Terms Used In Virginia Code > Title 33.2 > Subtitle I > Chapter 1 - Definitions and General Provisions

• Adjournment sine die: The end of a legislative session "without day." These adjournments are used to indicate the final adjournment of an annual or the two-year session of legislature.
• Advertisement: means any message appearing in the print media, on television, on radio, or on an online platform, that constitutes a contribution or expenditure under Chapter 9. See Virginia Code 24.2-955.1
• Allegation: something that someone says happened.
• Annuity: A periodic (usually annual) payment of a fixed sum of money for either the life of the recipient or for a fixed number of years. A series of payments under a contract from an insurance company, a trust company, or an individual. Annuity payments are made at regular intervals over a period of more than one full year.
• Answer: The formal written statement by a defendant responding to a civil complaint and setting forth the grounds for defense.
• Appraisal: A determination of property value.
• Authorization: means express approval or express consent by the candidate, the candidate's campaign committee, or an agent of the candidate or his campaign committee after coordination. See Virginia Code 24.2-945.1
• Bank: means a corporation authorized by statute to accept deposits and to hold itself out to the public as engaged in the banking business in the Commonwealth. See Virginia Code 6.2-800
• Bank holding company: means any corporation (i) that directly or indirectly owns, controls, or holds with power to vote, 25 percent or more of the voting shares of one or more banks or of a corporation that is or becomes a bank holding company by virtue of this definition, (ii) that controls in any manner the election of a majority of the directors of one or more banks, or (iii) for the benefit of whose shareholders or members 25 percent or more of the voting shares of one or more banks or bank holding companies is held by trustees. See Virginia Code 6.2-800
• Board: means the Commonwealth Transportation Board. See Virginia Code 33.2-100
• Board: means the State Board of Elections. See Virginia Code 24.2-101
• 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
• Campaign committee: means the committee designated by a candidate to receive all contributions and make all expenditures for him or on his behalf in connection with his nomination or election. See Virginia Code 24.2-945.1
• campaign committee: means "campaign committee" as defined in § Virginia Code 24.2-955.1
• Campaign telephone calls: means a series of telephone calls or text messages, electronic or otherwise, made (i) to 25 or more telephone numbers in the Commonwealth, (ii) during the 180 days before a general or special election or during the 90 days before a primary or other political party nominating event, (iii) conveying or soliciting information relating to any candidate or political party participating in the election, primary or other nominating event, and (iv) under an agreement to compensate the telephone callers. See Virginia Code 24.2-955.1
• Candidate: means a person who seeks or campaigns for an office of the Commonwealth or one of its governmental units in a general, primary, or special election and who is qualified to have his name placed on the ballot for the office. See Virginia Code 24.2-101
• Candidate: means "candidate" as defined in § Virginia Code 24.2-945.1
• Candidate: means "candidate" as defined in § Virginia Code 24.2-955.1
• Caucus: From the Algonquian Indian language, a caucus meant "to meet together." An informal organization of members of the legislature that exists to discuss issues of mutual concern and possibly to perform legislative research and policy planning for its members. There are regional, political or ideological, ethnic, and economic-based caucuses.
• Chief judge: The judge who has primary responsibility for the administration of a court but also decides cases; chief judges are determined by seniority.
• City: has the meaning assigned to it in § 1-208. See Virginia Code 33.2-100
• Commission: means the State Corporation Commission. See Virginia Code 6.2-100
• Commissioner: means the Commissioner of Financial Institutions. See Virginia Code 6.2-100
• Commissioner of Highways: means the individual who serves as the chief executive officer of the Department of Transportation. See Virginia Code 33.2-100
• Community and economic development entity: has the meaning assigned to it in Virginia Code 6.2-800
• Community development corporation: means a private, nonprofit corporation whose board of directors is composed primarily of community representatives or business, civic, and community leaders and whose principal purpose includes the provision of housing, community-based economic development projects, and social services that primarily benefit low-income individuals and communities. See Virginia Code 6.2-800
• Community development project: has the meaning assigned to it in Virginia Code 6.2-800
• Community Reinvestment Act: The Act is intended to encourage depository institutions to help meet the credit needs of the communities in which they operate, including low- and moderate-income neighborhoods. It was enacted by the Congress in 1977. ^{Source: OCC}
• Community-based economic development: means activities that (i) seek to address economic development through affordable housing development or the rehabilitation of qualified rehabilitated buildings or certified historic structures or (ii) seek to address economic causes of poverty in specific geographic areas by revitalizing the economic and social base of low-income communities through activities that include (a) small business and micro-enterprise support; (b) commercial, industrial, and retail revitalization, retention, and expansion; (c) capacity development and technical assistance support for community development corporations; (d) employment and training efforts; (e) human resource development; and (f) social service enterprises. See Virginia Code 6.2-800
• Conspicuous: means so written, displayed, or communicated that a reasonable person ought to have noticed it. See Virginia Code 24.2-955.1
• Contribution: includes money, services, or things of value in any way provided by a candidate to his own campaign and the payment by the candidate of a filing fee for any party nomination method. See Virginia Code 24.2-945.1
• coordination: refers to an expenditure that is made (i) at the express request or suggestion of a candidate, a candidate's campaign committee, or an agent of the candidate or his campaign committee or (ii) with material involvement of the candidate, a candidate's campaign committee, or an agent of the candidate or his campaign committee in devising the strategy, content, means of dissemination, or timing of the expenditure. See Virginia Code 24.2-945.1
• Deed: The legal instrument used to transfer title in real property from one person to another.
