of at least 20 years; and (C) the debtor, obligor, secured party, account debtor or other person obligated on collateral, assignor or assignee of a secured obligation, or assignor or assignee of a security interest is a state or a governmental unit of a state. (68) "Public organic record" means a record that is available to the public for inspection and that is: (A) a record consisting of the record initially filed with or issued by a state or the United States to form or organize an organization and any record filed with or issued by the state or the United States which amends or restates the initial record; (B) an organic record of a business trust consisting of the record initially filed with a state and any record filed with the state which amends or restates the initial record, if a statute of the state governing business trusts requires that the record be filed with the state; or (C) a record consisting of legislation enacted by the legislature of a state or the Congress of the United States which forms or organizes an organization, any record amending the legislation, and any record filed with or issued by the state or the United States which amends or restates the name of the organization. (69) "Pursuant to commitment," with respect to an advance made or other value given by a secured party, means pursuant to the secured party's obligation, whether or not a subsequent event of default or other event not within the secured party's control has relieved or may relieve the secured party from its obligation. (70) "Record," except as used in "for record," "of record," "record or legal title," and "record owner," means information that is inscribed on a tangible medium or which is stored in an electronic or other medium and is retrievable in perceivable form. (71) "Registered organization" means an organization formed or organized solely under the law of a single state or the United States by the filing of a public organic record with, the issuance of a public organic record by, or the enactment of legislation by the state or the United States. The term includes a business trust that is formed or organized under the law of a single state if a statute of the state governing business trusts requires that the business trust's organic record be filed with the state. (72) "Secondary obligor" means an obligor to the extent that: (A) the obligor's obligation is secondary; or (B) the obligor has a right of recourse with respect to an obligation secured by collateral against the debtor, another obligor, or property of either. (73) "Secured party" means: (A) a person in whose favor a security interest is created or provided for under a security agreement, whether or not any obligation to be secured is outstanding; (B) a person that holds an agricultural lien; (C) a consignor; (D) a person to which accounts, chattel paper, payment intangibles, or promissory notes have been sold; (E) a trustee, indenture trustee, agent, collateral agent, or other representative in whose favor a security interest or agricultural lien is created or provided for; or (F) a person that holds a security interest arising under § 8.2-401, 8.2-505, 8.2-711 (3), 8.2A-508 (5), 8.4-210, or 8.5A-118. (74) "Security agreement" means an agreement that creates or provides for a security interest. (75) [Reserved.] (76) "Software" means a computer program and any supporting information provided in connection with a transaction relating to the program. The term does not include a computer program that is included in the definition of goods. (77) "State" means a state of the United States, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, the United States Virgin Islands, or any territory or insular possession subject to the jurisdiction of the United States. (78) "Supporting obligation" means a letter of credit right or secondary obligation that supports the payment or performance of an account, chattel paper, a document, a general intangible, an instrument, or investment property. (79) [Reserved.] (79A) "Tangible money" means money in a tangible form. (80) "Termination statement" means an amendment of a financing statement which: (A) identifies, by its file number, the initial financing statement to which it relates; and (B) indicates either that it is a termination statement or that the identified financing statement is no longer effective. (81) "Transmitting utility" means a person primarily engaged in the business of: (A) operating a railroad, subway, street railway, or trolley bus; (B) transmitting communications electrically, electromagnetically, or by light; (C) transmitting goods by pipeline or sewer; or (D) transmitting or producing and transmitting electricity, steam, gas, or water. (b) Definitions in other titles. The following definitions in other titles apply to this title: "Applicant" § 8.5A-102. "Beneficiary" § 8.5A-102. "Broker" § 8.8A-102. "Certificated security" § 8.8A-102. "Check" § 8.3A-104. "Clearing corporation" § 8.8A-102. "Contract for sale" § 8.2-106. "Control" § 8.7-106. "Controllable electronic record" § 8.12-102. "Customer" § 8.4-104. "Entitlement holder" § 8.8A-102. "Financial asset" § 8.8A-102. "Holder in due course" § 8.3A-302. "Issuer" (with respect to a letter of credit or letter-of-credit right) § 8.5A-102. "Issuer" (with respect to a security) § 8.8A-201. "Issuer" (with respect to documents of title) § 8.7-102. "Lease" § 8.2A-103. "Lease agreement" § 8.2A-103. "Lease contract" § 8.2A-103. "Leasehold interest" § 8.2A-103. "Lessee" § 8.2A-103. "Lessee in ordinary course of business" § 8.2A-103. "Lessor" § 8.2A-103. "Lessor's residual interest" § 8.2A-103. "Letter of credit" § 8.5A-102. "Merchant" § 8.2-104. "Negotiable instrument" § 8.3A-104. "Nominated person" § 8.5A-102. "Note" § 8.3A-104. "Proceeds of a letter of credit" § 8.5A-114. "Protected purchaser" § 8.8A-303. "Prove" § 8.3A-103. "Qualifying purchaser" § 8.12-102. "Sale" § 8.2-106. "Securities account" § 8.8A-501. "Securities intermediary" § 8.8A-102. "Security" § 8.8A-102. "Security certificate" § 8.8A-102. "Security entitlement" § 8.8A-102. "Uncertificated security" § 8.8A-102. (c) Title 8.1A definitions and principles. Title 8.1A contains general definitions and principles of construction and interpretation applicable throughout this title. 1964, c. 219, §§ 8.2-326, 8.9-105, 8.9-106, 8.9-109, 8.9-115, 8.9-301, 8.9-306; 1966, c. 394; 1973, c. 509; 1983, c. 204; 1984, c. 613; 1996, cc. 77, 216; 1997, c. 343; 2000, c. 1007; 2003, c. 353; 2004, c. 200; 2012, c. 155; 2024, c. 652.

