New Virginia Laws Take Effect July 1: Birth Control, Drunk Truckers, Child Care, More ICYMI

RICHMOND, VA — Virginia's new fiscal year begins July 1, and that's when hundred of new laws passed by the General Assembly take effect. We're talking everything from pink hunting blazers to drunk truckers to lifetime licenses for pets.

In all, 836 bills were approved and signed by Gov. Terry McAuliffe. It's a long list, and includes many tweaks to "who knew?" provisions. For example, who knew you didn't have to present photo ID when applying for a concealed handgun permit? Well, now you do. (For more local news, click here to sign up for real-time news alerts. Also, like us on Facebook, and if you have an iPhone, click here to get the free Patch iPhone app.)

Click here for a complete list of the new laws and an explanation of each one, courtesy of the Virginia Division of Legislative Services. Meanwhile, here's a sampling of the highlights:

• PINK IS THE NEW ORANGE: Hey, if macho professional athletes do it, why not hunters? Namely, those who choose to hunt in the Commonwealth will be able to wear blaze pink instead of blaze orange if they so choose. Also, electronic hunting licenses are now permitted.
• DRUNK TRUCKERS: Anyone convicted of driving a commercial vehicle drunk in Virginia will face mandatory minimum fines up to $500 plus mandatory minimum jails sentences up to one year. A third offense within 10 years will result in felony charges.
• PET SOUNDS: Dogs and cats now can receive lifetime licenses, with a maximum tax on a lifetime license set at $50. Too, gone is the minimum annual tax for both cats and dogs.
• GUNS IN SCHOOLS: In what has become a national debate following several high-profile school shootings, the question of whether school security officers may carry firearms is now moot in Virginia. They will be allowed to pack heat.
• WEED RELIEF: Kinda sorta. Adults convicted of simple marijuana possession no longer will lose their driver's license for six months. Instead, they can keep it if they agree to 50 hours of community service.
• BULLYING: If a school principal finds out about a bullying incident, the principal will be required to notify parents or guardians within five days of the incident.
• HEROIN EPIDEMIC: At-risk communities will be eligible for the distribution of sterile hypodermic needles and syringes, as well as the pickup of used ones. Information will be readily available about addiction treatment services.
• BIRTH CONTROL: Women now will be able to get a 12-month supply of the contraceptives of their choosing. Gone are 90-day limits.
• CHILD CARE: Those who provide child care services will have to undergo a national criminal background check through fingerprints.
• BREW THRU: Not yet, but those drive-through beer and wine places that dot the Outer Banks of North Carolina could be on the way in Virginia. For now, businesses will be able to deliver closed containers of beer or wine to a customer's vehicle if the online order was placed in advance.

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