• Department: means the Department of Transportation. See Virginia Code 33.2-100
• Department: means the state agency headed by the Commissioner of Elections. See Virginia Code 24.2-101
• 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.
• Designated contribution: means a contribution that is designated specifically and in writing for a particular candidate or candidates and that is made using a political committee solely as a conduit. See Virginia Code 24.2-945.1
• Election: means a general, primary, or special election. See Virginia Code 24.2-101
• Election district: means the territory designated by proper authority or by law which is represented by an official elected by the people, including the Commonwealth, a congressional district, a General Assembly district, or a district for the election of an official of a county, city, town, or other governmental unit. See Virginia Code 24.2-101
• Entity: means any corporation, partnership, association, cooperative, limited liability company, trust, joint venture, government, political subdivision, or other legal or commercial entity. See Virginia Code 6.2-100
• Executor: A male person named in a will to carry out the decedent
• Expenditure: means money and services of any amount, and any other thing of value, paid, loaned, provided, or in any other way disbursed by any candidate, campaign committee, political committee, or person for the purpose of expressly advocating the election or defeat of a clearly identified candidate or by any inaugural committee for the purpose of defraying the costs of the inauguration of a Governor, Lieutenant Governor, or Attorney General. See Virginia Code 24.2-945.1
• 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.
• 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
• Federal political action committee: means any political action committee registered with the Federal Election Commission that makes contributions to candidates or political committees registered in Virginia. See Virginia Code 24.2-945.1
• Federal Reserve System: The central bank of the United States. The Fed, as it is commonly called, regulates the U.S. monetary and financial system. The Federal Reserve System is composed of a central governmental agency in Washington, D.C. (the Board of Governors) and twelve regional Federal Reserve Banks in major cities throughout the United States. ^{Source: OCC}
• Financial institution: means any bank, trust company, savings institution, industrial loan association, consumer finance company, or credit union. See Virginia Code 6.2-100
• Full-screen: means the only picture appearing on the television screen during the oral disclosure statement that (i) contains the disclosing person, (ii) occupies all visible space on the television screen, and (iii) contains the image of the disclosing person that occupies at least 50% of the vertical height of the television screen. See Virginia Code 24.2-955.1
• General election: means an election held in the Commonwealth on the Tuesday after the first Monday in November or on the first Tuesday in May for the purpose of filling offices regularly scheduled by law to be filled at those times. See Virginia Code 24.2-101
• General registrar: means the person appointed by the electoral board of a county or city pursuant to § Virginia Code 24.2-101
• Highway: means the entire width between the boundary lines of every way or place open to the use of the public for purposes of vehicular travel in the Commonwealth. See Virginia Code 33.2-100
• In-kind contribution: means the donation of goods, services, property, or other thing of value, other than money, including an expenditure controlled by, coordinated with, or made upon the authorization of a candidate, his campaign committee, or an agent of the candidate or his campaign committee, that is provided for free or less than the usual and normal charge. See Virginia Code 24.2-945.1
• Inaugural committee: means any organization, person, or group of persons that anticipates receiving contributions or making expenditures, from other than publicly appropriated funds, for the inauguration of the Governor, Lieutenant Governor, or Attorney General and related activities. See Virginia Code 24.2-945.1
• Independent expenditure: includes an expenditure made by a candidate campaign committee (i) that is not related to the candidate's own campaign and (ii) that is not made to, controlled by, coordinated with, or made with the authorization of a different candidate, his campaign committee, or an agent of that candidate or his campaign committee. See Virginia Code 24.2-945.1
• Inter vivos: Transfer of property from one living person to another living person.
• Interstate System: means the same as that term is defined in Virginia Code 33.2-100
• Joint session: When both chambers of a legislature adopt a concurrent resolution to meet together.
• 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.
• Lien: A claim against real or personal property in satisfaction of a debt.
