Today's Sponsor:
Former Secretary of Public Safety Brian Moran
On Peace Officers Memorial Day we pay tribute to our brave local, state, and federal peace officers who made the ultimate sacrifice.
Body-worn cameras for Virginia State Police dropped from new budget
An effort to purchase body-worn cameras for the Virginia State Police died during this year’s prolonged budget talks, which concluded on Monday. That means the state police, Virginia’s largest law enforcement agency with over 1,800 officers, will remain without the devices at least until next session. The effort was initiated this session by State Sen. Lashrecse Aird, D-Petersburg.
Will Youngkin appoint a DEI director, as the state budget directs?
After signing a new state spending plan on Monday, Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin must appoint a director for the Office of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion by July 1 or risk losing money for the office, whose title he renamed by replacing “equity” with “opportunity,” a move which Democrats criticized as contrary to state code. “If the governor is not going to follow the laws, then there are consequences for it,” said Senate Majority Leader Scott Surovell, D-Fairfax. “Sometimes following a law you don’t agree with is uncomfortable, but when you raise your right hand and swear to God that you are going to follow the laws of the of the Constitution of the Commonwealth, it was my understanding he took that stuff pretty seriously, but that doesn’t always seem to be the case if he doesn’t agree with the law.”
Va. ABC ousts CIO responsible for modernizing systems
The Virginia Alcoholic Beverage Control Authority has lost its fourth executive officer in nearly 10 months in the latest sign of instability within the authority’s leadership. Paul Williams is out as ABC’s Chief Information Officer after serving in the role since 2016. Williams told the Virginia Mercury he was “separated from employment at ABC” by CEO Dave Farino with no notice May 8 without severance or compensation for his time at the authority. Williams said the reason Farino gave is he, “doesn’t want me on his executive team; doesn’t trust me to be his leader of a section of the ABC business.”
VCU suspends fraternity for hazing, sorority for selling pills
A Virginia Commonwealth University fraternity has been suspended two years for hazing, and a sorority has received a four-year punishment for using its group forum to buy and sell prescription pills. Two other student groups received interim suspensions after allegations of hazing were made against the fraternities. These represent the latest reports of misconduct among student groups, which universities are now required to publish.
Montgomery County board raises concerns about MVP
The Montgomery County Board of Supervisors is joining a growing chorus of concerns about the Mountain Valley Pipeline’s request to begin operations by June 1. Construction is continuing along the slopes of Poor Mountain, according to board Chairwoman Mary Biggs, and questions remain about whether the company has completed all of the required safety testing and repairs to the pipe.
Petersburg won’t release $1.4B casino proposal from company that won project
Petersburg officials say they won’t release the winning proposal for a planned casino project they’ve called the largest economic development effort in the city’s history. Last month, The Virginia Mercury requested a copy of the successful casino offer submitted to the city by Maryland-based Cordish Companies. On Tuesday, the city’s Freedom of Information Act officer said the document wouldn’t be released because the city canceled its competitive bidding process and hasn’t awarded a contract to Cordish. … Petersburg is preparing to ask its voters to approve the Cordish project in a ballot referendum expected to take place in November.
Richmond’s first Black-owned hospital now on list of endangered historic sites
The aged red brick and boarded up windows of Richmond Community Hospital have been at the center of debate in North Side, where residents have been rallying to save the historic building. A freshly achieved historic designation could aid in the preservation of that historic building. The hospital, now closed since the 1980s and covered in Ivy, was once the first Black-owned hospital in the city. It was the only place where Black physicians could practice, and Black patients could receive medical care.
FROM VPAP
VPAP Visual Early Voting by District: June 2024 Primaries
Early voting for the June 18th primary elections is underway in Virginia. Check back daily to see an updated map of early ballots cast by U.S. House district.
GENERAL ASSEMBLY
‘Political theater’ is how state senator classifies Petersburg’s claim of casino-bullying
Sen. Lashresce Aird is firing back at the city’s claims it was coerced by her or her staff into picking Bally’s Corporation as Petersburg’s casino vendor, calling it “merely political theater” and highlighting that Petersburg’s council will not do anything “in the best interest of the people they represent.” ... “These attempts to blame the General Assembly and portray themselves as coerced into anything by me or otherwise is merely political theater and a distraction from this council’s true intentions to move forward with no process, no public engagement, and proceed in the least transparent way imaginable,” Aird said in a statement sent to The Progress-Index.
