VCOPS at the
Virginia Legislature - 2009
The 2009 Virginia General Assembly session has
finished. This was a very tough session due to the lack
of new funding and the budget crisis in Virginia and the US in general. VCOPS decided to be defensive this session and watch for legislation that can harm
our rights and benefits. We have introduced several pieces of legislation and
will support or oppose others. Three bills made it through the session.
CLICK HERE
The 2009 Session Bills are in various stages in the legislative system. For the
most current status of the bill click on the bill number (in
red) and go to the bill page on the Virginia Legislative Information
system. You can track where a piece of legislation is by clicking on the bill
number (in red).
HOW TO USE THE VCOPS
LEGISLATIVE INFORMATION SYSTEM
VCOPS recommends that anyone interested in following the
legislative process join the "Lobbyist-in-a-Box"
program offered by the General Assembly website. Click on "Lobbyist-in-a-Box"
link to learn more and sign up for the free
service. You can track up to 5 bills during this session and have emails sent
to you when the bills change. There are easy instructions and setup is rather
easy.
Additional bills of interest will be added to this page as
we learn of their existence. Set this page as one of your "favorites" and sign
up for
Lobbyist-in-a-Box.
What you need to do to support bills at the legislature
.
Write a very short
email to the Delegates or Senators in the list below each bill. You can say the
same thing to each of them unless you know the legislator personally, or live in
their jurisdiction. Let them know that you are a Police Officer or Deputy and
especially if
you live in their area.
Example: Hello Delegate(Senator)__________ I am (name) and I work as a
Police Officer/Deputy Sheriff in Virginia (unless you are in their jurisdiction
then tell them that) Please support (HB# or SB#). Then give a short reason why
they should support the bill. Sign your name and copy the email and move to the
next name until you reach the end of the list. Once you write the first email
the rest are easy.
Another example--click
HERE
Remember .... links
to the bill is in RED and the committees are in
BLUE
2009 Legislative Agenda
Agenda In WORD Format
Click
HERE
Goto: Current Bills Page for 2009 Session
Type in bill number to see current status
****Legislation that has Passed****
****SB951 -Assault & battery; penalty when committed against Metro
Washington Airport Authority police officer.
****SB877 Bill to Clarify Concealed
Weapons Law for Retired Law Enforement Officers
****
SB1409
Capital murder; auxiliary police officers.
1-
Bills to amend § 18.2-57.
Assault and Battery. (Law Enforcement Officer) to include the Metropolitan
Washington Airport Authority.
HB2492 -
Assault & battery; penalty when
committed against Metro Washington Airport Authority police officer.
Paula J. Miller |
all patrons
HB2492:
http://leg1.state.va.us/cgi-bin/legp504.exe?ses=091&typ=bil&val=HB2492
Summary as
introduced:
Assault and battery of law-enforcement officer; penalty.
Adds Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority police officers to
the definition of law-enforcement officer, which means that the punishment
for committing an assault and battery on such an officer who is
engaged in the performance of his public duties is elevated from a
Class 1 misdemeanor to a Class 6 felony, with a six-month term of confinement,
30 days of which is a mandatory minimum.
Full
text:
01/14/09 House: Presented and ordered printed 098726644
(impact statement)
Status:
01/14/09 House: Presented and ordered printed 098726644
01/14/09 House: Referred to Committee for Courts of Justice
01/20/09 House: Assigned Courts sub: Criminal
02/10/09 House: Left in Courts
of Justice
****
SB951 -Assault & battery; penalty when committed against Metro
Washington Airport Authority police officer.
Janet D. Howell |
all patrons
SB951:
http://leg1.state.va.us/cgi-bin/legp504.exe?ses=091&typ=bil&val=sb951
Summary as introduced:
Assault and battery of law-enforcement officer; penalty.
Adds Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority police officers to the
definition of law-enforcement officer, which means that the punishment for
committing an assault and battery on such an officer who is engaged in the
performance of his public duties is elevated from a Class 1 misdemeanor to a
Class 6 felony, with a six-month term of confinement, 30 days of which is a
mandatory minimum.