• local electoral board: means a board appointed pursuant to § Virginia Code 24.2-101
• Locality: has the meaning assigned to it in § 1-221. See Virginia Code 33.2-100
• Maintenance: means (i) ordinary maintenance; (ii) maintenance replacement; (iii) operations that include traffic signal synchronization, incident management, and other intelligent transportation system functions; and (iv) any other categories of maintenance that may be designated by the Commissioner of Highways. See Virginia Code 33.2-100
• Mortgage: The written agreement pledging property to a creditor as collateral for a loan.
• National Bank: A bank that is subject to the supervision of the Comptroller of the Currency. The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency is a bureau of the U.S. Treasury Department. A national bank can be recognized because it must have "national" or "national association" in its name. ^{Source: OCC}
• National Credit Union Administration: The federal regulatory agency that charters and supervises federal credit unions. (NCUA also administers the National Credit Union Share Insurance Fund, which insures the deposits of federal credit unions.) ^{Source: OCC}
• Oath: A promise to tell the truth.
• Oath: includes affirmation. See Virginia Code 1-228
• Online platform: means any public-facing website, web application, or digital application, including a social network, ad network, or search engine, that sells advertisements. See Virginia Code 24.2-955.1
• Online political advertisement: means an advertisement that is placed or promoted for a fee on an online platform. See Virginia Code 24.2-955.1
• Online political advertiser: means any person who purchases an advertisement from an online platform or promotes an advertisement on an online platform for a fee. See Virginia Code 24.2-955.1
• Out-of-state political committee: means an entity covered by § 527 of the United States Internal Revenue Code that is not registered as a political committee or candidate campaign committee in Virginia and that does not have as its primary purpose expressly advocating the election or defeat of a clearly identified candidate. See Virginia Code 24.2-945.1
• 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.
• Person: means any individual or corporation, partnership, business, labor organization, membership organization, association, cooperative, or other like entity. See Virginia Code 24.2-945.1
• Person: means any individual, corporation, partnership, association, cooperative, limited liability company, trust, joint venture, government, political subdivision, or other legal or commercial entity. See Virginia Code 6.2-100
• Personal property: All property that is not real property.
• Political action committee: means any organization, person, or group of persons, established or maintained to receive and expend contributions for the primary purpose of expressly advocating the election or defeat of a clearly identified candidate. See Virginia Code 24.2-945.1
• Political action committee: means "political action committee" as defined in § Virginia Code 24.2-955.1
• Political committee: means and includes any political action committee, political party committee, referendum committee, or inaugural committee. See Virginia Code 24.2-945.1
• Political committee: means "political committee" as defined in § Virginia Code 24.2-955.1
• political party: means an organization of citizens of the Commonwealth which, at either of the two preceding statewide general elections, received at least 10 percent of the total vote cast for any statewide office filled in that election. See Virginia Code 24.2-101
• Political party committee: means any state political party committee, congressional district political party committee, county or city political party committee, other election district political party committee, or organized political party group of elected officials. See Virginia Code 24.2-945.1
• Political party committee: means any state political party committee, congressional district political party committee, county or city political party committee, or organized political party group of elected officials. See Virginia Code 24.2-955.1
• Precinct: means the territory designated by the governing body of a county, city, or town to be served by one polling place. See Virginia Code 24.2-101
• primary election: means an election held for the purpose of selecting a candidate to be the nominee of a political party for election to office. See Virginia Code 24.2-101
• Primary highway: means any highway in or component of the primary state highway system. See Virginia Code 33.2-100
• Primary purpose: means that 50% or more of the committee's expenditures made in the form of contributions shall be made to candidate campaign committees or political committees registered in Virginia. See Virginia Code 24.2-945.1
• Print media: means billboards, cards, newspapers, newspaper inserts, magazines, printed material disseminated through the mail, pamphlets, fliers, bumper stickers, periodicals, websites, electronic mail, non-video or non-audio messages placed or promoted for a fee on an online platform, yard signs, and outdoor advertising facilities. See Virginia Code 24.2-955.1
• Public facilities: means (i) airports, landing fields, and air navigation facilities; (ii) educational facilities; (iii) flood control, bank and shore protection, watershed protection, and dams; (iv) hospital facilities; (v) judicial and court facilities; (vi) correctional facilities, including jails and penitentiaries; (vii) library facilities; (viii) military installations; (ix) parks so designated by the Commonwealth or by the locality in its comprehensive plan; (x) properties of historical significance so designated by the Commonwealth; (xi) law enforcement, fire, emergency medical, and rescue facilities; (xii) sanitary sewer, water or stormwater facilities; (xiii) transportation facilities including highways, roads, streets, and bridges, traffic signals, related easements and rights-of-way, mass transit, ports, and any components of federal, state, or local transportation facilities; (xiv) waste management facilities for hazardous, radioactive, or other waste; (xv) office facilities occupied by a public corporation; and (xvi) such other facilities that are necessary to the construction, maintenance, or operation of a public facility as listed in clauses (i) through (xv) and directly related thereto. See Virginia Code 1-219.1
• Public welfare investment: means any investment permitted by Virginia Code 6.2-800
• Radio: means any radio broadcast station that is subject to the provisions of 47 U. See Virginia Code 24.2-955.1
• Real property: Land, and all immovable fixtures erected on, growing on, or affixed to the land.
