Bill Text: VA HB814 | 2024 | Regular Session | Prefiled
Bill Title: Virginia Tourism Authority; powers, historically accurate advertising.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 6-0)
Status: (Passed) 2024-04-05 - Governor: Acts of Assembly Chapter text (CHAP0531) [HB814 Detail]
Download: Virginia-2024-HB814-Prefiled.html
Be it enacted by the General Assembly of Virginia:
1. That §2.2-2318 of the Code of Virginia is amended and reenacted as follows:
§2.2-2318. Powers of Authority.
The Authority, acting through the Executive Director, shall be granted all powers necessary or appropriate to carry out and to effectuate its purposes, including the following to:
1. Have perpetual succession as a public body corporate and as a political subdivision of the Commonwealth;
2. Adopt, amend, and repeal bylaws, rules, and regulations, not inconsistent with this article for the administration and regulation of its affairs, to carry into effect the powers and purposes of the Authority and the conduct of its business;
3. Sue and be sued in its own name;
4. Have an official seal and alter it at will although the failure to affix this seal shall not affect the validity of any instrument executed on behalf of the Authority;
5. Maintain an office at any place within or without the Commonwealth that it designates;
6. Make and execute contracts and all other instruments and agreements necessary or convenient for the performance of its duties and the exercise of its powers and functions under this article;
7. Acquire real or personal property, or any interest therein, by purchase, exchange, gift, assignment, transfer, foreclosure, lease, or otherwise, including rights or easements, and hold, manage, operate, or improve such property;
8. Sell, convey, mortgage, pledge, lease, exchange, transfer, and otherwise dispose of all or any part of its properties and assets;
9. Employ officers, employees, agents, advisers, and consultants, including without limitation, financial advisers and other technical advisers and public accountants and, the provisions of any other law to the contrary notwithstanding, to determine their duties and compensation without the approval of any other agency or instrumentality;
10. Procure insurance, in amounts and from insurers of its choice, or provide self-insurance, against any loss, cost, or expense in connection with its property, assets, or activities, including insurance or self-insurance against liability for its acts or the acts of its directors, employees, or agents and for the indemnification of the members of its Board and its employees and agents;
11. Receive and accept from any source aid, grants, and contributions of money, property, labor, or other things of value to be held, used, and applied to carry out the purposes of this article subject to the conditions upon which the aid, grants, or contributions are made;
12. Enter into agreements with any department, agency, or instrumentality of the United States, the Commonwealth, the District of Columbia, or any state for purposes consistent with its mission;
13. Establish and revise, amend and repeal, and charge and collect, fees and charges in connection with any activities or services of the Authority;
14. Make grants to local governments with any funds of the Authority available for this purpose;
15. Develop policies and procedures generally applicable to the procurement of goods, services, and construction based on competitive principles;
16. Issue periodicals and carry and charge for advertising therein;
17. Raise money in the corporate, nonprofit, and nonstate communities to finance the Authority's activities;
18. Support and encourage each locality to foster its own tourism development programs;
19. Enter into agreements with public or private entities that provide participating funding to establish and operate tourism centers, funded jointly by the entity and the Authority, as shall be determined by the Executive Director, and as approved by the Authority;
20. Encourage, stimulate, and support tourism in the Commonwealth by promoting, marketing, and advertising the Commonwealth's many tourist attractions and locations;
21. Encourage, stimulate, and support the film industry in the Commonwealth;
22. Do all things necessary or proper to administer and manage the Cooperative Tourism Advertising Fund and the Governor's Motion Picture Opportunity Fund;
23. Update a travel guide for the disabled in the first year of every biennium beginning in fiscal year 2003;
24. Develop a comprehensive plan to promote destinations of
historical and other significance located throughout the Commonwealth in
anticipation of the 400th anniversary of the Jamestown settlement; and
25. In consultation with the Library of Virginia and the Virginia African American Advisory Board, established pursuant to §2.2-2491, (i) create standards for the Authority's publications and advertising material to ensure all such materials accurately identify parcels of real property in the Commonwealth with a history linked to slave ownership and accurately depict the contributions of Black Virginians to any such parcel of real property; and (ii) acknowledge the horrors of slavery in the Commonwealth by publishing a list of slave-owning properties in the Commonwealth; and
26. Do any act necessary or convenient to the exercise of the powers granted or reasonably implied by this article and not otherwise inconsistent with state law.
