Terms Used In Virginia Code > Title 15.2 > Subtitle II > Chapter 22 > Article 7 - Zoning.

• Abused or neglected child: means any child less than 18 years of age:

  1. See Virginia Code 63.2-100

• Accommodations: means any room or space for which tax is imposed on the retail sale of the same pursuant to this article. See Virginia Code 58.1-3818.8
• Accommodations intermediary: means the same as such term is defined in § Virginia Code 58.1-3818.8
• Accommodations provider: means the same as such term is defined in § Virginia Code 58.1-3818.8
• Acquirer: means a business organization, financial institution or an agent of a business organization or financial institution that authorizes a merchant to accept payment by credit card or credit card number for money, goods, services or anything else of value. See Virginia Code 18.2-191
• Act of terrorism: means an act of violence as defined in clause (i) of subdivision A of § Virginia Code 18.2-46.4
• Act of violence: means those felony offenses described in subsection C of § Virginia Code 18.2-46.1
• Adjourn: A motion to adjourn a legislative chamber or a committee, if passed, ends that day's session.
• Adjusted gross receipts: means the gross receipts from casino gaming less winnings paid to winners. See Virginia Code 58.1-4100
• Adjusted gross revenue: means gross revenue minus:

  1. See Virginia Code 58.1-4030

• Adoptive home: means any family home selected and approved by a parent, local board or a licensed child-placing agency for the placement of a child with the intent of adoption. See Virginia Code 63.2-100
• Adult: means a person 18 years of age or more. See Virginia Code 1-203
• Adult foster care: means room and board, supervision, and special services to an adult who has a physical or mental condition. See Virginia Code 63.2-100
• Affidavit: A written statement of facts confirmed by the oath of the party making it, before a notary or officer having authority to administer oaths.
• Affirmed: In the practice of the appellate courts, the decree or order is declared valid and will stand as rendered in the lower court.
• Affordable housing: means , as a guideline, housing that is affordable to households with incomes at or below the area median income, provided that the occupant pays no more than thirty percent of his gross income for gross housing costs, including utilities. See Virginia Code 15.2-2201
• Agency: means all boards, commissions, departments, divisions, institutions, and authorities, and parts thereof, of the Commonwealth or its political subdivisions and includes the offices of constitutional officers. See Virginia Code 42.1-77
• Allegation: something that someone says happened.
• Amateur sports: includes domestic, international, and Olympic sports or athletic events. See Virginia Code 58.1-4030
• Amendment: A proposal to alter the text of a pending bill or other measure by striking out some of it, by inserting new language, or both. Before an amendment becomes part of the measure, thelegislature must agree to it.
• Answer: The formal written statement by a defendant responding to a civil complaint and setting forth the grounds for defense.
• Appeal: A request made after a trial, asking another court (usually the court of appeals) to decide whether the trial was conducted properly. To make such a request is "to appeal" or "to take an appeal." One who appeals is called the appellant.
• Appraisal: A determination of property value.
• Appropriation: The provision of funds, through an annual appropriations act or a permanent law, for federal agencies to make payments out of the Treasury for specified purposes. The formal federal spending process consists of two sequential steps: authorization
• Arrest: Taking physical custody of a person by lawful authority.
• Assets: (1) The property comprising the estate of a deceased person, or (2) the property in a trust account.
• Attachment: A procedure by which a person's property is seized to pay judgments levied by the court.
• Bail: Security given for the release of a criminal defendant or witness from legal custody (usually in the form of money) to secure his/her appearance on the day and time appointed.
• Bankruptcy: Refers to statutes and judicial proceedings involving persons or businesses that cannot pay their debts and seek the assistance of the court in getting a fresh start. Under the protection of the bankruptcy court, debtors may discharge their debts, perhaps by paying a portion of each debt. Bankruptcy judges preside over these proceedings.
• Base offense: means an act of violence as defined in clause (i) of subdivision A of § Virginia Code 18.2-46.4
• Beneficiary: A person who is entitled to receive the benefits or proceeds of a will, trust, insurance policy, retirement plan, annuity, or other contract. ^{Source: OCC}
• Board: means the State Library Board. See Virginia Code 42.1-77
• Board: means the Virginia Lottery Board established by this chapter. See Virginia Code 58.1-4002
• Board: means the Virginia Lottery Board established in the Virginia Lottery Law (§ Virginia Code 58.1-4100
• Board of supervisors: means the governing body of a county. See Virginia Code 15.2-102
• Bond with surety: includes the payment in cash of the full amount of the required bond and, in such case, no surety shall be required. See Virginia Code 1-205
• Cardholder: means the person or organization named on the face of a credit card to whom or for whose benefit the credit card is issued by an issuer. See Virginia Code 18.2-191
• Casino gaming establishment: means the premises, including the entire property located at the address of the licensed casino, upon which lawful casino gaming is authorized and licensed as provided in this chapter. See Virginia Code 58.1-4100
• Casino gaming operator: means any person issued a license by the Board to operate a casino gaming establishment. See Virginia Code 58.1-4100
• Cheat: means to alter the selection criteria that determine the result of a game or the amount or frequency of payment in a game for the purpose of obtaining an advantage for one or more participants in a game over other participants in a game. See Virginia Code 58.1-4100
• Chief judge: The judge who has primary responsibility for the administration of a court but also decides cases; chief judges are determined by seniority.
• Child support services: means any civil, criminal or administrative action taken by the Division of Child Support Enforcement to locate parents; establish paternity; and establish, modify, enforce, or collect child support, or child and spousal support. See Virginia Code 63.2-100
• Child-protective services: means the identification, receipt and immediate response to complaints and reports of alleged child abuse or neglect for children under 18 years of age. See Virginia Code 63.2-100
• Child-welfare agency: means a child-placing agency, children's residential facility, or independent foster home. See Virginia Code 63.2-100
• City: means an independent incorporated community which became a city as provided by law before noon on July 1, 1971, or which has within defined boundaries a population of 5,000 or more and which has become a city as provided by law. See Virginia Code 1-208
• Civil forfeiture: The loss of ownership of property used to conduct illegal activity.