Virginia budget includes $26.5M for Bristol landfill remediation
Funding to support Bristol Virginia’s landfill remediation efforts survived the final cut of Virginia’s embattled biennial budget. On Monday, the General Assembly approved a two-year spending plan that includes $26.5 million to aid with work to resolve environmental issues with the city’s landfill. Gov. Glenn Youngkin signed the compromise budget Monday afternoon. “The city would like to thank Virginia lawmakers, especially Gov. Glenn Youngkin and our local representatives, Sen. Todd Pillion and Del. Israel O’Quinn, for ensuring this critical funding remained in the final budget,” the city said in a written statement.
Virginia approves $26.5M for Bristol landfill remediation
Bristol Va.‘s challenging task of environmental remediation at its former landfill got a huge economic boost Monday with the inclusion of $26.5 million in the Commonwealth of Virginia’s final approved fiscal 2025 budget. The state funding greatly eases the potential burden on city taxpayers as Bristol continues extensive efforts to prevent further release of noxious gases that prompted community outcry in 2020 and led to the landfill’s closure in September 2022.
STATE GOVERNMENT
Fewer Virginia kids are overdosing on cannabis products following new law
The number of children and teens in Virginia going to the emergency room for cannabis-related sickness has declined, following a law passed last year that regulates the sale of THC in commercial hemp products or extracts. An analysis from the Virginia Hospital & Healthcare Association determined the number of cannabis-related pediatric ER visits dropped 14% between the second half of 2022 and the second half of 2023. The decline is a sign the new law is working, said Ryan McKinnon, a spokesperson for a group called Virginians for Cannabis Safety.
CONGRESS
Wexton, Briskman, EPA reps celebrate excavation of Hidden Lane Landfill
Rep. Jennifer Wexton (D-Leesburg) and Board of Supervisors Vice Chair Juli Briskman (D-Algonkian) gathered with Environmental Protection Agency representatives at the Hidden Lane Landfill Superfund site May 14, celebrating progress made on the decades-long effort to clean up the site. The EPA began excavation work in February on the 25-acre site located between the Broad Run Farms and Countryside subdivisions in northeastern Loudoun County.
Landfill Clean-Up Progress Celebrated in Loudoun
Rep. Jennifer Wexton (D-VA-10) joined representatives of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Board of Supervisors Vice Chair Juli E. Briskman (D-Algonkian) and area residents at the Hidden Lane Landfill site Tuesday morning to celebrate the progress made in cleaning up and restoring safe drinking water at the location. The site was first added to the EPA’s National Priority list in 2008 ...
ECONOMY/BUSINESS
Appalachian Power makes another move toward renewable energy
Appalachian Power Co. is in the market for three wind, solar and battery energy systems as it takes another step toward establishing an all-renewable power portfolio. The company’s request for proposals from energy companies is the latest in a series of planned acquisitions to comply with the Clean Economy Act, a state law that requires Appalachian to deliver totally carbon-free power to its Virginia customers by 2050.
Judges side with family in Mountain Valley Pipeline compensation case, reversing earlier decision
A three-judge panel of a federal appeals court on Tuesday restored a jury award of more than $520,000 to compensate a Roanoke County family after some of their land was seized for the Mountain Valley Pipeline, reversing a district judge’s decision last year that had cut the award almost in half. In their published opinion, judges Stephanie Thacker, Roger Gregory and James Wynn Jr. of the Richmond-based 4th Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals agreed with the Terry family that evidence presented at a 2022 trial supported a jury awarding the higher amount.
HIGHER EDUCATION
George Mason University announces 3% tuition hike
George Mason University (GMU) announced it would be raising its in-state tuition for the 2024-2025 school year. The university said its Board of Visitors (BOV) voted to increase the tuition by 3% in an effort to keep up with inflation and to “compensate for lower state support.”
10 years later: Former Virginia Intermont College sits unused and in disrepair
On May 20, 2014, Virginia Intermont College shut its doors due to financial issues and the loss of its accreditation. The college opened in 1884 and became co-educational in 1972. College alumni Ryan Gray was almost two years into his time as an admissions counselor after graduating in 2012. He said the closure didn’t feel real until the final moments. “It was just surreal,” said Gray. “I didn’t want to believe it. But when it did happen that very last day in May, standing in line to get our last checks, that’s when I knew it was real.”
