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Certain bills were introduced concerning the illegal alien problem in our communities. The following bills were signed by Governor Kaine which will become law on 7/1/08. This is an update as of our meeting on 3/25/08.
HB 350 Zoning ordinance; authority of zoning administrator in Spotsylvania County Powers of zoning administrator.
Expands certain authority related to enforcement of occupancy limits in residential dwelling units to all zoning administrators, rather than just those in Planning District 8. This bill is identical to HB 663.
Approved
by Governor-Chapter 581 (effective 7/1/08)
HB 434
Defacement of buildings; immunity.
Provides that local employees and agents of a locality who remove graffiti from buildings shall have any and all immunity normally provided to an employee of the locality.
Approved by Governor-Chapter 582 (effective 7/1/08)
HB 440 Presumption of no bail for illegal liens charged with certain crimes.
If a judicial offer shall presume, subject to rebuttal, that no condition or combination of conditions will reasonably assure the appearance of the person or the safety of the public and the court determines that the person is illegally present in the United States. This presumption shall not exist unless the United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement has guaranteed that, in all such cases in the Commonwealth, it will issue a detainer for the initiation of removal proceedings and agrees to reimburse for the cost of incarceration from the time of the issuance of the detainer.
Approved by Governor-Chapter 503 (effective 7/1/08)
HB 466 Zoning ordinance; administrator or locality may record a memorandum of lis pendens to enforce.
Restraining certain violations. Allows a zoning administrator or locality to record locality to record a memorandum of lis pendens for certain zoning ordinance violations.
Approved by Governor-Chapter 583 (effective 7/1/08)
HB 470 Loitering on bridges or highway right-of-way.
Pedestrians shall not loiter on any bridge or in any portion of the right-of-way of any highway where loitering has been determined by the Commonwealth Transportation Commissioner or the local governing body of any city or town to present a public safety hazard and on which the Commonwealth Transportation Commissioner or the governing body of any city or town has posted signs prohibiting such action. Any person violating the provisions of this section shall be guilty of a traffic violation.
Approved by Governor-Chapter 582 (effective 7/1/08)
HB 926 Illegal aliens; corporate existence terminated involuntarily for employing.
Business entities; employing illegal aliens. Provides that the authority of certain business entities, including foreign and domestic corporations, limited liability companies, business trusts, and limited partnerships, to operate in the Commonwealth may be terminated involuntarily or revoked upon the conviction of the business entity for a violation of 8 U.S.C. § 1324a(f) (hiring or continuing to employ illegal aliens). A business entity whose authority to operate in the Commonwealth is terminated or revoked is not eligible to have that authority reinstated for a period of not less than one year. The business entity shall immediately report any such conviction to the State Corporation Commission and file with the Commission an authenticated copy of the judgment or record of conviction. This bill incorporates HB 227 (Cosgrove). This bill is identical to SB 782.
Approved
by Governor-Chapter 588 (effective 7/1/08)
HB 1061 Zoning
ordinances; may prescribe an appeal period of less than 30 days.
Zoning ordinances. Provides that 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 maximum occupancy limitations of a residential dwelling unit. This bill incorporates HB 1101.
Approved by Governor-Chapter 317 (effective
7/1/08)
HB 1107 Single-family dwellings; fines for zoning
violations related to overcrowding.
Fines for overcrowding in residential dwellings. Increases the maximum fines for repeat violations of ordinances regulating the number of unrelated persons in single-family residential dwellings.
Approved by Governor-Chapter 593 (effective 7/1/08)
HB
1185 Voter registration; cancellation on basis of non-citizenship.
Elections; cancellation of voter registration on basis of non-citizenship. Provides that the general registrar shall mail notice to voters who are reported not to be citizens by the Department of Motor Vehicles and that such voters will have 14 days to respond to the notice with a sworn statement that the voter is a citizen. Present law provides for automatic cancellation of the voter's registration by the general registrar on receipt of the report from the Department.
Approved by Governor-Chapter 382 (effective 7/1/08)
HB 1298 Illegal immigrants; grounds for disciplinary action for employment thereof
Public body contracts; illegal alien employment. Requires that all public bodies provide in every written contract that the contractor does not, and shall not during the performance of the contract for goods and services in the Commonwealth, knowingly employ an unauthorized alien as defined in the federal Immigration Reform and Control Act of 1986. This bill is identical to SB 517.
Approved by Governor-Chapter 598 (effective 7/1/08)
SB
428 Zoning ordinance; provisions for issuance of inspection warrants
by magistrate.
Administrative inspection warrants. Provides that a zoning ordinance may include provisions for the issuance of inspection warrants by a magistrate or court of competent jurisdiction. The zoning administrator or his agent may present sworn testimony to a magistrate or court of competent jurisdiction and if such sworn testimony 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. 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 bill. This bill is identical to HB 430.
Approved by
Governor-Chapter 343 (effective 7/1/08)
SB 609 Inmates;
officer of correctional facility to inquire of alien status.
Alien status of jail and correctional facility inmates. Requires an officer in charge of a jail or correctional facility to inquire of a person in his custody as to whether the person was born in or is a citizen of the United States and to make an immigration alien query to the Law Enforcement Support Center of the United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement for any person who was born in or is a citizen of another country, or if the answers to these questions are unknown. The jail officer shall communicate the results of this immigration alien query to the Local Inmate Data System of the State Compensation Board. The State Compensation Board shall communicate, on a monthly basis, the results of any query confirming that a person is illegally present in the United States to the Central Criminal Records Exchange. This bill is identical to HB 820.
Approved by Governor-Chapter 415 (effective 7/1/08)