Virginia Law

A. The Virginia Coal and Energy Commission (the Commission) is established in the legislative branch of state government. The Commission shall consist of 20 members to be appointed as follows: five members of the Senate to be appointed by the Senate Committee on Rules; eight members of the House of Delegates to be appointed by the Speaker of the House of Delegates; and seven nonlegislative citizen members to be appointed by the Governor. The nonlegislative citizen members shall be citizens of the Commonwealth and shall include representatives of industry, government and groups or organizations identified with production and conservation of coal, natural gas, and energy.

B. Legislative members shall serve terms coincident with their terms of office. Members appointed by the Governor shall serve for terms of four years. Vacancies occurring other than by expiration of term shall be filled for the unexpired term. Any member may be reappointed for successive terms.

C. The members of the Commission shall elect a chairman and vice-chairman annually from among its membership.

D. Legislative members of the Commission shall receive such compensation as provided in § 30-19.12 and nonlegislative citizen members shall receive such compensation as provided in § 2.2-2813 for their services. All members shall be reimbursed for all reasonable and necessary expenses incurred in the performance of their duties as provided in §§ 2.2-2813 and 2.2-2825. Funding for compensation and expenses of the members shall be provided from existing appropriations to the Commission.

E. Administrative staff support shall be provided by the Office of the Clerk of the Senate or the Office of the Clerk of the House of Delegates as may be appropriate for the house in which the chairman of the Commission serves. The Division of Legislative Services shall provide legal, research, policy analysis and other services as requested by the Commission. All agencies of the Commonwealth shall assist the Commission upon request.

F. A majority of the members shall constitute a quorum. The meetings of the Commission shall be held at the call of the chairman or whenever a majority of the members so request.

G. No recommendation of the Commission shall be adopted if a majority of the Senate members or a majority of the House members appointed to the Commission (i) vote against the recommendation and (ii) vote for the recommendation to fail notwithstanding the majority vote of the Commission.

1979, c. 330, §§ 9-145.2, 9-145.3; 1996, c. 535; 2001, c. 844; 2004, c. 1000.

A. The Commission shall generally study all aspects of coal as an energy resource and endeavor to stimulate, encourage, promote, and assist in the development of renewable and alternative energy resources other than petroleum. The Commission shall have no authority to adopt regulations. All agencies of the Commonwealth shall assist the Commission in its work. In addition to the aforementioned general powers, the Commission shall also perform the following functions:

1. Act in an advisory capacity to the Governor and executive branch agencies upon energy related matters;

2. Investigate and consider such questions and problems relating to the field of coal and energy utilization and alternative energy sources as may be submitted;

3. Make recommendations to the Governor and General Assembly on its own initiative;

4. Consult with applicable state agencies on all matters regarding energy conservation, including the promotion and implementation of initiatives for the public-at-large to conserve energy;

5. Endeavor to encourage research designed to further new and more extensive use of the coal as well as alternative and renewable energy resources of the Commonwealth;

6. Effectively disseminate any such proposals to groups and organizations, both state and local, so as to stimulate local governing bodies and private business initiative in the field of energy related matters;

7. Coordinate its efforts with those of the Virginia Solar Energy Center established pursuant to § 45.2-1900 and the Virginia Center for Coal and Energy Research established pursuant to Article 3 (§ 23.1-2623 et seq.) of Chapter 26 of Title 23.1;

8. Actively seek federal and other funds to be used to carry out its functions;

9. Seek to establish alternative fuel capability within the Commonwealth; and

10. Investigate and make recommendations regarding the development of nuclear power. The Commission shall periodically address (i) encouraging the reprocessing of spent fuel for reuse, (ii) incentives to encourage the study of nuclear engineering at public institutions of higher education in the Commonwealth, (iii) the storage of nuclear waste, (iv) the transportation of nuclear waste, (v) security needs of nuclear power plants, and (vi) on-site temporary storage facilities for spent nuclear fuel.

B. The Commission shall report its findings and recommendations to the General Assembly and the Governor on an annual basis. The Chairman of the Commission shall submit to the General Assembly and the Governor an annual executive summary of the interim activity and work of the Commission no later than the first day of each regular session of the General Assembly. The executive summary shall be submitted as provided in the procedures of the Division of Legislative Automated Systems for the processing of legislative documents and reports and shall be posted on the General Assembly's website.

1979, c. 330, §§ 9-145.1, 9-145.4; 1980, c. 214; 2001, c. 844; 2002, c. 559; 2004, c. 1000.