• Clerk of court: An officer appointed by the court to work with the chief judge in overseeing the court's administration, especially to assist in managing the flow of cases through the court and to maintain court records.
• Coal producer: means any holder of an economic interest. See Virginia Code 58.1-3740
• College sports: means an athletic event (i) in which at least one participant is a team from a public or private institution of higher education, regardless of where such institution is located, and (ii) that does not include a team from a Virginia public or private institution of higher education. See Virginia Code 58.1-4030
• Collegial body: means a governmental entity whose power or authority is vested within its membership. See Virginia Code 1-209
• Commissioner: means the Commissioner of the Department, his designee or authorized representative. See Virginia Code 63.2-100
• Common law: The legal system that originated in England and is now in use in the United States. It is based on judicial decisions rather than legislative action.
• Complaining witness: means the person alleged to have been subjected to rape, forcible sodomy, inanimate or animate object sexual penetration, marital sexual assault, aggravated sexual battery, or sexual battery. See Virginia Code 18.2-67.10
• Complaint: A written statement by the plaintiff stating the wrongs allegedly committed by the defendant.
• Continuance: Putting off of a hearing ot trial until a later time.
• Contract: A legal written agreement that becomes binding when signed.
• Conviction: A judgement of guilt against a criminal defendant.
• Corporation: A legal entity owned by the holders of shares of stock that have been issued, and that can own, receive, and transfer property, and carry on business in its own name.
• Counter check: means an interest-free negotiable instrument for a specified amount executed by a player and held by the casino that serves as evidence of the casino gaming patron's obligation to pay the casino and that can be exchanged by the casino gaming patron for the specified amount in chips, tokens, credits, electronic credits, electronic cash, or electronic cards. See Virginia Code 58.1-4100
• County: means any existing county or such unit hereafter created. See Virginia Code 15.2-102
• Credit card: means any instrument or device, whether known as a credit card, credit plate, payment device number, or by any other name, issued with or without fee by an issuer for the use of the cardholder in obtaining money, goods, services or anything else of value on credit. See Virginia Code 18.2-191
• Credit report: A detailed report of an individual's credit history prepared by a credit bureau and used by a lender in determining a loan applicant's creditworthiness. ^{Source: OCC}
• Criminal street gang: means any ongoing organization, association, or group of three or more persons, whether formal or informal, (i) which has as one of its primary objectives or activities the commission of one or more criminal activities; (ii) which has an identifiable name or identifying sign or symbol; and (iii) whose members individually or collectively have engaged in the commission of, attempt to commit, conspiracy to commit, or solicitation of two or more predicate criminal acts, at least one of which is an act of violence, provided such acts were not part of a common act or transaction. See Virginia Code 18.2-46.1
• Custodian: means the public official in charge of an office having public records. See Virginia Code 42.1-77
• Damages: Money paid by defendants to successful plaintiffs in civil cases to compensate the plaintiffs for their injuries.
• Decedent: A deceased person.
• Deed: The legal instrument used to transfer title in real property from one person to another.
• Defendant: In a civil suit, the person complained against; in a criminal case, the person accused of the crime.
• Department: means the State Department of Social Services. See Virginia Code 63.2-100
• Department: means the Department of Taxation. See Virginia Code 58.1-1
• Department: means the independent agency responsible for the administration of the Virginia Lottery pursuant to this article and sports betting pursuant to Article 2 (§ Virginia Code 58.1-4002
• Department: means the independent agency responsible for the administration of the Virginia Lottery created in the Virginia Lottery Law (§ Virginia Code 58.1-4100
• Department of Health and Human Services: means the Department of Health and Human Services of the United States government or any department or agency thereof that may hereafter be designated as the agency to administer the Social Security Act, as amended. See Virginia Code 63.2-100
• Dependent: A person dependent for support upon another.
• Deposition: An oral statement made before an officer authorized by law to administer oaths. Such statements are often taken to examine potential witnesses, to obtain discovery, or to be used later in trial.
• Development: means a tract of land developed or to be developed as a unit under single ownership or unified control which is to be used for any business or industrial purpose or is to contain three or more residential dwelling units. See Virginia Code 15.2-2201
• Director: means the Director of the Virginia Lottery. See Virginia Code 58.1-4002
• Director: means the Director of the Virginia Lottery. See Virginia Code 58.1-4100
• Disaster plan: means the information maintained by an agency that outlines recovery techniques and methods to be followed in case of an emergency that impacts the agency's records. See Virginia Code 42.1-77
• Discovery: Lawyers' examination, before trial, of facts and documents in possession of the opponents to help the lawyers prepare for trial.
• Dismissal: The dropping of a case by the judge without further consideration or hearing. ^Source:
• Docket: A log containing brief entries of court proceedings.