Full text:
01/07/09 Senate: Prefiled and ordered printed; offered 01/14/09 098617248
(impact statement)
Status:
01/07/09 Senate: Prefiled and ordered printed; offered 01/14/09
098617248
01/07/09 Senate: Referred to Committee for Courts of Justice
01/13/09 Senate: Assigned Courts sub: Criminal
01/28/09
Senate: Reported from Courts of Justice (15-Y 0-N)
01/28/09 Senate: Rereferred to Finance
02/04/09 Senate: Reported from Finance (16-Y 0-N)
02/05/09 Senate: Constitutional reading dispensed (39-Y
0-N)
02/06/09 Senate: Read second time and engrossed
02/09/09 Senate: Read third time and passed Senate (40-Y 0-N)
02/13/09 House: Placed on Calendar
02/13/09 House: Read first time
02/13/09
House: Referred to Committee for Courts of Justice
02/18/09 House: Assigned Courts sub: Criminal
02/18/09 House: Subcommittee recommends reporting
2-
Bill -Public Safety Health
Protection Act -- Passed by indefinitely by voice vote
HB1959 Workers' compensation; prohibits State from
terminating employment for line of duty injury, etc.
Robert W. Mathieson |
all patrons
HB1959:
http://leg1.state.va.us/cgi-bin/legp504.exe?ses=091&typ=bil&val=hb1959
Summary
as introduced:
Workers' compensation; discharge of public safety employees.
Prohibits the Commonwealth, a locality, or a political subdivision, as employer
of a public safety employee, from involuntarily discharging or terminating the
employment of such an employee suffering from a line of duty injury or
occupational illness, for a period of (i) one year after the injury occurred or
illness arose, if the employee has not returned to employment in full
unrestricted duty, or (ii) two years after the injury occurred or illness arose,
if a physician has determined, before the expiration of the one-year period,
that the employee, within the ensuing one year, will reach maximum medical
improvement and, to a reasonable degree of medical probability, will resume
employment without significant limitations in the position he held when the
injury occurred or illness arose.
Full
text:
01/13/09 House: Prefiled and ordered printed; offered 01/14/09 096653618
Status:
01/13/09 House: Prefiled and ordered printed; offered 01/14/09
096653618
01/13/09 House: Referred to Committee on Commerce and Labor
01/16/09 House: Assigned C & L sub: 1
01/27/09 House: Subcommittee recommends passing by indefinitely by voice vote
01/29/09 House: Passed by indefinitely in Commerce and Labor by voice vote
3-
Bill to Povide
funding fr the Line of Duty Act and Health Benefits Trust Fund
SB1006
- Line of Duty Act; funding for Line of Duty
Death and Health Benefits Trust Fund.
Frederick M.Quayle |
all patrons
SB1006:
http://leg1.state.va.us/cgi-bin/legp504.exe?ses=091&typ=bil&val=sb1006
Summary as introduced:
Line of Duty Act; definitions; funding for Line of Duty Death
and Health Benefits Trust Fund. Includes local employees disabled on or
after January 1, 1966, in the definition of “disabled employee.” The bill also
provides for a $1.50 fee to be collected per month from alarm company operators
for each alarm system monitored and a $5 fee to be collected for processes and
services in civil proceedings to provide funding to the Line of Duty Death and
Health Benefits Trust Fund.
Full
text:
01/13/09 Senate: Prefiled and ordered printed; offered 01/14/09 096735308
Status:
01/13/09 Senate: Prefiled and ordered printed; offered 01/14/09
096735308
01/13/09 Senate: Referred to Committee on Finance
01/13/09 Senate: Referred to Committee on Finance
02/04/09 Senate: Reported from Finance with substitute
(11-Y 4-N 1-A)
02/04/09 Senate: Committee substitute printed 096025212-S1
02/05/09 Senate: Constitutional reading dispensed (39-Y
0-N)
02/06/09 Senate: Read second time
02/06/09 Senate: Reading of substitute waived
02/06/09 Senate: Committee substitute agreed to 096025212-S1
02/06/09 Senate: Engrossed by Senate - committee substitute SB1006S1
02/09/09 Senate: Read third time and passed Senate (28-Y 11-N)
02/13/09 House: Placed on Calendar
02/13/09 House: Read first time
02/13/09 House: Referred to Committee on Appropriations
02/16/09 House: Assigned App. sub: Compensation and
Retirement (Hogan, Clarke N.)
02/28/09 House: Left in Appropriations
4-
HB1958
Infectious disease
presumption; emergency declaration by Governor.
