Virginia Commerce and Labor (S02) Committee Docket — 2025-01-27

Summary

This is the Virginia Commerce and Labor (S02) Committee docket dated January 27, 2025 for the 2025 Regular session, naming R. Creigh Deeds (D) as Chair. The first bill listed is SB759 (patron Locke), which provides that a contract on or after July 1, 2025 assigning rights to earned wages for a cash advance shall be considered a loan subject to the legal rate of interest. The next two are SB779 (patron Carroll Foy) on minimum train crews in the movement of freight and SB893 (patron Surovell) on geothermal heating and cooling systems in the renewable energy portfolio standard program.

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TITLE: Virginia Commerce and Labor (S02) Committee Docket — 2025-01-27
DATE: 2025-01-27T16:30:00
SESSION: 2025 Regular (20251)
CHAMBER: Senate

COMMITTEE MEMBERS:
  - R. Creigh Deeds (D) Chair

STAFF: Horton, Andrew, Swall, Amanda, Thomas Stevens, Kinzer, Sarah                 , Ali, Marvi

DOCKET / AGENDA:

[Senate Bill in Committee]
  1. SB759 - Contracts assigning rights to earned wages; legal rate of interest.
       Patron(s): Locke
       Summary: Contracts assigning rights to earned wages; legal rate of interest. Provides that any contract entered into on or after July 1, 2025, pursuant to which a person receives a cash advance for assigning to a company or other entity a portion of such person's rights to receive earned wages, salary, commissions, or other compensation for services shall be considered a loan and that any additional funds such person is obligated to pay under the terms of the contract shall be considered interest. The bill provides that such contract shall be subject to the legal rate of interest.
  2. SB779 - Railroad safety; minimum train crew used in movement of freight, civil penalties.
       Patron(s): Carroll Foy
       Summary: Railroad safety; minimum train crew; movement of freight; civil penalties. Requires railroad companies to comply with federal requirements for minimum train crews on all trains, locomotives, or light engines used in connection with moving freight and provides civil penalties for violations of such requirement.
  3. SB893 - Renewable energy portfolio standard program; geothermal heating and cooling systems, report.
       Patron(s): Surovell
       Summary: Renewable energy portfolio standard program; geothermal heating and cooling systems; report. For purposes of the renewable energy portfolio standard program, requires Dominion Energy Virginia and American Electric Power to procure and retire certain percentages of renewable energy certificates from geothermal heating and cooling systems, as defined in the bill, beginning with the 2026 or 2027 compliance year and thereafter. The bill amends the method by which renewable energy certificates from geothermal heating and cooling systems are calculated and directs the Commission on Electric Utility
  4. SB960 - Electric utilities; data center cost allocation.
       Patron(s): Perry
       Summary: Electric utilities; data center cost allocation. Directs the State Corporation Commission to initiate proceedings to determine if the current allocation of costs among different customer classifications of electric utilities requires customers that are not data centers to unreasonably subsidize the costs of customers that are data centers. If the Commission determines that the current allocation of costs requires customers that are not data centers to unreasonably subsidize the costs of customers that are data centers, the bill directs the Commission to promulgate such rules as necessary to el
  5. SB998 - Child labor; child engaged in the work of content creation, trust account.
       Patron(s): Williams Graves
       Summary: Child labor; child engaged in the work of content creation; trust account. Requires that a child under the age of 16 who meets certain criteria specified in the bill to be considered a child engaged in the work of content creation be compensated by the content creator, defined in the bill, whose video content includes such child's likeness, name, or photograph. The bill requires the content creator to set aside gross earnings on the video content that includes the likeness, name, or photograph of the child in a trust account to be preserved for the benefit of the child upon attaining 18 years
  6. SB1022 - State Corporation Commission; time frame for completion of certain transmission lines proceedings.
       Patron(s): Hackworth
       Summary: State Corporation Commission; time frame for completion of certain transmission lines proceedings. Requires the State Corporation Commission to complete proceedings regarding the approval of certain transmission lines of 138 kilovolts or more within nine months.
  7. SB1040 - Electric utilities; renewable energy portfolio standard program requirements.
       Patron(s): VanValkenburg
       Summary: Electric utilities; renewable energy portfolio standard program requirements; power purchase agreements. Amends certain renewable energy portfolio standard program requirements for Dominion Energy Virginia, including (i) the annual percentage of program requirements to be met with behind-the meter solar, wind, or anaerobic digestion resources of three megawatts or less located in the Commonwealth and (ii) the date by which 75 percent of such requirements shall be met with resources located in the Commonwealth. The bill also removes the requirement for a solar-powered or wind-powered generation
  8. SB1047 - Demand response programs; Dept. of Energy to evaluate & assess benefits, and recommendations.
       Patron(s): Roem
       Summary: Department of Energy; demand response programs; evaluation and assessment; report. Directs the Department of Energy to evaluate and assess benefits, impacts, best practices, and implementation recommendations for demand response programs in the Commonwealth and to report such evaluation and assessment by November 1, 2025.