• Economic interest: means the interest possessed by a person who has acquired by capital investment any interest in the coal in place and secures, by any form of legal relationship, income from the extraction of the coal, to which he must look for a return of his capital. See Virginia Code 58.1-3740
• Electronic communication device: means (i) any type of instrument, device, machine, equipment or software that is capable of transmitting, acquiring, encrypting, decrypting or receiving any signs, signals, writings, images and sounds or intelligence of any nature by wire, radio, optical or other electromagnetic systems or (ii) any part, accessory or component of such an instrument, device, machine, equipment or software, including, but not limited to, any computer circuit, computer chip, security module, smart card, electronic mechanism, or other component, accessory or part, that is capable of facilitating the transmission, acquisition, encryption, decryption or reception of signs, signals, writings, images, and sounds or intelligence of any nature by wire, radio, optical or other electromagnetic systems. See Virginia Code 18.2-190.1
• Electronic communication service: means any service provided for a charge or compensation to facilitate the lawful origination, transmission, emission or reception of signs, signals, writings, images and sounds or intelligence of any nature through the use of an electronic communication device as that term is defined in this section. See Virginia Code 18.2-190.1
• Electronic communication service provider: means any person or entity providing any electronic communication service including (i) any person or entity owning or operating any cable television, satellite, Internet-based, telephone, wireless, microwave, fiber optic, data transmission or radio distribution network, system or facility; (ii) any person or entity that for a fee supplies equipment or services to an electronic communication service provider; and (iii) any person or entity providing an electronic communication service directly or indirectly using any of the systems, networks, or facilities described in clause (i). See Virginia Code 18.2-190.1
• Electronic funds transfer: The transfer of money between accounts by consumer electronic systems-such as automated teller machines (ATMs) and electronic payment of bills-rather than by check or cash. (Wire transfers, checks, drafts, and paper instruments do not fall into this category.) ^{Source: OCC}
• Electronic record: means a public record whose creation, storage, and access require the use of an automated system or device. See Virginia Code 42.1-77
• Eligible host city: means any city described in § Virginia Code 58.1-4100
• Embezzlement: In most states, embezzlement is defined as theft/larceny of assets (money or property) by a person in a position of trust or responsibility over those assets. Embezzlement typically occurs in the employment and corporate settings. ^{Source: OCC}
• Energy assistance: means benefits to assist low-income households with their home heating and cooling needs, including, but not limited to, purchase of materials or substances used for home heating, repair or replacement of heating equipment, emergency intervention in no-heat situations, purchase or repair of cooling equipment, and payment of electric bills to operate cooling equipment, in accordance with § Virginia Code 63.2-100
• Entitlement: A Federal program or provision of law that requires payments to any person or unit of government that meets the eligibility criteria established by law. Entitlements constitute a binding obligation on the part of the Federal Government, and eligible recipients have legal recourse if the obligation is not fulfilled. Social Security and veterans' compensation and pensions are examples of entitlement programs.
• Entity: means a person that is not a natural person. See Virginia Code 58.1-4100
• Equipment or materials used to manufacture an unlawful electronic communication device: means (i) a scanner capable of intercepting the electronic serial number or mobile identification number of a cellular or other wireless telephone; (ii) electronic software or hardware capable of altering or changing the factory-installed electronic serial number of a cellular or other wireless telephone or a computer containing such software; (iii) a list of cellular or other wireless telephone electronic serial numbers with their associated mobile identification numbers; or (iv) a part, accessory or component of an unlawful electronic communications device possessed or used in the manufacture of such device including any electronic serial number, computer software, mobile identification number, service access card, account number, or personal identification number used to acquire, receive, use, decrypt or transmit an electronic communication service without the actual consent or knowledge of the electronic communication service provider. See Virginia Code 18.2-190.1
• Equitable: Pertaining to civil suits in "equity" rather than in "law." In English legal history, the courts of "law" could order the payment of damages and could afford no other remedy. See damages. A separate court of "equity" could order someone to do something or to cease to do something. See, e.g., injunction. In American jurisprudence, the federal courts have both legal and equitable power, but the distinction is still an important one. For example, a trial by jury is normally available in "law" cases but not in "equity" cases. ^{Source: U.S. Courts}
• Escrow: Money given to a third party to be held for payment until certain conditions are met.
• Evidence: Information presented in testimony or in documents that is used to persuade the fact finder (judge or jury) to decide the case for one side or the other.
• Ex officio: Literally, by virtue of one's office.
• Ex officio: means service by virtue of one's office and includes voting privileges for ex officio members unless otherwise provided. See Virginia Code 1-215
• Fair Credit Reporting Act: A federal law, established in 1971 and revised in 1997, that gives consumers the right to see their credit records and correct any mistakes. ^{Source: OCC}
• Fair Debt Collection Practices Act: The Fair Debt Collection Practices Act is a set of United States statutes added as Title VIII of the Consumer Credit Protection Act. Its purpose is to ensure ethical practices in the collection of consumer debts and to provide consumers with an avenue for disputing and obtaining validation of debt information in order to ensure the information's accuracy. It is often used in conjunction with the Fair Credit Reporting Act. ^{Source: OCC}
• Fair market value: The price at which an asset would change hands in a transaction between a willing, informed buyer and a willing, informed seller.
• Family and permanency team: means the group of individuals assembled by the local department to assist with determining planning and placement options for a child, which shall include, as appropriate, all biological relatives and fictive kin of the child, as well as any professionals who have served as a resource to the child or his family, such as teachers, medical or mental health providers, and clergy members. See Virginia Code 63.2-100
• farm: means any person that obtains at least 51 percent of its annual gross income from agricultural operations and produces the agricultural waste used as feedstock for the waste-to-energy technology, (ii) "agricultural waste" means biomass waste materials capable of decomposition that are produced from the raising of plants and animals during agricultural operations, including animal manures, bedding, plant stalks, hulls, and vegetable matter, and (iii) "waste-to-energy technology" means any technology, including but not limited to a methane digester, that converts agricultural waste into gas, steam, or heat that is used to generate electricity on-site. See Virginia Code 1-222.1
• Fee simple: Absolute title to property with no limitations or restrictions regarding the person who may inherit it.
• Fictive kin: means persons who are not related to a child by blood or adoption but have an established relationship with the child or his family. See Virginia Code 63.2-100
• Fiduciary: A trustee, executor, or administrator.
• Fiscal year: The fiscal year is the accounting period for the government. For the federal government, this begins on October 1 and ends on September 30. The fiscal year is designated by the calendar year in which it ends; for example, fiscal year 2006 begins on October 1, 2005 and ends on September 30, 2006.
• Forgery: The fraudulent signing or alteration of another's name to an instrument such as a deed, mortgage, or check. The intent of the forgery is to deceive or defraud. ^{Source: OCC}
• Foster care placement: means placement of a child through (i) an agreement between the parents or guardians and the local board where legal custody remains with the parents or guardians or (ii) an entrustment or commitment of the child to the local board or licensed child-placing agency. See Virginia Code 63.2-100
• Foster home: means a residence approved by a child-placing agency or local board in which any child, other than a child by birth or adoption of such person or a child who is the subject of a power of attorney to delegate parental or legal custodial powers by his parents or legal custodian to the natural person who has been designated the child's legal guardian pursuant to Chapter 10 of Title 20 and who exercises legal authority over the child on a continuous basis for at least 24 hours without compensation, resides as a member of the household. See Virginia Code 63.2-100
• Fraud: Intentional deception resulting in injury to another.
