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Virginia HB 927
Recently, Virginia Governor Ralph Northam signed VA SB2/HB 972 into law, which includes an amendment to decriminalize simple marijuana possession. Under the new law, possession of an ounce or less of marijuana will no longer carry criminal charges, only a small fine. The law went into effect July 1, 2020.
With minor exceptions, employers can no longer ask candidates for employment or employees to disclose these types of arrests or convictions. Specific questions on disclosure by candidates/employees and your specific internal process should be reviewed by counsel.
Employers also need to expect that S2Verify and other background screening companies will filter these marijuana civil offenses from reports. See (1) below.
(1) S2Verify is proactively retrieving all Virginia searches completed July 1 to date, removing any criminal charges reported that meet the above criteria and updating those reports immediately, to be in compliance. While the number is small, it will assure you as a company and S2Verify are in full compliance with the new amended law.