Va. Code § 9.1-102

§ 9.1-102. Powers and duties of the Board and the Department.The Department, under the direction of the Board, which shall be the policy-making body for carrying out the duties and powers hereunder, shall have the power and duty to: 1. Adopt regulations, pursuant to the Administrative Process Act (§ 2.2-4000 et seq.), for the administration of this chapter including the authority to require the submission of reports and information by law-enforcement officers within the Commonwealth. Any proposed regulations concerning the privacy, confidentiality, and security of criminal justice information shall be submitted for review and comment to any board, commission, or committee or other body which may be established by the General Assembly to regulate the privacy, confidentiality, and security of information collected and maintained by the Commonwealth or any political subdivision thereof; 2. Establish compulsory minimum training standards subsequent to employment as a law-enforcement officer in (i) permanent positions and (ii) temporary or probationary status and establish the time required for completion of such training. Such compulsory minimum training standards shall include crisis intervention training in accordance with clause (i) of § 9.1-188; 3. Establish minimum training standards and qualifications for certification and recertification for law-enforcement officers serving as field training officers; 4. Establish compulsory minimum curriculum requirements for in-service and advanced courses and programs for schools, whether located in or outside the Commonwealth, which are operated for the specific purpose of training law-enforcement officers; 5. Establish (i) compulsory minimum training standards for law-enforcement officers who utilize radar or an electrical or microcomputer device to measure the speed of motor vehicles as provided in § 46.2-882 and establish the time required for completion of the training and (ii) compulsory minimum qualifications for certification and recertification of instructors who provide such training; 6. [Repealed]; 7. Establish compulsory minimum entry-level, in-service and advanced training standards for those persons designated to provide courthouse and courtroom security pursuant to the provisions of § 53.1-120, and to establish the time required for completion of such training; 8. Establish compulsory minimum entry-level, in-service and advanced training standards for deputy sheriffs designated to serve process pursuant to the provisions of § 8.01-293, and establish the time required for the completion of such training; 9. Establish compulsory minimum entry-level, in-service, and advanced training standards, as well as the time required for completion of such training, for persons employed as deputy sheriffs and jail officers by local criminal justice agencies and correctional officers employed by the Department of Corrections under the provisions of Title 53.1. For deputy sheriffs and jail officers who are employees of local or regional correctional facilities and correctional officers employed by the Department of Corrections, such standards shall include training on the general care of pregnant women, the impact of restraints on pregnant inmates and fetuses, the impact of being placed in restrictive housing or solitary confinement on pregnant inmates, and the impact of body cavity searches on pregnant inmates; 10. Establish compulsory minimum training standards for all dispatchers employed by or in any local or state government agency, whose duties include the dispatching of law-enforcement personnel. Such training standards shall apply only to dispatchers hired on or after July 1, 1988. Such training shall include training in the identification of, communication with, and facilitation of the safe return of individuals diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease and dementia, which shall include (i) techniques for respectful and effective communication with individuals with Alzheimer's disease and dementia and their caregivers; (ii) techniques for addressing the behavioral symptoms of Alzheimer's disease and dementia, including alternatives to physical restraint; (iii) protocols for identifying and reporting incidents of abuse, neglect, and exploitation of individuals with Alzheimer's disease and dementia to adult protective services; (iv) protocols for contacting caregivers when an individual with Alzheimer's disease or dementia is found wandering or during an emergency or crisis situation; (v) a reference list of local resources available for individuals with Alzheimer's disease and dementia; and (vi) a reference list of local and national organizations that assist law-enforcement personnel with locating missing and wandering individuals with Alzheimer's disease and dementia and returning them to their caregivers; 11. Establish compulsory minimum training standards for all auxiliary police officers employed by or in any local or state government agency. Such training shall be graduated and based on the type of duties to be performed by the auxiliary police officers. Such training standards shall not apply to auxiliary police officers exempt pursuant to § 15.2-1731; 12. Consult and cooperate with counties, municipalities, agencies of the Commonwealth, other state and federal governmental agencies, and institutions of higher education within or outside the Commonwealth, concerning the development of police training schools and programs or courses of instruction; 13. Approve institutions, curricula and facilities, whether located in or outside the Commonwealth, for school operation for the specific purpose of training law-enforcement officers; but this shall not prevent the holding of any such school whether approved or not; 14. Establish and maintain police training programs through such agencies and institutions as the Board deems appropriate; 15. Establish compulsory minimum qualifications of certification and recertification for instructors in criminal justice training academies approved by the Department; 16. Conduct and stimulate research by public and private agencies which shall be designed to improve police administration and law enforcement; 17. Make recommendations concerning any matter within its purview pursuant to this chapter; 18. Coordinate its activities with those of any interstate system for the exchange of criminal history record information, nominate one or more of its members to serve upon the council or committee of any such system, and participate when and as deemed appropriate in any such system's activities and programs; 19. Conduct inquiries and investigations it deems appropriate to carry out its functions under this chapter and, in conducting such inquiries and investigations, may require any criminal justice agency to submit information, reports, and statistical data with respect to its policy and operation of information systems or with respect to its collection, storage, dissemination, and usage of criminal history record information and correctional status information, and such criminal justice agencies shall submit such information, reports, and data as are reasonably required; 20. Conduct audits as required by § 9.1-131; 21. Conduct a continuing study and review of questions of individual privacy and confidentiality of criminal history record information and correctional status information; 22. Advise criminal justice agencies and initiate educational programs for such agencies with respect to matters of privacy, confidentiality, and security as they pertain to criminal history record information and correctional status information; 23. Maintain a liaison with any board, commission, committee, or other body which may be established by law, executive order, or resolution to regulate the privacy and security of information collected by the Commonwealth or any political subdivision thereof; 24. Adopt regulations establishing guidelines and standards for the collection, storage, and dissemination of criminal history record information and correctional status information, and the privacy, confidentiality, and security thereof necessary to implement state and federal statutes, regulations, and court orders; 25. Operate a statewide criminal justice research center, which shall maintain an integrated criminal justice