• Freedom of Information Act: A federal law that mandates that all the records created and kept by federal agencies in the executive branch of government must be open for public inspection and copying. The only exceptions are those records that fall into one of nine exempted categories listed in the statute. ^{Source: OCC}
• game: includes on-premises mobile casino gaming. See Virginia Code 58.1-4002
• game: includes on-premises mobile casino gaming. See Virginia Code 58.1-4100
• Gaming operation: means the conduct of authorized casino gaming within a casino gaming establishment. See Virginia Code 58.1-4100
• Garnishment: Generally, garnishment is a court proceeding in which a creditor asks a court to order a third party who owes money to the debtor or otherwise holds assets belonging to the debtor to turn over to the creditor any of the debtor
• general contractor: includes contractors, laborers, mechanics, and persons furnishing materials, who contract directly with the owner, and the term "subcontractor" includes all such contractors, laborers, mechanics, and persons furnishing materials, who do not contract with the owner but with the general contractor. See Virginia Code 43-1
• General relief: means money payments and other forms of relief made to those persons mentioned in § Virginia Code 63.2-100
• Gift: A voluntary transfer or conveyance of property without consideration, or for less than full and adequate consideration based on fair market value.
• Governing body: means the board of supervisors of a county, council of a city, or council of a town, as the context may require. See Virginia Code 15.2-102
• Grantor: The person who establishes a trust and places property into it.
• Green roof: means a solar roof or a vegetative roof. See Virginia Code 58.1-3852
• Gross receipts: means the purchase price received by a coal producer for the sale of coal to an unaffiliated purchaser in an arm's-length transaction. See Virginia Code 58.1-3740
• Gross receipts: means the total amount of money exchanged for the purchase of chips, tokens, electronic credits, electronic cash, or electronic cards by casino gaming patrons. See Virginia Code 58.1-4100
• Gross revenue: means the total of all cash, property, or any other form of remuneration, whether collected or not, received by a permittee from its sports betting operations. See Virginia Code 58.1-4030
• Guardian: A person legally empowered and charged with the duty of taking care of and managing the property of another person who because of age, intellect, or health, is incapable of managing his (her) own affairs.
• Historic area: means an area containing one or more buildings or places in which historic events occurred or having special public value because of notable architectural, archaeological or other features relating to the cultural or artistic heritage of the community, of such significance as to warrant conservation and preservation. See Virginia Code 15.2-2201
• Immediate family: means (i) a spouse and (ii) any other person residing in the same household as an officer or employee and who is a dependent of the officer or employee or of whom the officer or employee is a dependent. See Virginia Code 58.1-4100
• in writing: include any representation of words, letters, symbols, numbers, or figures, whether (i) printed or inscribed on a tangible medium or (ii) stored in an electronic or other medium and retrievable in a perceivable form and whether an electronic signature authorized by Virginia Code 1-257
• Incentive zoning: means the use of bonuses in the form of increased project density or other benefits to a developer in return for the developer providing certain features, design elements, uses, services, or amenities desired by the locality, including but not limited to, site design incorporating principles of new urbanism and traditional neighborhood development, environmentally sustainable and energy-efficient building design, affordable housing creation and preservation, and historical preservation, as part of the development. See Virginia Code 15.2-2201
• Includes: means includes, but not limited to. See Virginia Code 1-218
• Independent living: means a planned program of services designed to assist a child age 16 and over and persons who are former foster care children or were formerly committed to the Department of Juvenile Justice and are between the ages of 18 and 21 in transitioning to self-sufficiency. See Virginia Code 63.2-100
• Independent living arrangement: means placement of (i) a child at least 16 years of age who is in the custody of a local board or licensed child-placing agency by the local board or licensed child-placing agency or (ii) a child at least 16 years of age or a person between the ages of 18 and 21 who was committed to the Department of Juvenile Justice immediately prior to placement by the Department of Juvenile Justice, in a living arrangement in which such child or person does not have daily substitute parental supervision. See Virginia Code 63.2-100
• Independent physician: means a physician who is chosen by the resident of the assisted living facility and who has no financial interest in the assisted living facility, directly or indirectly, as an owner, officer, or employee or as an independent contractor with the residence. See Virginia Code 63.2-100
• Indictment: The formal charge issued by a grand jury stating that there is enough evidence that the defendant committed the crime to justify having a trial; it is used primarily for felonies.
• Individual: means a natural person. See Virginia Code 58.1-4100
• Injunction: An order of the court prohibiting (or compelling) the performance of a specific act to prevent irreparable damage or injury.
• Intestate: Dying without leaving a will.
• Intimate parts: means the genitalia, anus, groin, breast, or buttocks of any person, or the chest of a child under the age of 15. See Virginia Code 18.2-67.10
• Issuer: means the business organization or financial institution or its duly authorized agent which issues a credit card. See Virginia Code 18.2-191
• Joint resolution: A legislative measure which requires the approval of both chambers.
• Jurisdiction: (1) The legal authority of a court to hear and decide a case. Concurrent jurisdiction exists when two courts have simultaneous responsibility for the same case. (2) The geographic area over which the court has authority to decide cases.
• Kinship guardianship: means a relationship established in accordance with § Virginia Code 63.2-100
• Lease: A contract transferring the use of property or occupancy of land, space, structures, or equipment in consideration of a payment (e.g., rent). ^{Source: OCC}
• Liabilities: The aggregate of all debts and other legal obligations of a particular person or legal entity.
• Librarian of Virginia: means the State Librarian of Virginia or his designated representative. See Virginia Code 42.1-77
• Lien: A claim against real or personal property in satisfaction of a debt.
• Litigation: A case, controversy, or lawsuit. Participants (plaintiffs and defendants) in lawsuits are called litigants.