VIRGINIA OTHER
In hundreds of deadly police encounters, including in Virginia, officers broke multiple safety guidelines
In hundreds of deaths where police used force meant to stop someone without killing them, officers violated well-known guidelines for safely restraining and subduing people — not simply once or twice, but multiple times. Most violations involved pinning people facedown in ways that could restrict their breathing or stunning them repeatedly with Tasers, an Associated Press investigation found. Some officers had little choice but to break policing best practices — safety guidelines that are recommended by government agencies, law enforcement groups and training experts — to save a life or protect someone.
Pro-Palestine protesters block traffic, march to Virginia State Capitol
Several dozen pro-Palestine protesters on Tuesday afternoon marched in the rain through downtown Richmond, blocking traffic as they made their way down Ninth Street to the Virginia State Capitol building. A Virginia Capitol Police officer told the Richmond Times-Dispatch that the western grounds of the Capitol were shut down as protesters staged a demonstration on the sidewalk along West Broad Street. At least two dozen officers formed a line between the group and the building.
Former Sen. Amanda Chase in court for assault charge
Former state Sen. Amanda Chase, R-Chesterfield, was in court Monday for an assault and battery charge after an altercation earlier this year at a local GOP event. Chesterfield Republicans met in March to select new committee leaders, but a confrontation involving Chase became the main attraction. Chase was charged with assault and battery after a confrontation with Adaire Lazaro outside of the meeting.
LOCAL
Facing ‘no-win situation,’ Loudoun Planning Commission recommends data centers in neighborhood
The Loudoun County Planning Commission voted narrowly May 9 to recommend approval of the Hiddenwood Assemblage application, which asks the county to allow several homeowners along a once-rural Arcola gravel lane to sell their land to a data center developer. Decision makers on both sides of the issue call it a “no-win situation” as they try to balance the interests of the homeowners petitioning for the zoning change with those who live in Briarfield Estates, an adjacent neighborhood that would be almost entirely surrounded by data center construction if the rezoning goes through.
Loudoun Co. proposes 16 delayed-start days next year to allow teachers to meet state training requirements
Loudoun County Public Schools in Virginia is considering adding 16 delayed-start days to the calendar for the 2024-25 school year, as part of a plan to give teachers more time to complete critical trainings. The proposal, which Superintendent Aaron Spence presented to the school board Tuesday night, is the result of new standards covering several subject areas getting implemented at the same time. Under the plan, the school district would have teachers start their days at the regular time, but students would arrive two hours late. That would happen roughly two days per month, Spence said.
Loudoun Groups Oppose School Safety Panel’s Recommendations, Call for New Panel
After the release of 11 recommendations from a Blue Ribbon Panel that looked into safety and security in Loudoun County Public Schools, several groups in the county are calling on school leaders to reject the panel’s findings and reconvene a new review group with more diverse community voices. ... The panel was charged with assessing safety processes and protocols in schools and came up with 11 recommendations to enhance security. ... The statement pointed to a heavy law enforcement presence on the panel ...
Forever chemical cleanup could cost Fauquier County $44M
Fauquier County now has a price for cleaning up its drinking water. It could cost the county about $44 million to upgrade its drinking water wells to meet new EPA standards, officials say. More than a third of Fauquier County’s drinking water wells would need those upgrades because they tested over the limit for forever chemicals. Exposure to PFAS has been linked to deadly cancers, impacts to the liver and heart and immune and developmental damage to infants and children.
Richmond finalizes labor deals with unions for police, firefighters and other city employees
The Richmond City Council approved collective bargaining agreements between the city and unions representing police, firefighters, emergency workers and other city employees. The city’s three-year labor deals with the unions — the Richmond Coalition of Police, the International Association of Fire Fighters Local 995 and the Service Employees International Union, Virginia 512 – take effect on July 1 through June 30, 2027.
Brown v. Board promised better schools for all, but Richmond falls short
Keri Treadway was setting up her classroom library a few days before students from William Fox Elementary School began attending class at Clark Springs Elementary School. It was about three months after a three-alarm fire destroyed the 111-year-old Fox building in 2022. Treadway is a reading interventionist for Fox students, and due to space limitations usually works in a small room located within a classroom — a quirk of the Clark Springs design. There’s no door separating the space from the main classroom, so Treadway fashioned a curtain to divide the space.