Robert W. Mathieson |
all patrons INCORPORATED INTO
HB2478 then PASSED BY INDEFINITELY
HB1958:
http://leg1.state.va.us/cgi-bin/legp504.exe?ses=091&typ=bil&val=HB1958
HB2478:
http://leg1.state.va.us/cgi-bin/legp504.exe?ses=091&typ=bil&val=HB2478
Summary as introduced:
Infectious disease presumption; emergency declaration by
Governor. Authorizes the Governor to declare that a communicable,
contagious, or infectious disease is a disease that is covered by the existing
infectious disease presumption for firefighters, paramedics, emergency medical
technicians, and certain law-enforcement officers under the Virginia Workers'
Compensation Act. The presumption currently exists for hepatitis, meningococcal
meningitis, tuberculosis, and HIV. Such a declaration may be made after the
Board of Health has issued an order for the purpose of suppressing the outbreak
of the disease and the Governor has declared a state of emergency due to an
outbreak of the disease that poses a danger to the life and health of the
public.
Full
text:
01/13/09 House: Prefiled and ordered printed; offered 01/14/09 098529618
(impact statement)
Status:
01/13/09 House: Prefiled and ordered printed; offered 01/14/09
098529618
01/13/09 House: Referred to Committee on Militia, Police and Public Safety
01/23/09 House: Referred from Militia, Police and Public Safety by voice
vote
01/23/09 House: Referred to Committee on Commerce and
Labor
02/03/09 House: Incorporated by Commerce and Labor
(HB2478-Hugo) by voice vote
Summary as introduced:
Infectious disease presumption; emergency declaration by Governor.
Authorizes the Governor to declare that a communicable, contagious, or
infectious disease is a disease that is covered by the existing infectious
disease presumption for firefighters, paramedics, emergency medical
technicians, and certain law-enforcement officers under the Virginia Workers
Compensation Act. The presumption currently exists for hepatitis,
meningococcal meningitis, tuberculosis, and HIV. Such a declaration may be
made after the Board of Health has issued an order for the purpose of
suppressing the outbreak of the disease and the Governor has declared a
state of emergency due to an outbreak of the disease that poses a danger to
the life and health of the public.
Full text:
01/14/09 House: Prefiled and ordered
printed; offered 01/14/09 094303548
(impact statement)
Status:
01/14/09 House: Prefiled and ordered printed; offered 01/14/09 094303548
01/14/09 House: Referred to Committee on Militia,
Police and Public Safety
01/23/09 House: Referred from Militia, Police and Public Safety by voice
vote
01/23/09 House: Referred to Committee on Commerce and
Labor
02/03/09 House: Passed by indefinitely in
Commerce and Labor (10-Y 6-N)
5-
****Bill to Clarify Concealed
Weapons Law for Retired Law Enforement Officers
Other Bills we are Watching
1-
Bill to Allow Grievants to have
a witness present during all stages of a Greivance -
HB 2245 :
http://leg1.state.va.us/cgi-bin/legp504.exe?ses=091&typ=bil&val=HB2245+
Summary as introduced:
Transfer of custody in a DUI arrest, etc. Allows a law-enforcement
officer to arrest without a warrant any person whom the officer has probable
cause to suspect of driving while intoxicated or committing certain DUI-related
offenses in the officer's presence and to thereafter transfer custody of the
person suspected of any such violation to another officer, who may obtain a
warrant based upon statements made to him by the arresting officer. Currently
this transfer authority exists only for arrests made for drunk boating. The bill
also provides that a law-enforcement officer may arrest, without a warrant, any
person who commits any misdemeanor or traffic infraction, or substantially
similar local ordinance, not committed in his presence, if he receives a
message, by radio or otherwise, from another officer who observed the violation,
provided that the observing officer sends the message immediately after he
observes the alleged offense and positively identifies the alleged offender to
the arresting officer.
Full text:
01/14/09 House: Prefiled and ordered printed; offered
01/14/09 094504428
02/04/09 House: Committee substitute printed 090913428-H1
Status:
01/14/09 House: Prefiled and ordered printed; offered 01/14/09 094504428
01/14/09 House: Referred to Committee for Courts of
Justice
01/20/09 House: Assigned Courts sub: Criminal
02/02/09 House: Subcommittee recommends reporting with
amendment(s)
02/04/09 House: Committee substitute printed 090913428-H1
02/04/09 House: Reported from Courts of Justice with
substitute (22-Y 0-N)
02/06/09 House: Read first time
02/08/09 House: Passed by for the day
02/09/09 House: Read second time
02/09/09 House: Committee substitute agreed to 090913428-H1
02/09/09 House: Engrossed by House - committee substitute HB2245H1
02/10/09 House: Read third time and passed House BLOCK VOTE (98-Y 0-N)
02/10/09 House: VOTE: BLOCK VOTE PASSAGE
(98-Y 0-N)
02/10/09 House: Reconsideration of passage agreed to by House
02/10/09 House: Passed House BLOCK VOTE (99-Y 0-N)
02/10/09 House: VOTE: BLOCK VOTE PASSAGE
(99-Y 0-N)
02/11/09 Senate: Constitutional reading dispensed
02/11/09 Senate: Referred to Committee for Courts of
Justice
02/13/09 Senate: Assigned Courts sub: Criminal
02/23/09 Senate: Reported from Courts of Justice (10-Y
5-N)
02/24/09 Senate: Constitutional reading dispensed (39-Y
0-N)
02/25/09 Senate: Read third time
02/25/09 Senate: Passed Senate (21-Y 17-N)
02/25/09 Senate: Reconsideration of Senate passage agreed
to by Senate (39-Y 0-N)
02/25/09 Senate: Passed by for the day
02/26/09 Senate: Read third time
02/26/09 Senate: Motion to recommit to committee agreed to
02/26/09 Senate: Recommitted to Courts of Justice
02/28/09 Senate: Left in Courts of Justice
8-
HB1960
- Line of
Duty Act; continued health insurance coverage for disabled employee, etc.