• Local board: means the local board of social services representing one or more counties or cities. See Virginia Code 63.2-100
• Local department: means the local department of social services of any county or city in the Commonwealth. See Virginia Code 63.2-100
• Local director: means the director or his designated representative of the local department of the city or county. See Virginia Code 63.2-100
• local government: shall be construed to mean a county, city, or town as the context may require. See Virginia Code 15.2-102
• Local planning commission: means a municipal planning commission or a county planning commission. See Virginia Code 15.2-2201
• Locality: means a county, city, or town as the context may require. See Virginia Code 1-221
• Major league sports franchise: means a professional baseball, basketball, football, hockey, or soccer team that is at the highest-level league of play for its respective sport. See Virginia Code 58.1-4030
• Manufacture of an unlawful electronic communication device: means to make, produce or assemble an unlawful electronic communication device, or to modify, alter, program or reprogram an electronic communication device to be capable of performing any of the illegal functions of an unlawful electronic communication device as that term is defined in this section. See Virginia Code 18.2-190.1
• Mental incapacity: means that condition of the complaining witness existing at the time of an offense under this article which prevents the complaining witness from understanding the nature or consequences of the sexual act involved in such offense and about which the accused knew or should have known. See Virginia Code 18.2-67.10
• Merit system plan: means those regulations adopted by the Board in the development and operation of a system of personnel administration meeting requirements of the federal Office of Personnel Management. See Virginia Code 63.2-100
• Mixed use development: means property that incorporates two or more different uses, and may include a variety of housing types, within a single development. See Virginia Code 15.2-2201
• Month: means a calendar month and "year" means a calendar year. See Virginia Code 1-223
• Mortgage: The written agreement pledging property to a creditor as collateral for a loan.
• Mortgagee: The person to whom property is mortgaged and who has loaned the money.
• Motor sports facility: means an outdoor motor sports facility that hosts a National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing (NASCAR) national touring race. See Virginia Code 58.1-4030
• New residential development: means any construction or building expansion on residentially zoned property, including a residential component of a mixed-use development, that results in either one or more additional residential dwelling units or, otherwise, fewer residential dwelling units, beyond what may be permitted by right under the then-existing zoning of the property, when such new residential development requires a rezoning or proffer condition amendment. See Virginia Code 15.2-2303.4
• New residential use: means any use of residentially zoned property that requires a rezoning or that requires a proffer condition amendment to allow for new residential development. See Virginia Code 15.2-2303.4
• Nolo contendere: No contest-has the same effect as a plea of guilty, as far as the criminal sentence is concerned, but may not be considered as an admission of guilt for any other purpose.
• Non-local coal transportation and processing costs: includes the costs of transporting the coal from the county or city in which it was severed to the second county or city and the costs of cleaning, preparation, and processing that are incurred within that second county or city. See Virginia Code 58.1-3740
• Notary: means notary public. See Virginia Code 1-226
• Obligation: An order placed, contract awarded, service received, or similar transaction during a given period that will require payments during the same or a future period.
• Official league data: means statistics, results, outcomes, and other data relating to a professional sports event obtained by a permit holder under an agreement with a sports governing body or with an entity expressly authorized by a sports governing body for determining the outcome of tier 2 bets. See Virginia Code 58.1-4030
• Offsite proffer: means a proffer addressing an impact outside the boundaries of the property to be developed and shall include all cash proffers. See Virginia Code 15.2-2303.4
• On-premises mobile casino gaming: means casino gaming offered by a casino gaming operator at a casino gaming establishment using a computer network of both federal and nonfederal interoperable packet-switched data networks through which the casino gaming operator may offer casino gaming to individuals who have established an on-premises mobile casino gaming account with the casino gaming operator and who are physically present on the premises of the casino gaming establishment, as authorized by regulations promulgated by the Board. See Virginia Code 58.1-4002
• On-premises mobile casino gaming: means casino gaming offered by a casino gaming operator at a casino gaming establishment using a computer network of both federal and nonfederal interoperable packet-switched data networks through which the casino gaming operator may offer casino gaming to individuals who have established an on-premises mobile casino gaming account with the casino gaming operator and who are physically present on the premises of the casino gaming establishment, as authorized by regulations promulgated by the Board. See Virginia Code 58.1-4100
• Original record: means the first generation of the information and is the preferred version of a record. See Virginia Code 42.1-77
• Oversight: Committee review of the activities of a Federal agency or program.
• Partnership: A voluntary contract between two or more persons to pool some or all of their assets into a business, with the agreement that there will be a proportional sharing of profits and losses.
• Payment device number: means any code, account number or other means of account access, other than a check, draft or similar paper instrument, that can be used to obtain money, goods, services or anything else of value, or to initiate a transfer of funds. See Virginia Code 18.2-191
• Permit holder: means any person holding a supplier or service permit pursuant to this chapter. See Virginia Code 58.1-4100
• Permit holder: means a person to which the Director issues a permit pursuant to §§ Virginia Code 58.1-4030
• Person: means an individual, partnership, joint venture, association, limited liability company, stock corporation, or nonstock corporation and includes any person that directly or indirectly controls or is under common control with another person. See Virginia Code 58.1-4100
• Person: includes any individual, corporation, partnership, association, cooperative, limited liability company, trust, joint venture, government, political subdivision, or any other legal or commercial entity and any successor, representative, agent, agency, or instrumentality thereof. See Virginia Code 1-230
• Personal biometric data: means any information about an athlete that is derived from his DNA, heart rate, blood pressure, perspiration rate, internal or external body temperature, hormone levels, glucose levels, hydration levels, vitamin levels, bone density, muscle density, or sleep patterns, or other information as may be prescribed by the Board by regulation. See Virginia Code 58.1-4030
• Personal property: All property that is not real property.
• Personal representative: includes the executor of a will or the administrator of the estate of a decedent, the administrator of such estate with the will annexed, the administrator of such estate unadministered by a former representative, whether there is a will or not, any person who is under the order of a circuit court to take into his possession the estate of a decedent for administration, and every other curator of a decedent's estate, for or against whom suits may be brought for causes of action that accrued to or against the decedent. See Virginia Code 1-234
• Physical helplessness: means unconsciousness or any other condition existing at the time of an offense under this article which otherwise rendered the complaining witness physically unable to communicate an unwillingness to act and about which the accused knew or should have known. See Virginia Code 18.2-67.10
• Plaintiff: The person who files the complaint in a civil lawsuit.