622-acre data center project greenlit by Henrico Board of Supervisors
The Henrico County Board of Supervisors has approved a request for over 600 acres of land in the eastern part of the county to be used for the development of data centers. In a scheduled meeting on Tuesday, May 14, the board voted unanimously to allow a total of just over 622 acres of land be used for manufacturing and production by developer Hourigan. Specifically, the request describes both data center and “advanced manufacturing” facilities.
Hot mic catches Spotsylvania School Board rep mocking constituent
When Carol Medawar decided to run to represent the Courtland District on the Spotsylvania County School Board last year, she said she did so with the intention of stabilizing a group that was constantly embroiled in controversy. But it was Medawar who found herself apologizing Monday night after a recording of a hot mic conversation last month with Battlefield District representative Nicole Cole was played during the school board meeting by a member of the public.
Nonemergency line restored at Charlottesville-UVa-Albemarle Emergency Communications Center
For roughly three days, the regional call center that handles 911 calls for the city of Charlottesville, Albemarle County and the University of Virginia was unable to process nonemergency or administrative calls. The Charlottesville-UVa-Albemarle County Emergency Communications Center, or ECC, reported on Saturday that its nonemergency line had gone down and urged those looking to dial in to call an alternative number.
It’s official: Madison School Board declares Christmas a holiday
Madison County School Board Vice-Chair Chris Wingate acknowledged at the start of Monday night’s meeting the discussion about the Christmas Holiday has “caused some controversy,” so he just wants to have a policy so that “we don’t argue about it every year.” “We’re going to be really neutral, not hostile to religion in our public life,” Wingate added.
Roanoke city staff emails allege hostile work environment
Emails from city staff to the Roanoke City Council decry a hostile work environment, and City Manager Bob Cowell clarified that an assistant city manager he reassigned was demoted. Following a three-hour closed-door meeting in April, the city council approved Cowell’s appointment of an assistant city manager to replace Brent Robertson. ... a series of emails, obtained via a freedom of information request and first reported on by The Roanoke Rambler, details a previously unmentioned series of events leading to Robertson’s reassignment.
As Danville Casino marks 1 year, full resort expected to draw ‘different type of visitor’
Exactly one year ago Wednesday, Danville’s temporary casino opened, inching the city closer toward becoming a tourism destination. Housed in a giant tent-like structure — although once inside it’s hard to believe it’s a makeshift building — lines of eager patrons with money in hand awaited the doors to officially open at 10 a.m. May 15, 2023. With the full resort expected to be in operation by the end of the year, the shift will move from a day-trip style visit to more of a vacation getaway. “This is a different type of visitor that we truly haven’t seen as much of in this community,” Lisa Meriwether, tourism manager with Visit SoSi, told the Register & Bee in an interview Monday.
Today's Sponsor:
Former Secretary of Public Safety Brian Moran
On Peace Officers Memorial Day we pay tribute to our brave local, state, and federal peace officers who made the ultimate sacrifice.
COLUMNISTS
Yancey: 5 questions about the 5th District
Five weeks from today, we’ll be talking about who won the 5th District Republican primary between U.S. Rep. Bob Good and challenger state Sen. John McGuire — and why. Today, we’ll pose five questions, the answers to which we don’t know right now, but which will help determine the winner in the June 18 primary. So let’s go! 1. Who benefits most from a high turnout? Here are the facts we start with: Good has never had to run in a primary before. When he won the nomination in 2020 by defeating incumbent Denver Riggleman, he won it in a convention where 2,375 people were registered. When he was renominated in 2022 over challenger Daniel Moy, he did so in a convention where 1,795 votes were cast.
Williams: The backlash to antiracism is nothing new
America’s historical backlash against antiracism can be likened to a human body rejecting a transplanted heart. Antiracism in America remains a foreign object, given the pervasive and systemic racism so foundational at the nation’s birth. Racism is the American default, which is why attempts to cure it seldom take hold. “It’s happened repeatedly throughout American history,” says University of Virginia historian Kevin Gaines.
OP-ED
Shapiro: How the pro-Palestinian movement mirrors ‘Stop the Steal’
The free exchange and balance of ideas at universities is essential to an enriched collegiate experience. Unfortunately, what we’ve witnessed at Virginia Commonwealth University and other colleges across the country the last few weeks is a targeted campaign to silence and intimidate Jewish people and our singular nation-state. The TikTok-fueled propaganda depicted under the benign, euphemistic banner of a “Free Palestine Movement” is riddled with hypocrisy. Student protestors are disrupting and eliminating dialogue, shouting over speakers who dissent.