  9. SB1049 - Electric utilities; approval required for construction of certain electrical transmission lines.
       Patron(s): Roem
       Summary: Electric utilities; approval required for construction of certain electrical transmission lines. Prohibits the construction of a new transmission line overhead unless the State Corporation Commission first determines that the construction of such transmission line in whole or in part underground is not in the public interest.
  10. SB1058 - Electric utilities; distribution cost sharing program established, etc.
       Patron(s): Ebbin
       Summary: State Corporation Commission; distribution cost sharing program; required distribution system upgrades. Directs the State Corporation Commission by July 1, 2026, to establish by regulation a distribution cost sharing program for Dominion Energy Virginia and Appalachian Power to construct distribution system upgrades required to interconnect participating projects, as defined in the bill. The bill directs the Commission to require each such utility to file any tariffs, agreements, or forms necessary for the implementation of the program by December 1, 2026, and to submit a report on the impleme
  11. SB1076 - Phase I Utilities; securitized asset costs, rate increases in certain months prohibited, etc.
       Patron(s): Peake
       Summary: Phase I Utilities; securitized asset costs. Authorizes Appalachian Power to petition the State Corporation Commission for a financing order for securitized asset costs, as defined in the bill. The bill creates the securitized asset cost charge and provides that the revenues generated by this charge, known as securitized asset cost property, are a property right that can be transferred and pledged as security for the securitized asset cost bonds. The bill establishes the procedures for creating, perfecting, and enforcing the security interest in securitized asset cost property. The bill also pr
  12. SB1077 - Electric utilities; regulation, development of renewable energy facilities.
       Patron(s): Peake
       Summary: Regulation of electric utilities; development of renewable energy facilities; powers of State Air Pollution Control Board; powers of State Corporation Commission. Repeals provisions (i) requiring the State Air Pollution Control Board to adopt regulations to reduce carbon dioxide emissions from any electricity generating unit in the Commonwealth and authorizing the Board to establish an auction program for energy allowances; (ii) prohibiting the State Corporation Commission from approving any new utility-owned generation facilities that emit carbon dioxide as a by-product of energy generation,
  13. SB1091 - Electric utilities; renewable energy standard eligible sources.
       Patron(s): Hackworth
       Summary: Electric utilities; renewable energy standard eligible sources; zero-carbon electricity generating nuclear facilities. Provides that, for the purposes of the renewable energy portfolio standard, eligible sources include zero-carbon electricity generating nuclear facilities located in the Commonwealth.
  14. SB1100 - Virtual power plant pilot program; each Phase II Utility shall petition SCC for approval to conduct.
       Patron(s): Hashmi
       Summary: Electric utilities; virtual power plant pilot program. Requires Dominion Energy Virginia to petition the State Corporation Commission for approval to conduct a pilot program to evaluate methods to optimize demand through various technology applications, including the establishment of virtual power plants, by December 1, 2025. The bill requires the pilot program to evaluate electric grid capacity needs and the ability of such virtual power plants to provide grid services, including peak-shaving, during times of peak electric demand. This bill is identical to HB 2346.
  15. SB1192 - Electric utilities; generation of electricity from renewable and zero carbon sources.
       Patron(s): Deeds
       Summary: Electric utilities; generation of electricity from renewable and zero carbon sources; projects on or adjacent to public elementary or secondary schools. Provides that for purposes of compliance with a renewable energy portfolio standard (RPS) program, to the extent that low-income qualifying projects, as defined in existing law, are not available and projects located on or adjacent to public elementary or secondary schools are available, a certain percentage of the required projects shall be composed of projects located on or adjacent to public elementary or secondary schools. This bill is ide
  16. SB1197 - Electric cooperative subsidiaries; customers exceeding 90 megawatts demand.
       Patron(s): Deeds
       Summary: Electric cooperative subsidiaries; customers exceeding 90 megawatts demand. Permits electric cooperatives, through one or more of their affiliates, to make unregulated sales of electric power to certain customers that contract for electric utility services to serve a demand that is reasonably expected to exceed 90 megawatts. This bill is identical to HB 2644.
  17. SB1216 - Retail electric energy; renewable energy certificates.
       Patron(s): Pekarsky
       Summary: Retail electric energy; renewable energy certificates. Requires competitive service providers, as defined in the bill, to serve 100 percent of their customers' energy and capacity needs from electric generating units located within the PJM transmission region. Under the bill, a competitive service provider must ensure that 100 percent of its customers' energy is either zero-carbon electricity or matched with renewable energy certificates. A certain percentage of a retail customer's annual load must be matched with zero-carbon electricity or renewable energy certificates from within the PJM tra
  18. SB1218 - L&E; covenants not to compete prohibited, low-wage employees, exceptions, civil penalty.
