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2009 SESSION

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Senate Committee on Agriculture, Conservation and Natural Resources

Chairman: Patricia S. Ticer

Date of Meeting: February 9, 2009
Time and Place: 9AM, Senate Room B, GAB

H.B. 1609

Patron: Wright

Foxhound training preserve; nonresident license.  Establishes a license for nonresidents to hunt in foxhound training preserves for $12. The new provision parallels the existing license requirement for nonresidents to hunt in shooting preserves.

H.B. 1618

Patron: Merricks

Special hunting permit.  Allows the Director of the Department of Game and Inland Fisheries to permit any organized group of patients residing in or receiving outpatient treatment from a veterans or military hospital to hunt without having to obtain a license on any lands of the Commonwealth where it is otherwise legal to do so. Currently, the Director may only issue a special permit to allow such a group of persons to fish without a license in the public waters of the Commonwealth. This bill incorporates HB 1666.

H.B. 1623

Patron: Lewis

Agritourism and marine tourism activity liability.  Uses similar language from the Agritourism Activity Liability Act, passed in 2006, for marine tourism activities conducted by commercial fishermen. Currently, only agritourism activities on land are covered by that act, although aquaculture is included as an agritourism activity.

H.B. 1652

Patron: Carrico

Confederate cemeteries and graves.  Adds the McKenzie Cemetery located in Grayson County, which maintains 10 Confederate graves, to the list of those cemeteries receiving funds from the Department of Historic Resources for the care of such graves.

H.B. 1716

Patron: Cox

Impeding killing of bear or deer.  Makes it a Class 3 misdemeanor to willfully and intentionally impede someone who has obtained a kill permit from killing a bear or deer that is damaging the owner's property.  The language is similar to the current language used to prohibit the harassment of hunters and trappers.

H.B. 1719

Patron: Cox

Fees for hunting and fishing licenses.  Clarifies the current authority of the Virginia Marine Resources Commission and the Board of the Department of Game and Inland Fisheries to increase certain fees for hunting, fishing, and trapping licenses. Beginning in 2004, each was given the authority to revise certain fees, through regulation, no more frequently than once every three years and by no more than $5 for each adjustment. This legislation clarifies the current cost of licenses by noting that the fees may have changed in the sections where the General Assembly had previously provided the actual cost of a license.

H.B. 1775

Patron: Pollard

Invasive species.  Charges the Secretary of Natural Resources with the responsibility of developing an invasive species management plan to prevent the introduction of invasive species and to control and eradicate those species that are present on Virginia's lands and waters. The Secretary will establish an advisory group consisting of state agency heads, and representatives of various stakeholder groups to develop the plans and assist in coordinating and implementing the recommendations of the plan.

H.B. 1847

Patron: Lingamfelter

Wearing blaze orange.  Exempts persons from wearing blaze orange clothing when hunting doves.

H.B. 1925

Patron: Lewis

Clean Water Farm Award.  Identifies the types of agricultural best management practices that a farmer can implement to be eligible to receive the award.  The conservation practices he implements must be effective in controlling agricultural nonpoint source pollutants.

H.B. 1930

Patron: Plum

Certification of stormwater development property.  Authorizes the Department of Conservation and Recreation to certify stormwater management development properties as being designed, constructed, or reconstructed for the primary purpose of abating or preventing pollution. Such a certification allows the local government to tax the property at a different rate from other classifications of real property. This technical change is necessary because responsibility for administering the stormwater program was moved from DEQ to the Department of Conservation and Recreation.

H.B. 1931

Patron: Plum

Water Facilities Revolving Loan Fund.  Authorizes the Virginia Resources Authority to provide a portion of the fees it receives for administering the loan fund to DEQ to cover some of that agency's costs for administering the construction assistance loan program.

H.B. 1951

Patron: Shuler

Dangerous Dog Registry.  Authorizes the use of copies of all records, documents, and papers associated with the Dangerous Dog Registry in Virginia courts if the documents have been certified and authenticated by the State Veterinarian or the Dangerous Dog Registry administrator as true copies of the original documents.

