Highlights of Bills and New Laws in Virginia for 2019

每年一月，弗吉尼亚议会召开会议，考虑通过新法律和废除旧法律. 代表和州参议员每隔一年开会六周或八周，每年在预算投票时多开会两周. We had a 47-day session this year with sine die (closing day) on February 24. Generally, 新法律将于7月1日生效，除非立即或延迟颁布. More than 3,000 bills were introduced. Some were continued to the 2020 session, others failed to pass both the Senate and House of Delegates, and some were vetoed by the governor. Here are highlights of some that passed and some that didn’t. 

New Laws That Were Passed

Rear-facing Child Restraint Devices-禁止在儿童年满两岁或达到制造商规定的最低身高和体重之前使用面向前方的儿童约束装置. 研究表明，面向后的座椅可以更好地保护儿童的头部, neck and spine when the vehicle is involved in a collision. The bill was passed in 2018 but had a delayed effective date of July 1, 2019. HB708 

Break to Express Breast Milk-人力澳门亚洲博彩平台排名管理部门需要制定州人事政策，为哺乳母亲提供合理的休息时间，并在浴室以外的地方进行哺乳，避免同事和公众的干扰. HB1916 

Happy Hour Advertisement-该法案扩大了零售许可商宣传欢乐时光的能力，允许他们陈述特色酒精饮料的价格，并使用创造性的营销技巧，只要广告不鼓励过度消费或未成年人饮酒. SB1726 

Purchase, Possession, and Sale of Tobacco Products, Nicotine Vapor Products, and Alternative Nicotine Products—The minimum age for persons purchasing or possessing tobacco products, nicotine vapor products, 替代尼古丁产品从18种增加到21种现役军人除外. 该法案还允许烟草和尼古丁蒸汽产品从自动售货机出售，如果张贴了最低年龄要求的通知，并且机器位于不对公众开放的区域，并且21岁以下的人很容易进入.  HB2748 

Smoking in Outdoor Amphitheater of Concert Venue—With the passage of this bill, 地方可以制定条例，在本地方所有的露天露天剧场、音乐会场地内划定合理的禁烟区. 该法案要求该条例张贴足够的标志，指定禁烟区. 违规者将受到民事(非刑事)处罚，罚款不超过25美元. SB1304 

Statute of Limitations-该法案规定基于未签署的诉讼的诉讼时效, written contract is three years after the cause of action has accrued. HB2242 

Capital Murder—Any person convicted of capital murder of a law-enforcement officer, fire marshal, 或者犯罪时年满十八周岁的其他公安工作人员，处不低于强制性最低无期徒刑. SB1501 

Autism Spectrum Disorder Insurance Coverage-无论被保险人的年龄大小，保险公司都必须对自闭症谱系障碍进行保险. Formerly this was required only for ages 2 through 10. 该要求影响2020年1月1日起发布、重新发布或提供的保单. HB2577 SB1693 

Cruelty to Animals—A number of bills passed regarding tethering of animals, adequate shelter and space, and general cruelty to animals. “Adequate shelter” includes the provision of shelter that, during hot weather, is shaded and does not readily conduct heat and, during cold weather, has a windbreak at its entrance and provides sufficient bedding material. HB1625 SB1025 HB1874 HB1897 

Move Over Law—The requirement to move over, or slow down if moving over is not available, 对于路边的紧急车辆，已扩大到包括几乎所有显示闪烁灯的车辆. 即使是初犯也属于一级轻罪(如鲁莽驾驶)，可能被处以最高2美元的罚款,500 and incarceration up to one year. The possibility of jail carries with it the right to an attorney. HB1911 

VA Lottery Law; Disclosure of a Lottery Winner’s Identity-除非中奖者同意，VA彩票不得披露奖金超过1000万美元的个人中奖者的信息. HB1650/SB1060 

Dismissal of Summons for Expiration of Vehicle Registration-如果被告在开庭日期或之前向法院提供遵守法律的证明，法院有权驳回过期登记的传票. HB1712 

Cannabis——诺瑟姆州长3月份签署的新法律扩大了弗吉尼亚州的医用大麻项目. 感兴趣的人可以去医疗保健专业人员那里，从将在英联邦各地设立的五个药房之一获得使用CBD和四氢大麻酚a产品的处方. 在弗吉尼亚州，吸食大麻仍然是非法的，娱乐性使用大麻产品仍然被禁止. SB1557 

Bills That Did Not Become Law 

Sanctuary Policies Prohibited—A bill that prohibits localities from adopting any ordinance, procedure, 一项旨在限制联邦移民法执行的政策在弗吉尼亚州参众两院都获得通过，但被诺瑟姆州长否决. SB1156 

Manufacture and Distribution of Switchblade Knives-一项免除制造商禁止销售或拥有弹簧刀的法案, distributor, 该法案通过了弗吉尼亚州参众两院，但被诺瑟姆州长否决. SB1251 

Equal Rights Amendment—A resolution to make Virginia the 38^th 最终批准ERA的州在VA参议院以26票对14票通过，但在众议院委员会以一票之差未能进行全体投票. Even if it had passed in both the VA House and Senate, 联邦法院可能会介入，因为批准修正案的最后期限是1982年. 这一事实并没有阻止大量支持者在州议会大厦示威. SJ284 

这只是2019年弗吉尼亚州立法会议上讨论的法案中的一个亮点. Information was provided from the following sources: 

http://dls.virginia.gov/pubs/summary/2019/summary2019.pdf

http://dls.virginia.gov/pubs/idc/idc19.html 

Kathryn Byler is a Pender & Coward attorney focusing her practice in the areas of real estate, business, guardianships, and estate planning matters.