information system, produce reports, provide technical assistance to state and local criminal justice data system users, and provide analysis and interpretation of criminal justice statistical information; 26. Develop a comprehensive, statewide, long-range plan for strengthening and improving law enforcement and the administration of criminal justice throughout the Commonwealth, and periodically update that plan; 27. Cooperate with, and advise and assist, all agencies, departments, boards and institutions of the Commonwealth, and units of general local government, or combinations thereof, including planning district commissions, in planning, developing, and administering programs, projects, comprehensive plans, and other activities for improving law enforcement and the administration of criminal justice throughout the Commonwealth, including allocating and subgranting funds for these purposes; 28. Define, develop, organize, encourage, conduct, coordinate, and administer programs, projects and activities for the Commonwealth and units of general local government, or combinations thereof, in the Commonwealth, designed to strengthen and improve law enforcement and the administration of criminal justice at every level throughout the Commonwealth; 29. Review and evaluate programs, projects, and activities, and recommend, where necessary, revisions or alterations to such programs, projects, and activities for the purpose of improving law enforcement and the administration of criminal justice; 30. Coordinate the activities and projects of the state departments, agencies, and boards of the Commonwealth and of the units of general local government, or combination thereof, including planning district commissions, relating to the preparation, adoption, administration, and implementation of comprehensive plans to strengthen and improve law enforcement and the administration of criminal justice; 31. Do all things necessary on behalf of the Commonwealth and its units of general local government, to determine and secure benefits available under the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968 (P.L. 90-351, 82 Stat. 197), as amended, and under any other federal acts and programs for strengthening and improving law enforcement, the administration of criminal justice, and delinquency prevention and control; 32. Receive, administer, and expend all funds and other assistance available to the Board and the Department for carrying out the purposes of this chapter and the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968, as amended; 33. Apply for and accept grants from the United States government or any other source in carrying out the purposes of this chapter and accept any and all donations both real and personal, and grants of money from any governmental unit or public agency, or from any institution, person, firm or corporation, and may receive, utilize and dispose of the same. Any arrangements pursuant to this section shall be detailed in the annual report of the Board. Such report shall include the identity of the donor, the nature of the transaction, and the conditions, if any. Any moneys received pursuant to this section shall be deposited in the state treasury to the account of the Department. To these ends, the Board shall have the power to comply with conditions and execute such agreements as may be necessary; 34. Make and enter into all contracts and agreements necessary or incidental to the performance of its duties and execution of its powers under this chapter, including but not limited to, contracts with the United States, units of general local government or combinations thereof, in Virginia or other states, and with agencies and departments of the Commonwealth; 35. Adopt and administer reasonable regulations for the planning and implementation of programs and activities and for the allocation, expenditure and subgranting of funds available to the Commonwealth and to units of general local government, and for carrying out the purposes of this chapter and the powers and duties set forth herein; 36. Certify and decertify law-enforcement officers in accordance with §§ 15.2-1706 and 15.2-1707 and provide for a decertification review process in accordance with § 15.2-1708; 37. Establish training standards and publish and periodically update model policies for law-enforcement personnel in the following subjects: a. The handling of family abuse, domestic violence, sexual assault, and stalking cases, including standards for determining the predominant physical aggressor in accordance with § 19.2-81.3. The Department shall provide technical support and assistance to law-enforcement agencies in carrying out the requirements set forth in subsection A of § 9.1-1301; b. The identification of, communication with, and facilitation of the safe return of individuals diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease and dementia, which shall include (i) techniques for respectful and effective communication with individuals with Alzheimer's disease and dementia and their caregivers; (ii) techniques for addressing the behavioral symptoms of Alzheimer's disease and dementia, including alternatives to physical restraint; (iii) protocols for identifying and reporting incidents of abuse, neglect, and exploitation of individuals with Alzheimer's disease and dementia to adult protective services; (iv) protocols for contacting caregivers when an individual with Alzheimer's disease or dementia is found wandering or during an emergency or crisis situation; (v) a reference list of local resources available for individuals with Alzheimer's disease and dementia; and (vi) a reference list of local and national organizations that assist law-enforcement personnel with locating missing and wandering individuals with Alzheimer's disease and dementia and returning them to their caregivers; c. Sensitivity to and awareness of systemic and individual racism, cultural diversity, and the potential for racially biased policing and bias-based profiling as defined in § 52-30.1, which shall include recognizing implicit biases in interacting with persons who have a mental illness, substance use disorder, or developmental or cognitive disability; d. Protocols for local and regional sexual assault and human trafficking response teams; e. Communication of death notifications; f. The questioning of individuals suspected of driving while intoxicated concerning the physical location of such individual's last consumption of an alcoholic beverage and the communication of such information to the Virginia Alcoholic Beverage Control Authority; g. Vehicle patrol duties that embody current best practices for pursuits and for responding to emergency calls; h. Criminal investigations that embody current best practices for conducting photographic and live lineups; i. Sensitivity to and awareness of human trafficking offenses and the identification of victims of human trafficking offenses for personnel involved in criminal investigations or assigned to vehicle or street patrol duties; j. The recognition, prevention, and reporting of human trafficking; k. Missing children, missing adults, and search and rescue protocol; l. The handling and use of tear gas or other gases and kinetic impact munitions, as defined in § 19.2-83.3, that embody current best practices for using such items as a crowd control measure or during an arrest or detention of another person; and m. The use of naloxone or other opioid antagonists to prevent opioid overdose deaths, in coordination with statewide naloxone training programs developed by the Department of Behavioral Health and Developmental Services and the Virginia Department of Health; 38. Establish compulsory training standards for basic training and the recertification of law-enforcement officers to ensure (i) sensitivity to and awareness of systemic and individual racism, cultural diversity, and the potential for racially biased policing and bias-based profiling as defined in § 52-30.1, which shall include recognizing implicit biases in interacting with persons who have a mental illness, substance use disorder, or developmental or cognitive disability; (ii) training in de-escalation techniques; and (iii) training in the lawful use of force, including the use of deadly force, as defined in § 19.2-83.3, only when necessary to protect