H.B. 1961

Patron: Mathieson

Special conservation police officers.  Requires any special conservation officer who is appointed after October 1, 2009, to obtain a valid registration as a Special Conservator of the Peace from the Department of Criminal Justice Services.

H.B. 1973

Patron: Ware, R.L.

Litter Control and Recycling Fund grants.  Limits the awarding of grants to localities whose litter prevention and recycling grant applications meet the criteria established by the Department of Environmental Quality in its Guidelines for Litter Prevention and Recycling Grants.

H.B. 1991

Patron: Bulova

Establishment of stormwater programs by localities. Extends the period of time that localities have to adopt a local stormwater management program. Currently, they are required to adopt a program no sooner than 12 months and no later than 18 months after state regulations have become effective. This bill would extend the time for adoption from no sooner than 15 months to no later than 21 months. The Virginia Soil and Water Conservation Board can grant an extension to the locality of an additional 12 months if the Department of Conservation and Recreation finds that such an extension is warranted. A locality can adopt a program earlier than the minimum time frame with the consent of the Board. The bill also requires that the regulation that establishes local program criteria and delegation procedures not become effective until after July 1, 2010.

H.B. 2001

Patron: Cosgrove

Biofuels Production Incentive Grant Program. Distinguishes between advanced biofuels that are made from winter cover crops, cellulose, hemicellulose, lignin oil, and algae and those standard biofuels that may be made from agricultural feedstocks such as corn. The program will award a $0.125 per gallon grant for advanced biofuels and a $0.10 per gallon grant for standard biofuels and requires the production of one million gallons per year for eligibility.

H.B. 2097

Patron: Orrock

Animal shelters and pounds; administration of certain medications.  Allows the Board of Pharmacy to register an animal shelter or pound to purchase, possess, and administer certain Schedule II-VI controlled substances approved by the State Veterinarian for the purpose of euthanizing injured, sick, homeless, and unwanted domestic pets and animals; and to purchase, possess, and administer certain Schedule VI controlled substances for the purpose of preventing, controlling, and treating certain communicable diseases that failure to control would result in transmission to the animal population in the shelter or pound. This bill is identical to SB 897.

H.B. 2102

Patron: Merricks

Department of Game and Inland Fisheries; Pittsylvania County.  Requires the Board of the Department of Game and Inland Fisheries to adopt regulations to ensure that deer hunting seasons that apply to Pittsylvania County do so uniformly to the county as a whole and not in part.  

H.B. 2177

Patron: Plum

Rechargeable battery recycling.  Authorizes localities to ban the disposal of certain 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.

H.B. 2218

Patron: Jones

Notice of election of district directors. Requires that notice of the date that nominating petitions and the date of the election for soil and water conservation district directors have to be posted in a prominent location at each district office 30 days before the filing date. Districts may use additional means to provide notice to the public of the election of district directors. Currently, such notice has to be published in a newspaper of general circulation with the district. The bill also requires the Virginia Soil and Water Conservation Board to notify each district that it's the district's responsibility to post such notice.

H.B. 2248

Patron: Barlow

Marine Resources Commission location. Removes the requirement that the Commissioner of the Marine Resources Commission establish and equip a permanent office in the City of Newport News and more broadly requires that the office is located on the Virginia Penninsula.

H.B. 2255

Patron: Nichols

Solid waste disclosure statements.  Eliminates the requirement that applicants for permits issued under the Virginia Waste Management Act provide the social security numbers of their key personnel in disclosure statements that are submitted to the Department of Environmental Quality.

H.B. 2256

Patron: Pollard

Fixed fishing devices.  Requires the Marine Resources Commission to adopt regulations that set the distance between any net and the side or end of any fixed fishing device. Currently, the distance is established by statute.

