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FROM VPAP
VPAP Visual Visualization: Analysis of Campaign Donations to State Legislators
No two General Assembly members raise money in exactly the same way. In 2018, some relied almost exclusively on businesses that lobby the legislature. A few raised nearly a quarter of their funds in amounts of $100 or less. This interactive visual shows the share of money each legislator raised from seven different sectors, including political party sources and single-interest groups.
EXECUTIVE BRANCH
Northam says he supports raising Virginia's smoking and vaping age from 18 to 21
Gov. Ralph Northam said Monday that he supports legislation to raise Virginia’s minimum age for tobacco purchases from 18 to 21, locking in bipartisan backing for the bill among top political leaders. “The less minors that put that first cigarette in their mouth, the better,” Northam said in an interview Monday morning.
GENERAL ASSEMBLY
Anti-NIMBY legislation aims to clear path for affordable housing in Virginia
Virginia is facing a growing shortage of affordable housing, but apartment developments aiming to fill that gap often don’t make it far when they come before local governments for approval. “You hear things as offensive as, ‘We don’t want those people in our neighborhoods,’” says Del. Jeff Bourne, D-Richmond. ...Bourne and Sen. Jennifer McClellan, D-Richmond, are pursuing legislation in the General Assembly this year that would explicitly prohibit local governments from denying permits for housing developments because of the expected race or income levels of the residents.
Where Does the Tech Talent Pipeline Begin? Virginia Invests in K-12 Tech
A bill creating a fund to help recruit and retain more computer science college faculty in Virginia cleared its first legislative hurdle yesterday. But many say building a tech talent pipeline starts with the K-12 education system.
Legislation on instant-runoff voting awaits Senate committee
A bill from a local legislator aimed at providing “instant-runoff” voting for local elected offices across Virginia awaits a hearing in a state Senate committee. State Sen. Adam Ebbin, D-30th District, is patroning legislation that would permit localities to move to instant-runoff (or “ranked-choice”) voting for boards of supervisors and city councils, starting next year.
BRVA charter changes going to General Assembly
Legislation to change the Bristol, Virginia, charter to make removal of a City Council member a more public process and allow for a casino gaming referendum is now making its way through the Virginia General Assembly. House Bill 2497, being carried by Del. Israel O’Quinn, R-Bristol, includes a series of proposed changes approved last fall by City Council. Chief among them are steps to require the removal of a City Council member, or member of a board or commission, to occur in public.
Can Hampton Roads handle two casinos? Under compromise bill, that could happen
After working all weekend on what they say is a compromise that makes everyone happy, a group of senators and the Pamunkey Indian chief have agreed on one bill that would permit casinos in five cities, including Portsmouth and Norfolk.
Va. Senate committee grants rare victory for casino bill — but don’t bet on it yet
Casinos took a baby step forward in Virginia on Monday when a Senate committee passed a bill that could set five cities on track to seek a casino license in two years.
Gun bills more likely to become ads than law in Virginia
Virginia lawmakers appear unlikely to pass any notable new gun laws this legislative session, but are almost certain to campaign heavily on failed gun legislation later this year. Republicans who control the General Assembly have dispatched gun-control bills backed by Democratic Gov. Ralph Northam, who is all but certain to veto any gun-rights bills that pass out of the legislature.
On MLK Day, descendants of Lee, Stonewall Jackson urge Va. to halt Confederate tributes
Descendants of two Confederate generals appeared in the Virginia Senate on Monday to show their support for Lt. Gov. Justin Fairfax, who days earlier sat out a Republican senator’s ode to Robert E. Lee.
Va. Senate Republicans kill $15 minimum wage
The Senate, on a 21-19 party-line vote by which Republicans sought to send a message to the Northern Virginia Chamber of Commerce, defeated a bill Monday to raise the minimum wage to $15 per hour by 2021.
Minimum wage bill dies in Senate
The first minimum wage bill in five years to make it to the floor of the one of the houses of Virginia’s legislature died Monday on a party line vote in the state Senate. The bill, proposed by state Sen. Rosalyn Dance, D-Petersburg, would have increased the minimum wage in steps from the current $7.25 an hour to $15 by 2021.
Senate kills Dance’s wage bill
In a move not necessarily seen as a surprise, the state Senate voted straight down party lines to defeat legislation that would have raised Virginia’s minimum wage in increments from $7.25 per hour to $15 per hour by 2021.
Va. Senate approves Amazon package, narrowly rejects minimum-wage bill
The Virginia Senate easily approved state tax incentives of up to $750 million over the next 15 years for Amazon to build a headquarters facility in Arlington. It also narrowly rejected a proposal for a $15 minimum wage.