the law-enforcement officer or another person; 39. Review and evaluate community-policing programs in the Commonwealth, and recommend where necessary statewide operating procedures, guidelines, and standards that strengthen and improve such programs, including sensitivity to and awareness of systemic and individual racism, cultural diversity, and the potential for racially biased policing and bias-based profiling as defined in § 52-30.1, which shall include recognizing implicit biases in interacting with persons who have a mental illness, substance use disorder, or developmental or cognitive disability; 40. Establish a Virginia Law-Enforcement Accreditation Center. The Center may, in cooperation with Virginia law-enforcement agencies, provide technical assistance and administrative support, including staffing, for the establishment of voluntary state law-enforcement accreditation standards. The Center may provide accreditation assistance and training, resource material, and research into methods and procedures that will assist the Virginia law-enforcement community efforts to obtain Virginia accreditation status; 41. Promote community policing philosophy and practice throughout the Commonwealth by providing community policing training and technical assistance statewide to all law-enforcement agencies, community groups, public and private organizations and citizens; developing and distributing innovative policing curricula and training tools on general community policing philosophy and practice and contemporary critical issues facing Virginia communities; serving as a consultant to Virginia organizations with specific community policing needs; facilitating continued development and implementation of community policing programs statewide through discussion forums for community policing leaders, development of law-enforcement instructors; promoting a statewide community policing initiative; and serving as a statewide information source on the subject of community policing including, but not limited to periodic newsletters, a website and an accessible lending library; 42. Establish, in consultation with the Department of Education and the Virginia State Crime Commission, compulsory minimum standards for employment and job-entry and in-service training curricula and certification requirements for school security officers, including school security officers described in clause (b) of § 22.1-280.2:1, which training and certification shall be administered by the Virginia Center for School and Campus Safety (VCSCS) pursuant to § 9.1-184. Such training standards shall be specific to the role and responsibility of school security officers and shall include (i) relevant state and federal laws; (ii) school and personal liability issues; (iii) security awareness in the school environment; (iv) mediation and conflict resolution, including de-escalation techniques such as a physical alternative to restraint; (v) disaster and emergency response; (vi) awareness of systemic and individual racism, cultural diversity, and implicit bias; (vii) working with students with disabilities, mental health needs, substance use disorders, and past traumatic experiences; and (viii) student behavioral dynamics, including child and adolescent development and brain research. The Department shall establish an advisory committee consisting of local school board representatives, principals, superintendents, and school security personnel to assist in the development of the standards and certification requirements in this subdivision. The Department shall require any school security officer who carries a firearm in the performance of his duties to provide proof that he has completed a training course provided by a federal, state, or local law-enforcement agency that includes training in active shooter emergency response, emergency evacuation procedure, and threat assessment; 43. License and regulate property bail bondsmen and surety bail bondsmen in accordance with Article 11 (§ 9.1-185 et seq.); 44. License and regulate bail enforcement agents in accordance with Article 12 (§ 9.1-186 et seq.); 45. In conjunction with the Virginia State Police and the State Compensation Board, advise criminal justice agencies regarding the investigation, registration, and dissemination of information requirements as they pertain to the Sex Offender and Crimes Against Minors Registry Act (§ 9.1-900 et seq.); 46. Establish minimum standards for (i) employment, (ii) job-entry and in-service training curricula, and (iii) certification requirements for campus security officers. Such training standards shall include, but not be limited to, the role and responsibility of campus security officers, relevant state and federal laws, school and personal liability issues, security awareness in the campus environment, and disaster and emergency response. The Department shall provide technical support and assistance to campus police departments and campus security departments on the establishment and implementation of policies and procedures, including but not limited to: the management of such departments, investigatory procedures, judicial referrals, the establishment and management of databases for campus safety and security information sharing, and development of uniform record keeping for disciplinary records and statistics, such as campus crime logs, judicial referrals and Clery Act statistics. The Department shall establish an advisory committee consisting of college administrators, college police chiefs, college security department chiefs, and local law-enforcement officials to assist in the development of the standards and certification requirements and training pursuant to this subdivision; 47. Assess and report, in accordance with § 9.1-190, the crisis intervention team programs established pursuant to § 9.1-187; 48. In conjunction with the Office of the Attorney General, advise law-enforcement agencies and attorneys for the Commonwealth regarding the identification, investigation, and prosecution of human trafficking offenses using the common law and existing criminal statutes in the Code of Virginia; 49. Register tow truck drivers in accordance with § 46.2-116 and carry out the provisions of § 46.2-117; 50. Administer the activities of the Virginia Sexual and Domestic Violence Program Professional Standards Committee by providing technical assistance and administrative support, including staffing, for the Committee; 51. In accordance with § 9.1-102.1, design and approve the issuance of photo-identification cards to private security services registrants registered pursuant to Article 4 (§ 9.1-138 et seq.); 52. In consultation with the State Council of Higher Education for Virginia and the Virginia Association of Campus Law Enforcement Administrators, develop multidisciplinary curricula on trauma-informed sexual assault investigation; 53. In consultation with the Department of Behavioral Health and Developmental Services, develop a model addiction recovery program that may be administered by sheriffs, deputy sheriffs, jail officers, administrators, or superintendents in any local or regional jail. Such program shall be based on any existing addiction recovery programs that are being administered by any local or regional jails in the Commonwealth. Participation in the model addiction recovery program shall be voluntary, and such program may address aspects of the recovery process, including medical and clinical recovery, peer-to-peer support, availability of mental health resources, family dynamics, and aftercare aspects of the recovery process; 54. Establish compulsory minimum training standards for certification and recertification of law-enforcement officers serving as school resource officers. Such training shall be specific to the role and responsibility of a law-enforcement officer working with students in a school environment and shall include (i) relevant state and federal laws; (ii) school and personal liability issues; (iii) security awareness in the school environment; (iv) mediation and conflict resolution, including de-escalation techniques; (v) disaster and emergency response; (vi) awareness of systemic and individual racism, cultural diversity, and implicit bias; (vii) working with students with disabilities, mental health needs, substance use disorders, or past