H.B. 2345

Patron: Landes

Enforcement of animal laws in towns; emergency.  Corrects an error from the 2008 recodification of Title 3.1, Agriculture, Horticulture and Food, to Title 3.2, Agriculture, Animal Care, and Food, by reinserting language enacted in 2005 that allows towns to adopt by reference certain ordinances of surrounding counties.

EMERGENCY

H.B. 2364

Patron: Gilbert

Restitution for damages done by a dangerous or vicious dog.  Provides that a court, upon finding an animal to be a dangerous or vicious dog, may order the owner, custodian, or harborer thereof to pay restitution for actual damages to any person injured by the animal or whose companion animal was injured or killed by the animal. This bill incorporates HB 2321.   

H.B. 2413

Patron: Bouchard

Craney Island Disposal Area.  States that the construction of a marine terminal on the eastern side of Craney Island Disposal Area using dredge material to extend the disposal area eastward, as defined in the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Feasibility Study approved on October 24, 2006, and authorized by Congress in the Water Resources Development Act of 2007, is authorized by the General Assembly.  

H.B. 2484

Patron: Hargrove

Duty of care.  Expands to owners of privately owned airports, heliports, and landing areas that would be used to operate aircraft or ultralight vehicles an exemption from the duty of care provision if the landowner does not charge a fee to use his property. Under the bill owners of such airports, flying fields, or heliports would not assume responsibility for or incur liability for certain negligent acts.

H.B. 2540

Patron: Lingamfelter

Virginia Resources Authority's powers.  Authorizes additional powers for the Authority. The additional powers include forming corporations, foundations, joint ventures, partnerships, trusts, or other legal entities and authorizing these legal entities to borrow money and issue bonds and notes. The Authority can provide financing and other funding to any of the entities. In addition, the Authority is given the responsibility to assist in coordinating federal, state, regional, and local public and private efforts, economic stimuli, and resources.

H.B. 2558

Patron: Byron

Biosolids permit.  Clarifies that if a biosolids permit is amended to increase the acreage by 50 percent or more than was permitted in the initial permit, public notice shall be given and a public meeting shall be held.

H.B. 2566

Patron: Knight

Land acquired by Department of Forestry.  Clarifies that proceeds derived from properties used for nonstate forest purposes acquired or managed by the Department of Forestry are not subject to distribution by the Department to those localities in which the properties are located. Currently, the proceeds derived from all lands acquired by the State Forester are distributed to those localities in which the lands are located based on a specific formula.

H.B. 2636

Patron: Cline

Special hunting and fishing license for youth groups.  Authorizes the issuance of a special group hunting and fishing license to a nonprofit wildlife education organization that takes youth on hunting and fishing excursions as part of its effort to educate young people on Virginia's wildlife. The permit would cost $25 and be valid for 48 hours. This permit would be in lieu of the youth having to purchase basic hunting and fishing licenses and the big game, archery, and muzzleloader licenses.

S.B. 1204

Patron: Puckett

Royalty payments from gas or oil drilling. Provides that property owners with an interest in oil or gas wells whose interest has been force-pooled shall receive a royalty payment of no less than one-eighth the value of production calculated at the point of the first arms-length sale. Such payment shall not be subject to reduction for operating or other costs.

S.B. 1484

Patron: Houck

Lake level contingency plans.  Requires that any lake level contingency plan developed for Lake Anna include documentation of the impact reductions in water flow will have on recreational uses.  The applicant for a Virginia Pollutant Discharge Elimination System permit to discharge into the lake will have to conduct a recreational use assessment that provides baseline recreation information describing the extent of public access, current uses, and future recreational needs within the lake.

S.B. 1509

Patron: Ticer

Septic systems; nitrogen-reducing technology.  Clarifies that the Department of Conservation and Recreation may award grants from the Water Quality Improvement Fund for the replacement or modification of residential onsite sewage systems to include nitrogen removal capabilities. The Board of Health may also require that conventional and alternative onsite sewage systems installed to accept sewage from new residential construction include nitrogen-reducing technology.