Robert W. Mathieson |
all patrons -
SUPPORT ---- Left in Appropriations
HB1960 :
Summary as introduced:
Line of Duty Act; continued health insurance coverage.
Prohibits the entity employing a disabled employee or qualified beneficiary of a
deceased employee from (i) terminating membership in any health care plan in
place for such employee or beneficiary or (ii) refusing to reenroll or otherwise
continue health care coverage for such employee or beneficiary upon notification
by the Office of the Comptroller that the requirements for continued
health care coverage under the Line of Duty Act have been satisfied.
Full
text:
01/13/09 House: Prefiled and ordered printed; offered 01/14/09 098485618
Status:
01/13/09 House: Prefiled and ordered printed; offered 01/14/09
098485618
01/13/09 House: Referred to Committee on Appropriations
01/19/09 House:
Assigned App. sub: Compensation and Retirement (Hogan, Clarke N.)
01/22/09 House: Impact statement from DPB (HB1960)
02/10/09 House: Left in Appropriations
9- ****
SB1409
Capital murder; auxiliary police officers.
Thomas K. Norment, Jr. |
all patrons -
SUPPORT
SB1409:
http://leg1.state.va.us/cgi-bin/legp504.exe?ses=091&typ=bil&val=sb1409
Summary
as introduced:
Capital murder; auxiliary police officers. Adds
auxiliary police officers and auxiliary deputy sheriffs to the definition of
law- enforcement officer in the capital murder statute so that the death
sentence can be imposed for the murder of such an officer.
Full
text:
01/14/09 Senate: Prefiled and ordered printed; offered 01/14/09 098380284
(impact statement)
Status:
01/14/09 Senate: Prefiled and ordered printed; offered 01/14/09
098380284
01/14/09 Senate: Referred to Committee for Courts of Justice
01/15/09 Senate: Assigned Courts sub: Criminal
01/28/09 Senate: Reported from Courts of Justice (12-Y
2-N)
01/30/09 Senate: Constitutional reading dispensed (39-Y
0-N)
02/02/09 Senate: Read second time and engrossed
02/03/09 Senate: Read third time and passed Senate (33-Y
6-N)
02/03/09 Senate: Reconsideration of passage agreed to by
Senate (40-Y 0-N)
02/03/09 Senate: Passed Senate (30-Y 10-N)
floor: 02/03/09 Senate: Passed Senate
(30-Y 10-N)
YEAS--Barker, Blevins, Cuccinelli, Deeds, Edwards, Hanger, Herring, Houck, Hurt,
Martin, McDougle, Miller, J.C., Newman, Norment, Northam,
Obenshain, Petersen, Puckett, Quayle, Reynolds, Ruff, Saslaw, Smith, Stolle,
Stosch, Stuart, Vogel, Wagner, Wampler, Watkins--30.
NAYS--Colgan,
Howell, Locke, Lucas, Marsh, McEachin, Miller, Y.B., Puller, Ticer, Whipple--10.
RULE 36--0.
NOT VOTING--0.
02/12/09 House: Placed on Calendar
02/12/09 House: Read first time
02/12/09 House: Referred to Committee for Courts of
Justice
02/23/09 House: Reported from Courts of Justice (17-Y
2-N)
02/24/09 House: Read second time
02/25/09 House: Read third time
02/25/09 House: Passed House (80-Y 18-N)
02/25/09 House: VOTE: --- PASSAGE (80-Y 18-N)
10-
Bill to Amend Line of Duty Act;
short-term disability benefits for state police officers -
SUPPORT