traumatic experiences; and (viii) student behavioral dynamics, including current child and adolescent development and brain research; 55. Establish a model policy for the operation of body-worn camera systems as defined in § 15.2-1723.1 that also addresses the storage and maintenance of body-worn camera system records; 56. Establish compulsory minimum training standards for detector canine handlers employed by the Department of Corrections, standards for the training and retention of detector canines used by the Department of Corrections, and a central database on the performance and effectiveness of such detector canines that requires the Department of Corrections to submit comprehensive information on each canine handler and detector canine, including the number and types of calls and searches, substances searched for and whether or not detected, and the number of false positives, false negatives, true positives, and true negatives; 57. Establish compulsory training standards for basic training of law-enforcement officers for recognizing and managing stress, self-care techniques, and resiliency; 58. Establish guidelines and standards for psychological examinations conducted pursuant to subsection C of § 15.2-1705; 59. Establish compulsory in-service training standards, to include frequency of retraining, for law-enforcement officers in the following subjects: (i) relevant state and federal laws; (ii) awareness of cultural diversity and the potential for bias-based profiling as defined in § 52-30.1; (iii) de-escalation techniques; (iv) working with individuals with disabilities, mental health needs, or substance use disorders; and (v) the lawful use of force, including the use of deadly force, as defined in § 19.2-83.3, only when necessary to protect the law-enforcement officer or another person; 60. Develop a model curriculum and lesson plans for the compulsory minimum entry-level, in-service, and advanced training standards to be employed by criminal justice training academies approved by the Department when conducting training; 61. Adopt statewide professional standards of conduct applicable to all certified law-enforcement officers and certified jail officers and appropriate due process procedures for decertification based on serious misconduct in violation of those standards and provide for a decertification review process in accordance with § 15.2-1708; 62. Establish and administer a waiver process, in accordance with §§ 2.2-5515 and 15.2-1721.1, for law-enforcement agencies to use certain military property. Any waivers granted by the Criminal Justice Services Board shall be published by the Department on the Department's website; 63. Establish compulsory training standards for basic training and the recertification of law-enforcement officers to include crisis intervention training in accordance with clause (ii) of § 9.1-188; 64. Advise and assist the Department of Behavioral Health and Developmental Services, and support local law-enforcement cooperation, with the development and implementation of the Marcus alert system, as defined in § 37.2-311.1, including the establishment of local protocols for law-enforcement participation in the Marcus alert system pursuant to § 9.1-193 and for reporting requirements pursuant to §§ 9.1-193 and 37.2-311.1; 65. Develop an online course to train hotel proprietors and their employees to recognize and report instances of suspected human trafficking; 66. Develop an online course to train unarmed security officers, armed security officers, couriers, security canine handlers, and alarm respondents to recognize and report instances of suspected human trafficking to meet the compulsory minimum, entry-level, and in-service training standards as required by § 9.1-141; 67. Establish standards and procedures for when the Board may grant a petition for reinstatement of certification of a decertified officer pursuant to subsection E of § 15.2-1708; 68. Establish compulsory minimum and in-service training standards for law-enforcement officers on communicating with individuals with an intellectual disability or a developmental disability as defined in § 37.2-100, such as autism spectrum disorder as defined in the most recent edition of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders of the American Psychiatric Association, which shall include (i) an overview and behavioral recognition of autism spectrum disorder, (ii) best practices for crisis prevention and de-escalation techniques, (iii) an objective review of any relevant tools and technology available to assist in communication, and (iv) education on law-enforcement agency and community resources for the autism community on future crisis prevention. Such training standards shall be established in consultation with at least one individual with autism spectrum disorder, one family member of an individual with autism spectrum disorder, one specialist who works with individuals with autism spectrum disorder, one representative from the Department of Behavioral Health and Developmental Services, and one representative from a state or local law-enforcement agency; 69. Develop an online course for the Virginia Alcoholic Beverage Control Authority to offer to retail licensees and their employees to train such licensees and employees to recognize and report instances of suspected human trafficking; 70. Establish a model policy for best practices for law-enforcement officers responding to or investigating an overdose, when prescriber information has been obtained during the course of such response or investigation, to notify the prescriber of any controlled substance found to be in the possession of or believed to have been ingested by the victim that such prescription of a controlled substance was involved in an overdose. Such model policy shall include that a notification to a prescriber of a controlled substance shall not be required if such notification would jeopardize an active law-enforcement investigation; 71. Establish a training curriculum for law-enforcement agencies, law-enforcement officers, and special conservators of the peace on the discretion such officers can exercise regarding arrests as provided in Chapter 7 (§ 19.2-71 et seq.) of Title 19.2. Such training shall include (i) instruction on the scope and nature of law-enforcement officer discretion in arrest decisions, with particular emphasis on encounters with individuals experiencing a mental health crisis, including individuals currently subject to an emergency custody order pursuant to § 37.2-808, a temporary detention order pursuant to § 37.2-809, or an involuntary admission order pursuant to § 37.2-817, and (ii) instruction on the immediate and long-term effects of arrests on individuals in need of mental health services due to a mental health crisis, including impacts on treatment outcomes as identified in substantially accepted peer-reviewed research literature; 72. Establish a model policy for the provision of security at nonprofit institutions that serve individuals and communities at risk of hate crimes as defined in § 52-8.5 within the Commonwealth, incorporating relevant information about various traditions, services, or activities that any law-enforcement officer, unarmed security officer, or armed security officer providing such security may encounter; and 73. Perform such other acts as may be necessary or convenient for the effective performance of its duties. 1981, c. 632, § 9-170; 1982, c. 473; 1984, cc. 515; 779; 1986, c. 128; 1988, cc. 46, 560; 1990, c. 632; 1991, c. 345; 1994, cc. 850, 905; 1996, cc. 154, 866, 952; 1998, cc. 31, 471, 523; 1999, cc. 307, 495; 2000, c. 561; 2001, cc. 162, 210, 434, 458, 844; 2002, cc. 490, 810, 818, 836, 868; 2004, cc. 397, 460, 972, 980, 1016; 2005, cc. 868, 881; 2006, cc. 203, 233, 857, 914; 2008, cc. 328, 600, 771; 2009, c. 715; 2010, c. 224; 2011, cc. 579, 635, 719, 821, 854; 2012, cc. 140, 159, 803, 827, 835; 2014, cc. 7, 158, 265; 2015, cc. 38, 205, 222, 223, 278, 402, 730; 2016, cc. 197, 235, 256, 481, 560; 2017, cc. 311, 758; 2019, cc. 366, 487, 488, 493; 2020, cc. 123, 184, 526, 535, 638, 1206, 1262; 2020, Sp. Sess. I, cc. 27, 32, 36, 37, 41, 42, 48, 55; 2021, Sp. Sess. I, c. 467; 2022, cc. 45, 46, 751; 2023, c. 331; 2024, cc. 141, 366, 367, 494, 556, 698, 742, 773; 2025, cc. 231, 273, 619, 639, 667, 698.

