                                 CODE OF VIRGINIA

POWERS AND DUTIES OF GOVERNOR (§ 44-146.17)

A. The Governor shall be Director of Emergency Management. He shall take such
action from time to time as is necessary for the adequate promotion and
coordination of state and local emergency services activities relating to the
safety and welfare of the Commonwealth in time of disasters.
			The Governor shall have, in addition to his powers hereinafter or elsewhere
prescribed by law, the following powers and duties:

   1. To proclaim and publish such rules and regulations and to issue such orders
   as may, in his judgment, be necessary to accomplish the purposes of this
   chapter including, but not limited to such measures as are in his judgment
   required to control, restrict, allocate or regulate the use, sale, production
   and distribution of food, fuel, clothing and other commodities, materials,
   goods, services and resources under any state or federal emergency services
   programs.
   				He may adopt and implement the Commonwealth of Virginia Emergency
   Operations Plan, which provides for state-level emergency operations in
   response to any type of disaster or large-scale emergency affecting Virginia
   and that provides the needed framework within which more detailed emergency
   plans and procedures can be developed and maintained by state agencies, local
   governments and other organizations.
   				He may direct and compel evacuation of all or part of the populace from
   any stricken or threatened area if this action is deemed necessary for the
   preservation of life, implement emergency mitigation, preparedness, response
   or recovery actions; prescribe routes, modes of transportation and destination
   in connection with evacuation; and control ingress and egress at an emergency
   area, including the movement of persons within the area and the occupancy of
   premises therein.
   				Executive orders, to include those declaring a state of emergency and
   directing evacuation, shall have the force and effect of law and the violation
   thereof shall be punishable as a Class 1 misdemeanor in every case where the
   executive order declares that its violation shall have such force and effect.
   				Such executive orders declaring a state of emergency may address
   exceptional circumstances that exist relating to an order of quarantine or an
   order of isolation concerning a communicable disease of public health threat
   that is issued by the State Health Commissioner for an affected area of the
   Commonwealth pursuant to Article 3.02 (&#xA7; 32.1-48.05 et seq.) of Chapter 2
   of Title 32.1.
   				No rule, regulation, or order issued under this section shall have any
   effect beyond 45 days after the date of issuance. Unless the General Assembly
   takes action on the rule, regulation, or order within the 45 days during which
   the rule, regulation, or order is effective, the Governor shall thereafter be
   prohibited from issuing the same or a similar rule, regulation, or order
   relating to the same emergency;

   2. To appoint a State Coordinator of Emergency Management and authorize the
   appointment or employment of other personnel as is necessary to carry out the
   provisions of this chapter, and to remove, in his discretion, any and all
   persons serving hereunder;

   3. To procure supplies and equipment, to institute training and public
   information programs relative to emergency management and to take other
   preparatory steps including the partial or full mobilization of emergency
   management organizations in advance of actual disaster, to insure the
   furnishing of adequately trained and equipped forces in time of need;

   4. To make such studies and surveys of industries, resources, and facilities
   in the Commonwealth as may be necessary to ascertain the capabilities of the
   Commonwealth and to plan for the most efficient emergency use thereof;

   5. On behalf of the Commonwealth to enter into mutual aid arrangements with
   other states and to coordinate mutual aid plans between political subdivisions
   of the Commonwealth. After a state of emergency is declared in another state
   and the Governor receives a written request for assistance from the executive
   authority of that state, the Governor may authorize the use in the other state
   of personnel, equipment, supplies, and materials of the Commonwealth, or of a
   political subdivision, with the consent of the chief executive officer or
   governing body of the political subdivision;

   6. To delegate any administrative authority vested in him under this chapter,
   and to provide for the further delegation of any such authority, as needed;

   7. Whenever, in the opinion of the Governor, the safety and welfare of the
   people of the Commonwealth require the exercise of emergency measures due to a
   threatened or actual disaster, to declare a state of emergency to exist;

   8. To request a major disaster declaration from the President, thereby
   certifying the need for federal disaster assistance and ensuring the
   expenditure of a reasonable amount of funds of the Commonwealth, its local
   governments, or other agencies for alleviating the damage, loss, hardship, or
   suffering resulting from the disaster;

   9. To provide incident command system guidelines for state agencies and local
   emergency response organizations;

   10. Whenever, in the opinion of the Governor or his designee, an employee of a
   state or local public safety agency responding to a disaster has suffered an
   extreme personal or family hardship in the affected area, such as the
   destruction of a personal residence or the existence of living conditions that
   imperil the health and safety of an immediate family member of the employee,
   to direct the Comptroller of the Commonwealth to issue warrants not to exceed
   $2,500 per month, for up to three calendar months, to the employee to assist
   the employee with the hardship; and

   11. During a disaster caused by a communicable disease of public health threat
   for which a state of emergency has been declared pursuant to subdivision (7),
   to establish a program through which the Governor may purchase PPE for
   private, nongovernmental entities and distribute the PPE to such private,
   nongovernmental entities. If federal funding is available to establish and
   fund the program, the Governor, if necessary to comply with any conditions
   attached to such federal funding, shall be entitled to seek reimbursement for
   such purchases from the private, nongovernmental entities and may establish
   and charge fees to recover the cost of administering the program, including
   the cost of procuring and distributing the PPE. However, if federal funding is
   not available to establish and fund the program, the Governor shall, prior to
   making such purchases, receive a contract for payment for purchase from the
   private nongovernmental entities for the full cost of procuring and
   distributing the PPE, which shall include any amortized costs of administering
   the program. Any purchase made by the Governor pursuant to this subdivision
   shall be exempt from the provisions of the Virginia Public Procurement Act
   (&#xA7; 2.2-4300 et seq.), except the Governor shall be encouraged to comply
   with the provisions of &#xA7; 2.2-4310 when possible. The Governor shall also
   provide for competition where practicable and include a written statement
   regarding the basis for awarding any contract. Prior to implementing such a
   program, the Department of Emergency Management shall consult with and survey
   private, nongovernmental entities in order to assess demand for participation
   in the program as well as the quantity and types of personal protective
   equipment such entities would like to procure.
   				As used in this subdivision, &#8220;personal protective equipment&#8221;
   or &#8220;PPE&#8221; means equipment or supplies worn or employed to minimize
   exposure to hazards that cause serious workplace injuries and illnesses and
   may include items such as gloves, safety glasses and shoes, earplugs or muffs,
   hard hats, respirators, coveralls, vests, full body suits, hand sanitizer,
   plastic shields, or testing for the communicable disease of public health
   threat.

B. No rule, regulation, or order issued by the Governor or other governmental
entity pursuant to this chapter shall impose restrictions on the operation of a
place of worship that are more restrictive than the restrictions imposed on any
other business, organization, or activity.

HISTORY: 1973, c. 260; 1974, c. 4; 1975, c. 11; 1981, c. 116; 1990, c. 95; 1997,
c. 893; 2000, c. 309; 2004, cc. 773, 1021; 2006, c. 140; 2007, cc. 729, 742;
2008, cc. 121, 157; 2020, Sp. Sess. I, cc. 14, 15, 17, 38; 2022, cc. 803, 805;
2023, c. 603.