• Plea: In a criminal case, the defendant's statement pleading "guilty" or "not guilty" in answer to the charges, a declaration made in open court.
• Power of attorney: A written instrument which authorizes one person to act as another's agent or attorney. The power of attorney may be for a definite, specific act, or it may be general in nature. The terms of the written power of attorney may specify when it will expire. If not, the power of attorney usually expires when the person granting it dies. ^{Source: OCC}
• Predicate criminal act: means (i) an act of violence; (ii) any violation of § Virginia Code 18.2-46.1
• Preferred casino gaming operator: means the proposed casino gaming establishment and operator thereof submitted by an eligible host city to the Board as an applicant for licensure. See Virginia Code 58.1-4100
• Preliminary hearing: A hearing where the judge decides whether there is enough evidence to make the defendant have a trial.
• Preliminary subdivision plat: means the proposed schematic representation of development or subdivision that establishes how the provisions of §§ Virginia Code 15.2-2201
• Prepaid access instrument: means a system device that allows a casino gaming patron access to funds that have been paid in advance and can be retrieved or transferred at some point in the future through such a device. See Virginia Code 58.1-4100
• Preservation: means the processes and operations involved in ensuring the technical and intellectual survival of authentic records through time. See Virginia Code 42.1-77
• Principal: means any individual who solely or together with his immediate family members (i) owns or controls, directly or indirectly, five percent or more of the pecuniary interest in any entity that is a licensee or (ii) has the power to vote or cause the vote of five percent or more of the voting securities or other ownership interests of such entity, and any person who manages a gaming operation on behalf of a licensee. See Virginia Code 58.1-4100
• Principal: includes any individual who is employed in a managerial capacity for a sports betting platform or sports betting facility on behalf of a permit holder. See Virginia Code 58.1-4030
• prior sexual conduct: means any sexual conduct on the part of the complaining witness which took place before the conclusion of the trial, excluding the conduct involved in the offense alleged under this article. See Virginia Code 18.2-67.10
• Probable cause: A reasonable ground for belief that the offender violated a specific law.
• Probate: Proving a will
• Probation: A sentencing alternative to imprisonment in which the court releases convicted defendants under supervision as long as certain conditions are observed.
• Process: includes subpoenas, the summons and complaint in a civil action, and process in statutory actions. See Virginia Code 1-237
• Professional sports: means an athletic event involving at least two human competitors who receive compensation, in excess of their expenses, for participating in such event. See Virginia Code 58.1-4030
• Proffer condition amendment: means an amendment to an existing proffer statement applicable to a property or properties. See Virginia Code 15.2-2303.4
• Prohibited conduct: includes statements, actions, and communications made to a covered person by a third party. See Virginia Code 58.1-4030
• Proposition bet: means a bet on an individual action, statistic, occurrence, or non-occurrence to be determined during an athletic event and includes any such action, statistic, occurrence, or non-occurrence that does not directly affect the final outcome of the athletic event to which it relates. See Virginia Code 58.1-4030
• Prosecute: To charge someone with a crime. A prosecutor tries a criminal case on behalf of the government.
• Public assistance: means Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF); auxiliary grants to the aged, blind, and disabled; medical assistance; energy assistance; food stamps; employment services; child care; and general relief. See Virginia Code 63.2-100
• Public facilities: means public transportation facilities, public safety facilities, public school facilities, or public parks. See Virginia Code 15.2-2303.4
• Public facility improvement: means an offsite public transportation facility improvement, a public safety facility improvement, a public school facility improvement, or an improvement to or construction of a public park. See Virginia Code 15.2-2303.4
• Public law: A public bill or joint resolution that has passed both chambers and been enacted into law. Public laws have general applicability nationwide.
• Public official: means all persons holding any office created by the Constitution of Virginia or by any act of the General Assembly, the Governor and all other officers of the executive branch of the state government, and all other officers, heads, presidents, or chairmen of boards, commissions, departments, and agencies of the state government or its political subdivisions. See Virginia Code 42.1-77
• public park: shall include playgrounds and other recreational facilities. See Virginia Code 15.2-2303.4
• Public safety facility improvement: means construction of new law-enforcement, fire, emergency medical, and rescue facilities or expansion of existing public safety facilities, to include all buildings, structures, parking, and other costs directly related thereto. See Virginia Code 15.2-2303.4
• Public school facility improvement: means construction of new primary and secondary public schools or expansion of existing primary and secondary public schools, to include all buildings, structures, parking, and other costs directly related thereto. See Virginia Code 15.2-2303.4
• Public transportation facility improvement: means (i) construction of new roads; (ii) improvement or expansion of existing roads and related appurtenances as required by applicable standards of the Virginia Department of Transportation, or the applicable standards of a locality; and (iii) construction, improvement, or expansion of buildings, structures, parking, and other facilities directly related to transit. See Virginia Code 15.2-2303.4
• Publication: means all documents, regardless of physical form or characteristics and issued by or for a state, local, or regional agency, in full or in part at government expense, that are created for the research or informational use of the public. See Virginia Code 42.1-93
• Qualified individual: means a trained professional or licensed clinician who is not an employee of the local board of social services or licensed child-placing agency that placed the child in a qualified residential treatment program and is not affiliated with any placement setting in which children are placed by such local board of social services or licensed child-placing agency. See Virginia Code 63.2-100
• Qualified residential treatment program: means a program that (i) provides 24-hour residential placement services for children in foster care; (ii) has adopted a trauma-informed treatment model that meets the clinical and other needs of children with serious emotional or behavioral disorders, including any clinical or other needs identified through assessments conducted pursuant to clause (viii) of this definition; (iii) employs registered or licensed nursing and other clinical staff who provide care, on site and within the scope of their practice, and are available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week; (iv) conducts outreach with the child's family members, including efforts to maintain connections between the child and his siblings and other family; documents and maintains records of such outreach efforts; and maintains contact information for any known biological family and fictive kin of the child; (v) whenever appropriate and in the best interest of the child, facilitates participation by family members in the child's treatment program before and after discharge and documents the manner in which such participation is facilitated; (vi) provides discharge planning and family-based aftercare support for at least six months after discharge; (vii) is licensed in accordance with Virginia Code 63.2-100
• Quorum: The number of legislators that must be present to do business.