       Patron(s): Stuart
       Summary: Labor and employment; covenants not to compete prohibited; exceptions; civil penalty. Provides that, for the purposes of the prohibition in existing law against an employer entering into, enforcing, or threatening to enforce a covenant not to compete with any low-wage employee, "low-wage employee" includes an employee who, regardless of average weekly earnings, is entitled to overtime compensation under federal law for any hours worked in excess of 40 hours in any one workweek. Any employer that violates the bill's provisions is subject to a civil penalty in existing law of $10,000 for each vi
  19. SB1238 - Health insurance; cost sharing for breast examinations.
       Patron(s): Durant
       Summary: Health insurance; cost sharing for breast examinations. Prohibits health insurance carriers from imposing cost sharing for diagnostic breast examinations and supplemental breast examinations, as those terms are defined in the bill, under certain insurance policies, subscription contracts, and health care plans delivered, issued for delivery, or renewed in the Commonwealth on and after January 1, 2026. The bill provides that such examinations include examinations using diagnostic mammography, breast magnetic resonance imaging, or breast ultrasound. This bill is a recommendation of the Health In
  20. SB1243 - Electric utilities; electric distribution infrastructure serving data centers.
       Patron(s): Stuart
       Summary: Electric utilities; electric distribution infrastructure serving data centers. Prohibits the costs associated with the construction or extension of any electric distribution infrastructure that primarily serves the load of a data center from being recovered from any other customer.
  21. SB1252 - Financial institutions; loans and legal rate of interest.
       Patron(s): Bagby
       Summary: Financial institutions; loans and legal rate of interest. Provides that for the purposes of provisions governing usury and the legal rate of interest, (i) "loan" means a loan or forbearance of money lent at interest or for a fee or other charge and includes open-end and closed-end loan transactions and recourse and nonrecourse loans and (ii) make" or "making," when used in reference to a loan, means advancing, offering to advance, or making a commitment to advance funds to a borrower for a loan. The bill provides that the prohibition against a contract for the payment of interest on a loan at
  21. SB1252 - Financial institutions; loans and legal rate of interest.
       Patron(s): Bagby
       Summary: Financial institutions; loans and legal rate of interest. Provides that for the purposes of provisions governing usury and the legal rate of interest, "make" or "making," when used in reference to a loan, means advancing, offering to advance, or making a commitment to advance funds to a borrower for a loan. The bill provides that the prohibition against a contract for the payment of interest on a loan at a rate that exceeds 12 percent per year applies to any person who seeks to evade its application by any device, subterfuge, or pretense whatsoever, including (i) making loans disguised as pers
  21. SB1252 - Financial institutions; loans and legal rate of interest.
       Patron(s): Bagby
       Summary: Financial institutions; loans and legal rate of interest. Provides that for the purposes of provisions governing usury and the legal rate of interest, "make" or "making," when used in reference to a loan, means advancing, offering to advance, or making a commitment to advance funds to a borrower for a loan. The bill provides that the prohibition against a contract for the payment of interest on a loan at a rate that exceeds 12 percent per year applies to any person who seeks to evade its application by any device, subterfuge, or pretense whatsoever, including (i) making loans disguised as pers
  22. SB1281 - Electric utilities; retail competition.
       Patron(s): Hackworth
       Summary: Electric utilities; retail competition. Authorizes a customer who is a customer of a Phase I Utility that had a typical residential customer bill for a residential customer using 1,000 kWh per month that exceeded 125 percent of the statewide average during the most recent calendar year to purchase electric energy from any supplier of electric energy licensed to sell retail electric energy within the Commonwealth. The bill also decreases the period that such a customer who switches from an investor-owned electric utility to a competing supplier is barred from returning as a customer of its util
  23. SB1290 - Health insurance; reimbursement for services rendered by certain practitioners.
       Patron(s): Deeds
       Summary: Health insurance; reimbursement for services rendered by certain practitioners other than physicians. Requires health insurers and health service plan providers whose accident and sickness insurance policies or subscription contracts cover services that may be legally performed by a physician assistant to provide equal coverage for such services when rendered by a licensed athletic trainer when such services are performed in an office setting. Additionally, the bill requires the reimbursement or payment for a service provided by certain licensed practitioners listed in the bill to be in the sa
  24. SB1316 - Renewable energy portfolio standard eligible sources; geothermal electric generating resources.
       Patron(s): McPike
       Summary: Renewable energy portfolio standard eligible sources; geothermal electric generating resources. Provides that geothermal electric generating resources, as defined in the bill, located in the Commonwealth or physically located within the PJM region are eligible for compliance with renewable energy portfolio standard requirements.
  25. SB1342 - Electric utilities; energy efficiency upgrades, report.
       Patron(s): Bagby