Va. Code § 9.1-138

§ 9.1-138. Definitions.In addition to the definitions set forth in § 9.1-101, as used in this article, unless the context requires a different meaning: "Alarm respondent" means an individual who responds to the signal of an alarm for the purpose of detecting an intrusion of the home, business or property of the end user. "Armed" means a private security registrant who carries or has immediate access to a firearm in the performance of his duties. "Armed security officer" means a natural person employed to (i) safeguard and protect persons and property or (ii) deter theft, loss, or concealment of any tangible or intangible personal property on the premises he is contracted to protect, and who carries or has access to a firearm in the performance of his duties. "Armored car personnel" means persons who transport or offer to transport under armed security from one place to another, money, negotiable instruments or other valuables in a specially equipped motor vehicle with a high degree of security and certainty of delivery. "Business advertising material" means display advertisements in telephone directories, letterhead, business cards, local newspaper advertising, contracts, and any electronic medium, including the Internet, social media, and digital advertising. "Central station dispatcher" means an individual who monitors burglar alarm signal devices, burglar alarms or any other electrical, mechanical or electronic device used (i) to prevent or detect burglary, theft, shoplifting, pilferage or similar losses; (ii) to prevent or detect intrusion; or (iii) primarily to summon aid for other emergencies. "Certification" means the method of regulation indicating that qualified persons have met the minimum requirements as private security services training schools, private security services instructors, compliance agents, or certified detector canine handler examiners. "Compliance agent" means an individual who owns or is employed by a licensed private security services business to ensure the compliance of the private security services business with this title. "Computer or digital forensic services" means the use of highly specialized expertise for the recovery, authentication, and analysis of electronic data or computer usage. "Courier" means any armed person who transports or offers to transport from one place to another documents or other papers, negotiable or nonnegotiable instruments, or other small items of value that require expeditious services. "Detector canine" means any dog that detects drugs or explosives. "Detector canine handler" means any individual who uses a detector canine in the performance of private security duties. "Detector canine handler examiner" means any individual who examines the proficiency and reliability of detector canines and detector canine handlers in the detection of drugs or explosives. "Detector canine team" means the detector canine handler and his detector canine performing private security duties. "Electronic security business" means any person who engages in the business of or undertakes to (i) install, service, maintain, design or consult in the design of any electronic security equipment to an end user; (ii) respond to or cause a response to electronic security equipment for an end user; or (iii) have access to confidential information concerning the design, extent, status, password, contact list, or location of an end user's electronic security equipment. "Electronic security employee" means an individual who is employed by an electronic security business in any capacity which may give him access to information concerning the design, extent, status, password, contact list, or location of an end user's electronic security equipment. "Electronic security equipment" means (i) electronic or mechanical alarm signaling devices including burglar alarms or holdup alarms used to safeguard and protect persons and property; or (ii) cameras used to detect intrusions, concealment or theft, to safeguard and protect persons and property. This shall not include tags, labels, and other devices that are attached or affixed to items offered for sale, library books, and other protected articles as part of an electronic article surveillance and theft detection and deterrence system. "Electronic security sales representative" means an individual who sells electronic security equipment on behalf of an electronic security business to the end user. "Electronic security technician" means an individual who installs, services, maintains or repairs electronic security equipment. "Electronic security technician's assistant" means an individual who works as a laborer under the supervision of the electronic security technician in the course of his normal duties, but who may not make connections to any electronic security equipment. "Employed" means to be in an employer/employee relationship where the employee is providing work in exchange for compensation and the employer directly controls the employee's conduct and pays some taxes on behalf of the employee. The term "employed" shall not be construed to include independent contractors. "End user" means any person who purchases or leases electronic security equipment for use in that person's home or business. "Firearms training verification" means the verification of successful completion of either initial or retraining requirements for handgun or shotgun training, or both. "General public" means individuals who have access to areas open to all and not restricted to any particular class of the community. "Key cutting" means making duplicate keys from an existing key and includes no other locksmith services. "License number" means the official number issued to a private security services business licensed by the Department. "Locksmith" means any individual that performs locksmith services, or advertises or represents to the general public that the individual is a locksmith even if the specific term locksmith is substituted with any other term by which a reasonable person could construe that the individual possesses special skills relating to locks or locking devices, including use of the words lock technician, lockman, safe technician, safeman, boxman, unlocking technician, lock installer, lock opener, physical security technician or similar descriptions. "Locksmith services" mean selling, servicing, rebuilding, repairing, rekeying, repinning, changing the combination to an electronic or mechanical locking device; programming either keys to a device or the device to accept electronic controlled keys; originating keys for locks or copying keys; adjusting or installing locks or deadbolts, mechanical or electronic locking devices, egress control devices, safes, and vaults; opening, defeating or bypassing locks or latching mechanisms in a manner other than intended by the manufacturer; with or without compensation for the general public or on property not his own nor under his own control or authority. "Natural person" means an individual person. "Personal protection specialist" means any individual who engages in