• Referendum: means any election held pursuant to law to submit a question to the voters for approval or rejection. See Virginia Code 24.2-101
• Referendum committee: means any organization, person, group of persons, or committee, that makes expenditures in a calendar year in excess of (i) $10,000 to advocate the passage or defeat of a statewide referendum, (ii) $5,000 to advocate the passage or defeat of a referendum being held in two or more counties and cities, or (iii) $1,000 to advocate the passage or defeat of a referendum held in a single county or city. See Virginia Code 24.2-945.1
• Registered voter: means any person who is maintained on the Virginia voter registration system. See Virginia Code 24.2-101
• Reporter: Makes a record of court proceedings and prepares a transcript, and also publishes the court's opinions or decisions (in the courts of appeals).
• Residence: means "residence" or "resident" as defined in § Virginia Code 24.2-945.1
• Roadway: means that portion of a highway improved, designed, or ordinarily used for vehicular travel. See Virginia Code 33.2-100
• Rural business investment company: means a company that has been granted final approval by the U. See Virginia Code 6.2-800
• Secondary highway: means any highway in or component of the secondary state highway system. See Virginia Code 33.2-100
• Secondary state highway system: consists of all public highways, causeways, bridges, landings, and wharves in the counties of the Commonwealth not included in the primary state highway system and that have been accepted by the Department of Transportation for supervision and maintenance. See Virginia Code 33.2-100
• Secretary: means the Secretary of Transportation. See Virginia Code 33.2-100
• Service of process: The service of writs or summonses to the appropriate party.
• Special election: means any election that is held pursuant to law to fill a vacancy in office or to hold a referendum. See Virginia Code 24.2-101
• Sponsor: means a candidate, candidate campaign committee, political committee, or person that purchases an advertisement. See Virginia Code 24.2-955.1
• State: includes District of Columbia;

  (f) "Transit facilities" means all real and personal property located in the Zone, necessary or useful in rendering transit service between points within the Zone, by means of rail, bus, water or air and any other mode of travel, including, without limitation, tracks, rights-of-way, bridges, tunnels, subways, rolling stock for rail, motor vehicle, marine and air transportation, stations, terminals and ports, areas for parking and all equipment, fixtures, buildings and structures and services incidental to or required in connection with the performance of transit service;

  (g) "Transit services" means the transportation of persons and their packages and baggage by means of transit facilities between points within the Zone including the transportation of newspapers, express and mail between such points, and charter service which originates within the Zone but does not include taxicab service or individual-ticket-sales sightseeing operations;

  (h) "Transit Zone" or "Zone" means the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Zone created and described in Section 3 as well as any additional area that may be added pursuant to Section 83(a) of this Compact; and

  (i) "WMATC" means Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Commission. See Virginia Code 33.2-3100

• state agency: means the same as that term is defined in § Virginia Code 1-206
• Statewide office: means the office of Governor, Lieutenant Governor, or Attorney General. See Virginia Code 24.2-945.1
• Statute of limitations: A law that sets the time within which parties must take action to enforce their rights.
• Supreme Court: means the Supreme Court of Virginia. See Virginia Code 1-249
• sworn: means "affirm" or "affirmed. See Virginia Code 1-250
• Systems of state highways: has the meaning assigned to it in § 1-251. See Virginia Code 33.2-100
• Tax equity finance transaction: has the meaning assigned to it in Virginia Code 6.2-800
• Telephone call: means any single telephone call or text message, electronic or otherwise, that when combined with other telephone calls or text messages constitutes campaign telephone calls. See Virginia Code 24.2-955.1
• Television: means any television broadcast station, cable television system, wireless-cable multipoint distribution system, satellite company, or telephone company transmitting video programming that is subject to the provisions of 47 U. See Virginia Code 24.2-955.1
• Testimony: Evidence presented orally by witnesses during trials or before grand juries.
• 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
• Unobscured: means that the only printed material that may appear on the television screen is a visual disclosure statement required by law, and that nothing is blocking the view of the disclosing person's face. See Virginia Code 24.2-955.1
• voter registration system: means the automated central record-keeping system for all voters registered within the Commonwealth that is maintained as provided in Article 2 (§ Virginia Code 24.2-101
• Writ: A formal written command, issued from the court, requiring the performance of a specific act.