• real estate: includes lands, tenements and hereditaments, and all rights and appurtenances thereto and interests therein, other than a chattel interest. See Virginia Code 1-219
• Real property: Land, and all immovable fixtures erected on, growing on, or affixed to the land.
• record: means recorded information that documents a transaction or activity by or with any public officer, agency, or employee of an agency. See Virginia Code 42.1-77
• Records retention and disposition schedule: means a Library of Virginia-approved timetable stating the required retention period and disposition action of a records series. See Virginia Code 42.1-77
• Reenacted: when used in the title or enactment of a bill or act of the General Assembly, means that the changes enacted to a section of the Code of Virginia or an act of the General Assembly are in addition to the existing substantive provisions in that section or act, and are effective prospectively unless the bill expressly provides that such changes are effective retroactively on a specified date. See Virginia Code 1-238
• Remainder: An interest in property that takes effect in the future at a specified time or after the occurrence of some event, such as the death of a life tenant.
• Remand: When an appellate court sends a case back to a lower court for further proceedings.
• Resident curator: means a person, firm, or corporation that leases or otherwise contracts to manage, preserve, maintain, operate, or reside in a historic property in accordance with the provisions of § Virginia Code 15.2-2201
• Residentially zoned property: means property zoned or proposed to be zoned for either single-family or multifamily housing. See Virginia Code 15.2-2303.4
• Restitution: The court-ordered payment of money by the defendant to the victim for damages caused by the criminal action.
• Retail sale: means a sale to any person for any purpose other than for resale. See Virginia Code 58.1-3818.8
• Revocable trust: A trust agreement that can be canceled, rescinded, revoked, or repealed by the grantor (person who establishes the trust).
• Room charge: means the same as such term is defined in § Virginia Code 58.1-3818.8
• Sales draft: means a paper or electronic form evidencing a purchase of goods, services or anything else of value from a merchant through the use of a credit card. See Virginia Code 18.2-191
• Sell: means to sell, exchange, lease, give or dispose of to another or to offer or agree to do the same. See Virginia Code 18.2-190.1
• Service of process: The service of writs or summonses to the appropriate party.
• Settlement: Parties to a lawsuit resolve their difference without having a trial. Settlements often involve the payment of compensation by one party in satisfaction of the other party's claims.
• Sexual abuse: means an act committed with the intent to sexually molest, arouse, or gratify any person, where:

  a. See Virginia Code 18.2-67.10

• Site plan: means the proposal for a development or a subdivision including all covenants, grants or easements and other conditions relating to use, location and bulk of buildings, density of development, common open space, public facilities and such other information as required by the subdivision ordinance to which the proposed development or subdivision is subject. See Virginia Code 15.2-2201
• Small area comprehensive plan: means that portion of a comprehensive plan adopted pursuant to § Virginia Code 15.2-2303.4
• Social services: means foster care, adoption, adoption assistance, child-protective services, domestic violence services, or any other services program implemented in accordance with regulations adopted by the Board. See Virginia Code 63.2-100
• Solar roof: means a solar roofing system that generates reusable energy, which reusable energy accounts for at least 2. See Virginia Code 58.1-3852
• Special exception: means a special use that is a use not permitted in a particular district except by a special use permit granted under the provisions of this chapter and any zoning ordinances adopted herewith. See Virginia Code 15.2-2201
• Special order: means an order imposing an administrative sanction issued to any party licensed pursuant to this title by the Commissioner that has a stated duration of not more than 12 months. See Virginia Code 63.2-100
• Sports betting: means placing wagers on sporting events as such activity is regulated by the Board. See Virginia Code 58.1-4002
• Sports betting: means the same as such term is defined in § Virginia Code 58.1-4100
• Sports betting: includes any system or method of wagering approved by the Director, including single-game bets, teaser bets, parlays, over-under, moneyline, pools, exchange wagering, in-game wagering, in-play bets, proposition bets, and straight bets. See Virginia Code 58.1-4030
• Sports betting facility: means an area, kiosk, or device located inside a casino gaming establishment licensed pursuant to this chapter that is designated for sports betting. See Virginia Code 58.1-4100
• Sports betting facility: means an area, kiosk, or device located inside a casino gaming establishment licensed pursuant to Chapter 41 (§ Virginia Code 58.1-4030
• Sports betting permit: means a permit to operate a sports betting platform or sports betting facility issued pursuant to the provisions of §§ Virginia Code 58.1-4030
• Sports betting platform: means a website, app, or other platform accessible via the Internet or mobile, wireless, or similar communications technology that sports bettors use to participate in sports betting. See Virginia Code 58.1-4030
• Sports betting program: means the program established by the Board to allow sports betting as described in this article. See Virginia Code 58.1-4030
• Sports governing body: includes a designee of the sports governing body. See Virginia Code 58.1-4030
• Stadium: means the physical facility that is the primary location at which a major league sports franchise hosts athletic events and any appurtenant facilities. See Virginia Code 58.1-4030
• State: when applied to a part of the United States, includes any of the 50 states, the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, Guam, the Northern Mariana Islands, and the United States Virgin Islands. See Virginia Code 1-245
• state agency: means the same as that term is defined in § Virginia Code 1-206
• state lottery: means the lottery or lotteries established and operated pursuant to this chapter. See Virginia Code 58.1-4002
• Statute: A law passed by a legislature.
• Statute of limitations: A law that sets the time within which parties must take action to enforce their rights.
• Street: means highway, street, avenue, boulevard, road, lane, alley, or any public way. See Virginia Code 15.2-2201
• Subpoena: A command to a witness to appear and give testimony.
• Subpoena duces tecum: A command to a witness to produce documents.