the duties of providing close protection from bodily harm to any person. "Private investigator" means any individual who engages in the business of, or accepts employment to make, investigations to obtain information on (i) crimes or civil wrongs; (ii) the location, disposition, or recovery of stolen property; (iii) the cause of accidents, fires, damages, or injuries to persons or to property; or (iv) evidence to be used before any court, board, officer, or investigative committee. "Private security services business" means any person engaged in the business of providing, or who undertakes to provide, armored car personnel, security officers, personal protection specialists, private investigators, couriers, security canine handlers, security canine teams, detector canine handlers, detector canine teams, alarm respondents, locksmiths, central station dispatchers, electronic security employees, electronic security sales representatives or electronic security technicians and their assistants to another person under contract, express or implied. "Private security services instructor" means any individual certified by the Department to provide mandated instruction in private security subjects for a certified private security services training school. "Private security services registrant" means any qualified individual who has met the requirements under this article to perform the duties of alarm respondent, locksmith, armored car personnel, central station dispatcher, courier, electronic security sales representative, electronic security technician, electronic security technician's assistant, personal protection specialist, private investigator, security canine handler, detector canine handler, unarmed security officer or armed security officer. "Private security services training school" means any person certified by the Department to provide instruction in private security subjects for the training of private security services business personnel in accordance with this article. "Registration" means a method of regulation whereby certain personnel employed by a private security services business are required to register with the Department pursuant to this article. "Registration category" means any one of the following categories: (i) unarmed security officer and armed security officer/courier, (ii) security canine handler, (iii) armored car personnel, (iv) private investigator, (v) personal protection specialist, (vi) alarm respondent, (vii) central station dispatcher, (viii) electronic security sales representative, (ix) electronic security technician, (x) electronic technician's assistant, (xi) detector canine handler, or (xii) locksmith. "Security canine" means a dog that has attended, completed, and been certified as a security canine by a certified security canine handler instructor in accordance with approved Department procedures and certification guidelines. "Security canines" shall not include detector dogs. "Security canine handler" means any individual who utilizes his security canine in the performance of private security duties. "Security canine team" means the security canine handler and his security canine performing private security duties. "Supervisor" means any individual who directly or indirectly supervises registered or certified private security services business personnel. "Unarmed security officer" means a natural person who performs the functions of observation, detection, reporting, or notification of appropriate authorities or designated agents regarding persons or property on the premises he is contracted to protect, and who does not carry or have access to a firearm in the performance of his duties. 1976, c. 737, § 54-729.27; 1977, c. 376, § 54.1-1900; 1980, c. 425, cc. 57, 779; 1988, c. 765; 1992, c. 578, § 9-183.1; 1994, cc. 45, 335, 810; 1995, c. 79; 1996, c. 541; 1997, c. 80; 1998, cc. 122, 807; 1999, c. 33; 2001, cc. 821, 844; 2003, c. 124; 2004, c. 470; 2005, c. 365; 2008, c. 638; 2009, c. 375; 2011, c. 263; 2017, c. 85.

Va. Code § 9.1-140

§ 9.1-140. Exceptions from article; training requirements for out-of-state central station dispatchers.The provisions of this article shall not apply to: 1. An officer or employee of the United States, the Commonwealth, or a political subdivision of either, while the officer or employee is performing his official duties; 2. A person, except a private investigator as defined in § 9.1-138, engaged exclusively in the business of obtaining and furnishing information regarding an individual's financial rating or a person engaged in the business of a consumer reporting agency as defined by the Federal Fair Credit Reporting Act; 3. An attorney licensed to practice in Virginia or his employees; 4. The legal owner of personal property which has been sold under any security agreement while performing acts relating to the repossession of such property; 5. A person receiving compensation for private employment as a security officer, or receiving compensation under the terms of a contract, express or implied, as a security officer, who is also a law-enforcement officer as defined by § 9.1-101 and employed by the Commonwealth or any of its political subdivisions; 6. Any person appointed under § 46.2-2003 or 56-353 while engaged in the employment contemplated thereunder, unless they have successfully completed training mandated by the Department; 7. Persons who conduct investigations as a part of the services being provided as a claims adjuster, by a claims adjuster who maintains an ongoing claims adjusting business, and any natural person employed by the claims adjuster to conduct investigations for the claims adjuster as a part of the services being provided as a claims adjuster; 8. Any natural person otherwise required to be registered pursuant to § 9.1-139 who is employed by a business that is not a private security services business for the performance of his duties for his employer. Any such employee, however, who carries a firearm and is in direct contact with the general public in the performance of his duties shall possess a valid registration with the Department as required by this article; 9. Persons, sometimes known as "shoppers," employed to purchase goods or services solely for the purpose of determining or assessing the efficiency, loyalty, courtesy, or honesty of the employees of a business establishment; 10. Licensed or registered private investigators from other states entering Virginia during an investigation originating in their state of licensure or registration when the other state offers similar reciprocity to private investigators licensed and registered by the Commonwealth; 11. Unarmed regular employees of telephone public service companies where the regular duties of such employees consist of protecting the property of their employers and investigating the usage of telephone services and equipment furnished by their employers, their employers' affiliates, and other communications common carriers; 12. An end user; 13. A material supplier who renders advice concerning the use of products sold by an electronics