State incentives for Amazon, Micron Technologies advance
The Virginia Senate voted 35-5 Monday to back $550 million in “post-performance” incentives for Amazon.
Cox challenges cost estimates for Republican tax legislation
House Speaker Kirk Cox, R-Colonial Heights, is challenging predictions by Gov. Ralph Northam’s administration that pending Republican tax legislation would add millions to the cost of administering Virginia’s income tax system and reduce state revenues by hundreds of millions of dollars in response to an anticipated windfall from federal tax reforms.
Casino legislation clears first hurdle in Virginia Senate after significant changes
Legislation to allow five Virginia cities to begin pursuing casinos passed its first test in the General Assembly on Monday after lawmakers added an escape hatch that could let them change course next year. The Senate Committee on General Laws and Technology voted 9-3-1 to advance a mashup casino bill that covers casino projects in Bristol, Danville and Portsmouth as well as the casino that the Pamunkey Indian Tribe is seeking.
Dulles Greenway officials pull away from legislation for limited distance-based pricing
Dulles Greenway officials made it clear Monday they will no longer advocate for proposed legislation to create limited distance-based pricing on the 14-mile private toll road. “Without the required level of support from elected officials in Loudoun County we do not believe it is appropriate at this time to continue to pursue passage of the legislative framework needed to put this plan in place during the 2019 General Assembly Session,” Toll Road Investors Partnership II L.P. Chairman E. Thomas Sines said in a prepared statement.
House GOP schedules early vote Tuesday on ERA ratification in panel that opposes it
Resolutions calling for Virginia to ratify the federal Equal Rights Amendment are scheduled to be heard at 7:30 a.m. Tuesday before a House subcommittee that has killed the issue in the past.
Virginia Senate repeals ‘Jim Crow’ minimum wage exemptions
The Virginia Senate on Friday passed a bill to repeal a Jim Crow era-law that legalized wage discrimination against many African-Americans. The Senate voted to rescind the law that allows employers to pay less than minimum wage to “newsboys, shoe-shine boys, ushers, doormen, concession attendants and theater cashiers” — jobs to which many African-Americans were relegated decades ago.
House Courts subcommittee kills parole bill
A Virginia House of Delegates subcommittee killed a bill that would allow prisoners to ask for parole if they were convicted after the state ended parole but before the Virginia Supreme Court said juries had to be informed that there was no parole. The prisoners and their families have argued that juries had recommended excessively long sentences under the mistaken impression that parole would allow defendants to get out of prison sooner.
House subcommittee votes down school discipline bills
A House of Delegates subcommittee has essentially killed two bills that would change how students can be disciplined. Efforts from Del. Jeff Bourne, D-Richmond, and Del. Mike Mullin, D-Newport News, to change state law so that students couldn’t be found guilty of disorderly conduct
Bills seek state maintenance money for more historic African-American cemeteries
As the 2019 session of Virginia’s General Assembly ramps into full gear, state lawmakers are considering a handful of bills that would add at least 10 historic African-American cemeteries to the roster of black burial grounds eligible to receive maintenance funds from the state.
Favola measure would aid youth in foster care
An effort to provide an additional resource to Virginia students in foster care is being patroned by state Sen. Barbara Favola, D-31st District. Favola is seeking $250,000 in state funding to develop and implement a program supporting foster children who are seeking to obtain a driver’s license. Funding would help offset driver-training and vehicle-insurance costs incurred by foster-care families.
Lopez budget proposal aims to support college-bound Latino students
A proposed state-government budget amendment would provide funding to support efforts by local Latino students to apply for colleges and universities and to seek financial aid. Del. Alfonso Lopez, D-49th District, is asking for a $168,500 appropriation for the coming fiscal year on behalf of the Shirlington Employment & Education Center, which would administer the program.
New Tech Aims for Faster, More Accessible Political Lobbying
Virginia’s largest lobby day of the year also happened to be one of its coldest. But yesterday’s hand-numbing chill didn’t stop thousands of people from descending on the state capital to rally around a potpourri of causes and meet their lawmaker. It’s a spectacle that former Republican delegate Chris Saxman doesn’t miss. “I couldn't stand those days,” he said in an interview last week. “If there’s a day to stay away from the General Assembly, that’s the day.”
