K‑12 subcommittee advances bills on after‑school exemptions, cyber safety, student supports; several measures tabled

At a meeting of the K‑12 Education Subcommittee, members advanced a range of education bills addressing after‑school program licensing, internet and student safety, special‑education training, and school operations, while tabling several measures for further study. The committee heard testimony from state education officials, school system staff and advocacy groups before reporting most bills to the next committee with recorded roll‑call tallies.

The most contested item was Senate Bill 1084, a measure to create a licensing exemption category for out‑of‑school‑time (OST) programs such as Boys & Girls Clubs. Sponsor Senator Craig said the bill’s purpose is “to allow the out of school time providers to continue to operate” while adding “important health and safety provisions.” Jenna Conway, deputy superintendent for early childhood care and education at the Virginia Department of Education, told the committee the bill would charge the department to convene a work group to recommend consistent minimum regulations for school‑age programs: “This is not about diapering. This is not about safe sleep. This is about things like criminal background checks, emergency preparedness…”

Mike McDonald, alliance director for 13 Boys & Girls Clubs in Virginia, described operational differences between OST programs and daycare, saying licensing training focused on infants and toddlers can be costly and irrelevant for programs serving older children: “That training process includes a lot of time spent on bottles, napping, toileting procedures, none of which are relevant to the out of school time 6 to 18 year old environment.” He said Boys & Girls Clubs in Virginia could expand if regulatory burdens were clarified and equalized.

The committee reported SB1084 out of committee by a 5–1 vote after amendments and with an enactment clause to convene the work group.

Other bills advanced with little opposition included measures to reestablish an Internet Safety Advisory Council (SB905), to define and empower local policies addressing cyberbullying (SB908), and to require optional annual training on autism spectrum disorder for educators and staff (SB1293). Senator Stanley, sponsor of the autism training bill, said the measure is permissive and intended to “provide annual training” opportunities and continuing‑education credit for personnel who work regularly with students on the autism spectrum. The committee reported each of these bills by unanimous committee votes (6–0).

Lawmakers also advanced student‑health and safety proposals. SB1104, addressing heat‑illness prevention for student athletes, passed committee 5–1 with supporters saying the bill aims to prevent heat‑related tragedies by improving monitoring, cooling procedures and training. Senator Pekarski’s bills on sports physicals (SB1030) and telehealth access (SB1037) produced different outcomes: SB1030, which would make physical exams valid for 14 months to reduce summer appointment bottlenecks, passed 5–2; SB1037, which would permit school boards to allow telehealth visits during the school day with parental consent, was laid on the table (motion to table passed 5–1) for further consideration.

On operational issues, the committee moved SB1124 to preserve the authority of localities to offer the classroom portion of driver education virtually (final exams and behind‑the‑wheel instruction remain in person); the bill was reported 6–1. Senator Roem’s SB1017 would move unpaid school meal debt from individual school budgets to a division‑level responsibility; she cited a Prince William elementary that had more than $50,000 in unpaid meal balances in a prior year. That bill reported 5–2. Senator Ciphers’ bill tightening requirements for student device and data handling (SB1486 as substituted) was reported 6–1.

Three bills were tabled or deferred for further study: SB1037 (telehealth access for students) was laid on the table on a roll call (5–1); SB859 (allowing volunteer after‑school counselors) was laid on the table (voice vote later recorded 4–2), after constitutional concerns were raised by the ACLU and committee members; and SB1143 (discharge plans sharing) was gently tabled with direction to send a letter to the Commission on Youth (motion approved 5–2).

Votes at a glance

- SB1084 (Out‑of‑school time program exemption from licensure): reported as amended; committee vote 5–1; motion to report as amended (mover/second not specified on the record). Provenance: topic introduced at timestamp block 1276.81; concluding discussion evidence at block 2043.35. - SB905 (Internet Safety Advisory Council; integrate with existing code/22.1‑70.2): reported 6–0. Provenance: topic intro block 2066.85; finish block 2333.19. - SB908 (Cyberbullying policy, off‑campus incidents between enrolled students): reported 6–0. Provenance: intro block 2342.21; finish block 2554.27. - SB1293 (Optional annual training on autism spectrum disorder for educators/staff): reported 6–0. Provenance: intro block 2555.31; finish block 2916.20. - SB1104 (Heat‑illness prevention for student athletes): reported 5–1. Provenance: intro block 2922.27; finish block 3125.30. - SB1030 (Sports physicals: 14‑month rolling period): reported 5–2. Provenance: intro block 4077.79; finish block 4303.87. - SB1124 (Virtual classroom portion of driver education maintained): reported 6–1. Provenance: intro block 3135.99; finish block 3651.74. - SB1017 (Reallocation of unpaid school meal debt to school division level): reported 5–2. Provenance: intro block 3667.66; finish block 4053.14. - SB1244 (Clarify enrollment rules for children of federal employees posted abroad): reported 6–1. Provenance: intro block 5518.92; finish block 5616.42. - SB1437 (Sixth‑grade ensemble maximum increased from 35 to 45): reported 6–1. Provenance: intro block 5508.12; finish block 5758.82. - SB1486 (Student device/data privacy; substituted language): reported 6–1. Provenance: intro block 5769.85; finish block 5958.38. - SB1037 (Telehealth access for students during school day): laid on the table (voice vote then recorded; final recorded vote to lay on table 5–1). Provenance: intro block 4303.87; tabling discussion and vote at block 4829.17. - SB859 (Volunteer after‑school counselors): motion to lay on the table passed 4–2; committee received ACLU concerns about possible constitutional issues. Provenance: intro block 4845.05; tabled block 5143.09. - SB1143 (Discharge plans / sharing limited to certain school officials): substitute motion to lay on the table with a letter to the Commission on Youth passed 5–2. Provenance: intro block 5165.75; tabled block 5435.57.

What participants said (selected direct quotes)

- Jenna Conway, deputy superintendent for early childhood care and education, Virginia Department of Education: “This is not about diapering. This is not about safe sleep. This is about things like criminal background checks, emergency preparedness…” - Mike McDonald, alliance director for 13 Boys & Girls Clubs in Virginia: “That training process includes a lot of time spent on bottles, napping, toileting procedures, none of which are relevant to the out of school time 6 to 18 year old environment.” - Jordan Jones (online testimony, KinderCare): “We represent Kindercare, who proudly shares over 10,000 children and employs over 2,000 teachers across the state across 105, high quality early learning locations…” - Senator Stanley (sponsor, internet safety/cyberbullying/autism bills): describing the internet safety advisory council, “They would create a model policy…an instructional practices and online resource page for educators.”

Context and next steps

Most bills that were reported will advance to the next committee or floor consideration in the legislative process. Measures tabled by the subcommittee were held for additional drafting or review of constitutional, privacy or implementation questions. Several sponsors and stakeholders said they intend to use the intervening weeks to work with agencies (the Department of Education, local school divisions and other stakeholders) to refine statutory language, implementation guidance and any needed resources.

Ending note

Committee members repeatedly framed several items as efforts to balance student safety and access to services with local flexibility and a desire to avoid unnecessary administrative burdens. Where the committee accepted enactment clauses or work groups (for example, SB1084), sponsors said they expected the Department of Education and stakeholders to return with recommended implementation steps during the next session.