security business and who does not provide installation, monitoring, repair or maintenance services for electronic security equipment; 14. Members of the security forces who are directly employed by electric public service companies; 15. Any professional engineer or architect licensed in accordance with Chapter 4 (§ 54.1-400 et seq.) of Title 54.1 to practice in the Commonwealth, or his employees; 16. Any person who only performs telemarketing or schedules appointments without access to information concerning the electronic security equipment purchased by an end user; 17. Any certified forensic scientist employed as an expert witness for the purpose of possibly testifying as an expert witness; 18. Members of the security forces who are directly employed by shipyards engaged in the construction, design, overhaul or repair of nuclear vessels for the United States Navy; 19. An out-of-state central station dispatcher employed by a private security services business licensed by the Department provided he (i) possesses and maintains a valid license, registration, or certification as a central station dispatcher issued by the regulatory authority of the state in which he performs the monitoring duties and (ii) has submitted his fingerprints to the regulatory authority for the conduct of a national criminal history records search; 20. Any person, or independent contractor or employee of any person, who (i) exclusively contracts directly with an agency of the federal government to conduct background investigations and (ii) possesses credentials issued by such agency authorizing such person, subcontractor or employee to conduct background investigations; 21. Any person whose occupation is limited to the technical reconstruction of the cause of accidents involving motor vehicles as defined in § 46.2-100, regardless of whether the information resulting from the investigation is to be used before a court, board, officer, or investigative committee, and who is not otherwise a private investigator as defined in § 9.1-138; 22. Retail merchants performing locksmith services, selling locks or engaged in key cutting activities conducted at the business location who do not represent themselves to the general public as locksmiths; 23. Law-enforcement, fire, rescue, emergency service personnel, or other persons performing locksmith services in an emergency situation without compensation and who do not represent themselves to the general public as locksmiths; 24. Motor vehicle dealers as defined in § 46.2-1500 performing locksmith services who do not represent themselves to the general public as locksmiths; 25. Taxicab and towing businesses performing locksmith services that do not represent themselves to the general public as locksmiths; 26. Contractors licensed under Chapter 11 (§ 54.1-1100 et seq.) of Title 54.1 performing locksmith services when acting within the scope of such license who do not represent themselves to the general public as locksmiths; 27. Any contractor as defined in § 54.1-1100 (i) who is exempt from the licensure requirements of Chapter 11 (§ 54.1-1100 et seq.) of Title 54.1, (ii) where the total value referred to in a single contract or project is less than $1,000, (iii) when the performance of locksmith services is ancillary to the work performed by such contractor, and (iv) who does not represent himself to the general public as a locksmith; 28. Any individual, employed by a retail merchant that also holds a private security services business license as a locksmith, where such individual's duties relating to such license are limited to key cutting and the key cutting is performed under the direct supervision of the licensee; 29. Any individual engaged in (i) computer or digital forensic services as defined in § 9.1-138 or in the acquisition, review, or analysis of digital or computer-based information, in order to obtain or furnish information for evidentiary purposes or to provide expert testimony before a court, or (ii) network or system vulnerability testing, including network scans and risk assessment and analysis of computers connected to a network; 30. Employees and sales representatives of a retailer of electronic security equipment, provided such employees and sales representatives (i) sell electronic security equipment at a store location, online, or by telephone, but not at the end user's premises; (ii) are not electronic security technicians; and (iii) do not have access to end user confidential information regarding the end user's electronic security equipment; or 31. A certified public accountant authorized to practice in the Commonwealth under Chapter 44 (§ 54.1-4400 et seq.) of Title 54.1 or his employees. 1976, c. 737, § 54-729.28; 1977, c. 376, § 54.1-1901; 1981, c. 538; 1983, c. 569; 1984, c. 375; 1988, c. 765; 1992, c. 578, § 9-183.2; 1994, cc. 45, 810; 1995, c. 79; 1996, cc. 541, 543, 576; 1997, cc. 80, 204; 2000, c. 26; 2001, cc. 388, 650, 821, 844; 2002, cc. 578, 597; 2003, c. 136; 2008, c. 638; 2009, c. 225; 2011, c. 263; 2013, c. 411; 2014, c. 214.

Va. Code § 9.1-201

§ 9.1-201. Powers of Executive Director.The Executive Director shall have the following powers to: 1. Supervise the administration of the Department; 2. Prepare, approve, and submit all requests for appropriations and be responsible for all expenditures pursuant to appropriations; 3. Employ such staff as is necessary to carry out the powers and duties of this chapter, within the limits of available appropriations; 4. Accept on behalf of the Department grants from the United States government and agencies and instrumentalities thereof and any other sources. To these ends, the Executive Director shall have the power to execute such agreements in accordance with any policies of the Virginia Fire Services Board; 5. Do all acts necessary or convenient to carry out the purpose of this chapter and to assist the Board in carrying out its responsibilities and duties; 6. Make and enter into all contracts and agreements necessary or incidental to the performance of its duties and the execution of its powers under this chapter, including, but not limited to, contracts with the United States, other states, and agencies and governmental subdivisions of the Commonwealth; 7. Appoint a director of fire services training; 8. Receive funds as appropriated by the General Assembly collected pursuant to § 38.2-401, on an annual basis to be used as provided in subsection C of § 38.2-401; 9. Administer the Thermal Imaging Camera Grant Funds established pursuant to § 9.1-205; 10. Administer the provisions of the Statewide Fire Prevention Code (§ 27-94 et seq.); and 11. Develop a training program on the risks of fires in electric vehicles and how to safely and effectively manage such fires to be completed by all firefighters, including volunteer firefighters as defined in § 27-42, as required by § 27-23.11. 1978, c. 606, § 9-154; 1981, c. 154; 1985, cc. 397, 545; 2001, c. 844; 2002, c. 721; 2007, cc. 647, 741; 2012, cc. 164, 456; 2023, c. 87.

The law belongs to the people. Georgia v. Public.Resource.Org, 590 U.S. (2020)