• Summons: Another word for subpoena used by the criminal justice system.
• Supervised independent living setting: means the residence of a person 18 years of age or older who is participating in the Fostering Futures program set forth in Article 2 (§ Virginia Code 63.2-100
• Supplier: means any person that sells or leases, or contracts to sell or lease, any casino gaming equipment, devices, or supplies, or provides any management services, to a licensee. See Virginia Code 58.1-4100
• Supreme Court: means the Supreme Court of Virginia. See Virginia Code 1-249
• sworn: means "affirm" or "affirmed. See Virginia Code 1-250
• TANF: means the program administered by the Department through which a relative can receive monthly cash assistance for the support of his eligible children. See Virginia Code 63.2-100
• TANF-UP: means the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families program for families in which both natural or adoptive parents of a child reside in the home and neither parent is exempt from Virginia Initiative for Education and Work (VIEW) participation under § Virginia Code 63.2-100
• Testate: To die leaving a will.
• Testify: Answer questions in court.
• Testimony: Evidence presented orally by witnesses during trials or before grand juries.
• Ticket courier service: means a service operated for the purpose of purchasing Virginia Lottery tickets on behalf of individuals located within or outside the Commonwealth and delivering or transmitting such tickets, or electronic images thereof, to such individuals as a business-for-profit delivery service. See Virginia Code 58.1-4002
• Tier-city: means an incorporated community within a consolidated county that (i) has within defined boundaries a population of 5,000 or more, (ii) has been designated as a tier-city by the General Assembly, and (iii) has both the powers of a town and such additional powers as may be granted tier-cities by the General Assembly. See Virginia Code 1-252
• Title IV-E Foster Care: means a federal program authorized under §§ 472 and 473 of the Social Security Act, as amended, and administered by the Department through which foster care is provided on behalf of qualifying children. See Virginia Code 63.2-100
• Town: means any existing town or an incorporated community within one or more counties which became a town before noon, July one, nineteen hundred seventy-one, as provided by law or which has within defined boundaries a population of 1,000 or more and which has become a town as provided by law. See Virginia Code 15.2-102
• Town: means any existing town or an incorporated community within one or more counties which became a town before noon, July 1, 1971, as provided by law or which has within defined boundaries a population of 1,000 or more and which has become a town as provided by law. See Virginia Code 1-254
• Transcript: A written, word-for-word record of what was said, either in a proceeding such as a trial or during some other conversation, as in a transcript of a hearing or oral deposition.
• Trial: A hearing that takes place when the defendant pleads "not guilty" and witnesses are required to come to court to give evidence.
• Trustee: A person or institution holding and administering property in trust.
• United States: includes the 50 states, the District of Columbia the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, Guam, the Northern Mariana Islands and the United States Virgin Islands. See Virginia Code 1-255
• Unlawful electronic communication device: means any electronic communication device that has been manufactured, designed, developed, altered, modified, programmed or reprogrammed, alone or in conjunction with another electronic communication device, so as to be capable of facilitating the disruption, acquisition, receipt, transmission, retransmission or decryption of an electronic communication service without the actual consent or knowledge of the electronic communication service provider. See Virginia Code 18.2-190.1
• User fees: Fees charged to users of goods or services provided by the government. In levying or authorizing these fees, the legislature determines whether the revenue should go into the treasury or should be available to the agency providing the goods or services.
• Variance: means , in the application of a zoning ordinance, a reasonable deviation from those provisions regulating the shape, size, or area of a lot or parcel of land or the size, height, area, bulk, or location of a building or structure when the strict application of the ordinance would unreasonably restrict the utilization of the property, and such need for a variance would not be shared generally by other properties, and provided such variance is not contrary to the purpose of the ordinance. See Virginia Code 15.2-2201
• Vegetative roof: means a roofing system designed in accordance with the Virginia Stormwater Management Program's standards and specifications for green roofs, as set forth in the Virginia Stormwater BMP Clearinghouse, in which at least 50 percent of the total roofing area is vegetative. See Virginia Code 58.1-3852
• Venue: The geographical location in which a case is tried.
• Veto: The procedure established under the Constitution by which the President/Governor refuses to approve a bill or joint resolution and thus prevents its enactment into law. A regular veto occurs when the President/Governor returns the legislation to the house in which it originated. The President/Governor usually returns a vetoed bill with a message indicating his reasons for rejecting the measure. In Congress, the veto can be overridden only by a two-thirds vote in both the Senate and the House.
• Virginia college sports: means an athletic event in which at least one participant is a team from a Virginia public or private institution of higher education. See Virginia Code 58.1-4030
• Voluntary exclusion program: means a program established by the Board pursuant to § Virginia Code 58.1-4002
• Voluntary exclusion program: means a program established by the Board pursuant to § Virginia Code 58.1-4100
• Weapon of terrorism: means any device or material that is designed, intended or used to cause death, bodily injury or serious bodily harm, through the release, dissemination, or impact of (i) poisonous chemicals; (ii) an infectious biological substance; or (iii) release of radiation or radioactivity. See Virginia Code 18.2-46.4
• Working waterfront: means an area or structure on, over, or adjacent to navigable waters that provides access to the water and is used for water-dependent commercial, industrial, or governmental activities, including commercial and recreational fishing; tourism; aquaculture; boat and ship building, repair, and services; seafood processing and sales; transportation; shipping; marine construction; and military activities. See Virginia Code 15.2-2201
• Working waterfront development area: means an area containing one or more working waterfronts having economic, cultural, or historic public value of such significance as to warrant development and reparation. See Virginia Code 15.2-2201
• Writ: A formal written command, issued from the court, requiring the performance of a specific act.
• Writ of certiorari: An order issued by the Supreme Court directing the lower court to transmit records for a case for which it will hear on appeal.
• Youth sports: means the same as such term is defined in § Virginia Code 58.1-4100
• Youth sports: means an athletic event (i) involving a majority of participants under age 18 or (ii) in which at least one participant is a team from a public or private elementary, middle, or secondary school, regardless of where such school is located. See Virginia Code 58.1-4030