       Summary: Phase I and Phase II Utilities; energy efficiency upgrades; low-income residents; report. States that it is the policy of the Commonwealth to reduce, wherever feasible and cost-effective, heating-related costs of living for low-income residents. The bill requires Dominion Energy Virginia and Appalachian Power to make best, reasonable efforts to provide by December 31, 2030, prescriptive efficiency measures, as defined in the bill, and related efficiency improvements to at least 30 percent of the qualifying households, as defined in the bill, identified by such utilities, provided that the Stat
  26. SB1358 - Underground transmission lines; qualifying projects.
       Patron(s): Srinivasan
       Summary: Pilot program for underground transmission lines; qualifying projects. Requires the State Corporation Commission to approve applications for a newly proposed 500-kilovolt transmission line filed between January 1, 2025, and December 31, 2026, as a qualifying project to be constructed in whole or in part underground, as a part of a pilot program. The bill requires such a qualifying project to traverse along highways in developed areas and where the route of the proposed transmission lines and towers traverse areas are protected by a scenic easement, a view shed easement, areas of registered his
  27. SB1359 - Health carriers and pharmacy benefits managers; prohibited conduct, civil penalty.
       Patron(s): Srinivasan
       Summary: Prohibited conduct by health carriers and pharmacy benefits managers; civil penalty; enforcement. Prohibits any carrier, pharmacy benefits manager, or representative of a pharmacy benefits manager from (i) requiring that a covered individual purchase pharmacy services exclusively through a mail-order pharmacy or retail pharmacy affiliated with a pharmacy benefits manager or (ii) prohibiting or limiting a covered individual from selecting a pharmacy or pharmacist of his choice that has agreed to participate in the health benefit plan according to the terms of the plan. The bill adds a civil pen
  28. SB1371 - Gift certificates; prohibits imposition of a dormancy fee, etc.
       Patron(s): Srinivasan
       Summary: Gift certificates; fees. Prohibits the imposition of a dormancy fee, an inactivity charge or fee, or a service fee with respect to a gift certificate, unless certain requirements of the bill are met.
  29. SB1394 - Energy storage requirements; Department of Energy, et al., to develop model ordinances, reports.
       Patron(s): Bagby
       Summary: Electric utilities; energy storage requirements; Department of Energy and Department of Environmental Quality to develop model ordinances; work groups; reports. Increases the targets for energy storage capacity that Appalachian Power and Dominion Energy Virginia are required to petition the State Corporation Commission for approval to construct, acquire, or procure and extends the time frame by which such capacity must be met. Under the bill, (i) Appalachian Power shall petition the Commission for approval to construct, acquire, or procure at least 780 megawatts of short-duration energy storag
  30. SB1403 - Electric utilities; request for proposals required for certain facilities.
       Patron(s): Surovell
       Summary: Electric utilities; request for proposals required for certain facilities. Requires an electric utility seeking approval to construct or purchase a generating facility that emits carbon dioxide to demonstrate that it has conducted a request for proposals designed to fairly evaluate all available supply-side and demand-side options prior to seeking approval for such generating facility. The bill requires the State Corporation Commission to review the request for proposals before the utility's issuance to ensure all available resources will be fairly evaluated.
  31. SB1436 - Health insurance; cost sharing for breast examinations.
       Patron(s): Perry
       Summary: Health insurance; cost sharing for breast examinations. Prohibits health insurance carriers from imposing cost sharing for diagnostic breast examinations and supplemental breast examinations, as those terms are defined in the bill, under certain insurance policies, subscription contracts, and health care plans delivered, issued for delivery, or renewed in the Commonwealth on and after January 1, 2026. The bill provides that such examinations include examinations using diagnostic mammography, breast magnetic resonance imaging, or breast ultrasound. As introduced, this bill was a recommendation
  32. SB1453 - Financial institutions; discrimination prohibited, penalty.
       Patron(s): Sturtevant
       Summary: Financial institutions; discrimination prohibited; penalty. Prohibits a financial institution from denying or cancelling its services to or otherwise discriminating against a person in making available services on the basis of factors including the person's political opinions, speech, or affiliations and other factors enumerated in the bill. The bill provides that a violation of its provisions constitutes a prohibited practice under the Virginia Consumer Protection Act.
  33. SB1485 - Electric utilities; customer energy choice, customer return to service, subscription cap and queue.
       Patron(s): Srinivasan
       Summary: Electric utilities; customer energy choice; customer return to service; subscription cap and queue. Removes certain restrictions on the ability of individual retail customers of electric energy within the Commonwealth, regardless of customer class, to purchase electric energy matched 100 percent by renewable energy certificates from any supplier of electric energy licensed to sell retail electric energy within the Commonwealth. The bill requires a licensed supplier to match a percentage of each retail electric customer's annual load with renewable energy certificates from within the PJM transm

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