Va. Code Ann. § 56-575.15
Sovereign immunity
Redline — June 1, 2021 → current.View current text →
Current — March 1, 2022
As of June 1, 2021
Nothing in this chapter shall be construed as or deemed a waiver of the sovereign immunity of the Commonwealth, any responsible public entity or any affected local jurisdiction or any officer or employee thereof with respect to the participation in, or approval of all or any part of the qualifying project or its operation, including but not limited to interconnection of the qualifying project with any other infrastructure or project. Counties, cities and towns in which a qualifying project is located shall possess sovereign immunity with respect to its design, construction, and operation.
Nothing in this chapter shall be construed as or deemed a waiver of the sovereign immunity of the Commonwealth, any responsible public entity or any affected local jurisdiction or any officer or employee thereof with respect to the participation in, or approval of all or any part of the qualifying project or its operation, including but not limited to interconnection of the qualifying project with any other infrastructure or project. Counties, cities and towns in which a qualifying project is located shall possess sovereign immunity with respect to its design, construction, and operation.
(2002, c. 571.)
CIRCUIT COURT OPINIONS
Sovereign immunity did not bar contract claims. - Virginia Public-Private Education Facilities and Infrastructure Act (PEFIA), specifically § 56-575.15, stated that it should not be construed as waiving sovereign immunity for any public entity participating in a qualifying project under the Act, but the defense of sovereign immunity had never been extended to actions based upon valid contracts entered into by duly authorized agents of the government; thus, the PEFIA did not affect the Commonwealth's contract liability for contracts in which the developers exchanged their expertise in the technology sector for an interest in the development of a university building as the PEFIA preserved the status quo, in which the Commonwealth was exposed to such types of contract liability. Geographic Network Affiliates-International, Inc. v. Enter. for Empowerment Found., 69 Va. Cir. 428, 2006 Va. Cir. LEXIS 94 (Norfolk 2006).
Official source: Virginia Law Portal (LIS). Reproduced from public-domain Virginia statutes; confirm against the official source for the current text. Not legal advice.