STATE ELECTIONS
Tech billionaire, Democrats clash over campaign tactics and data
Billionaire Reid Hoffman quietly became a major force in Democratic politics over the last two years, but his groups’ clashes within the party and involvement in controversial campaign tactics are causing some Democrats to question whether partnering with him on a $35 million-plus overhaul of the party's data infrastructure would be a mistake. ...During the 2017 gubernatorial and state legislature races in Virginia, party leaders and a Hoffman-funded group fought bitterly over strategy and access to voter data. By the summer before that year’s November election, they had stopped communicating altogether.
STATE GOVERNMENT
Spend it or Return it? Tax Cuts Set up Dilemma for Legislatures Across the Country
Tax season is looming. It will be the first year taxpayers get the full picture of how Trump’s tax cuts affect them. But some families may be surprised by an unintended consequence: higher state income taxes
CONGRESS
Rep. Wexton meets with constituents affected by government shutdown
Paying for rent, mortgages, college tuition, daycare and feeding their families were concerns furloughed federal employees shared with Congresswoman Jennifer Wexton (D-Va.-10th) at her congressional office in Sterling on Friday. “We want to have a discussion about border security, but before we can do that we need to get people back to work," Wexton said.
Residents describe litany of problems hampering basic mail service
Jean Morris is tired of having the Forest Hill Post Office refusing to deliver packages to her South Side residence. Donna Royster is fed up with not receiving any of the letters her grandchildren keep sending her from Hawaii at her East End apartment. And Christina McGuire is annoyed that she keeps getting letters intended for someone else at her home on East Grace Street, including at least two that were supposed to be delivered to an address in Sandston in eastern Henrico County.
TRANSPORTATION
Trio of area projects score highest in Smart Scale draft report
A handful of Southwest Virginia road projects are expected to receive funding under the state’s Smart Scale program, based on the draft scores. Last week, the Commonwealth Transportation Board released draft scoring for some 430 proposed projects statewide.
VIRGINIA OTHER
U.S. Park Service voluntarily withdraws permit for key pipeline crossing
Blocked by a federal appeals court panel from crossing the Appalachian Trail, the Atlantic Coast Pipeline will have to wait for a federal agency to decide — for the third time — whether to allow the 600-mile natural gas pipeline to cross the Blue Ridge Parkway.
LOCAL
Roanoke County board to consider precinct changes to ease long lines
Roanoke County is considering a pair of voting precinct line adjustments to ease congestion at two of its highest-traffic polling places. The county, which has been worried by long lines at its busiest voting locations, is proposing to split up its largest precinct and adjust the bounds of another to move some voters to a less crowded polling place.
Report: Combating sea-level rise could cost Virginia Beach billions
Dewberry, the professional services firm hired by the city to research sea-level rise here, recently unveiled the first piece of its comprehensive report to City Council. The city hired Dewberry in 2015 to chart the threats posed to Virginia Beach by rising sea levels and recurrent floodin
Richardson gets legal help in action to remove Agelasto from office
Former 5th District City Councilman Henry W. “Chuck” Richardson said Tuesday he has hired an attorney to continue pursuing legal action to remove the district’s current representative, Councilman Parker C. Agelasto. Mr. Richardson declined to name the lawyer at a news conference he held at City Hall in which he sought to clarify his strategy for removing Mr. Agelasto from office because Mr. Agelasto has moved from the 5th District into a home in the 1st District.
Today's Sponsor:
Clean Virginia
Fighting to empower Virginians by promoting cleaner politics. Visit www.cleanvirginia.org to learn more.
EDITORIALS
Unreliable evidence hurts the innocent
It’s shocking to think how many “fool-proof” methods of forensic science have sent innocent people to prison. Many such convictions have been overturned by DNA evidence, and the “fool-proof” evidence on which conviction was based turns out not to be so reliable after all. The number of false convictions thus exposed is frightening.
A right to equality
The fate of legislation that would make Virginia the 38th state to ratify the Equal Rights Amendment now rests in the hands of a Republican delegate from Fredericksburg. Del. Mark Cole is the chairman of the House Privileges and Elections committee that has effectively killed versions of the bill in previous years. He has professed uncertainty about what to do with the legislation this year.
What is the state's responsibility toward rural Virginia?
In the TV series “Game of Thrones,” there’s a situation that comes up that reminds us of present-day Virginia politics. No, not “The Red Wedding” or the “Battle of the Bastards.” It’s a side story in season six where the Freys lose control of a certain castle and call upon the Lannisters to help them regain it.
For safer state roads, limit cellphones
Legislators can make up for one of their lapses last year and make Virginia’s roads safer by passing a bill banning driving with a cellphone in your hand. The measure, which passed the state Senate last year but fell short in the House of Delegates, has been resurrected. Quick action is needed
The funny math of GRTC's financial woes
We’ll preface this by saying that our faith in public transportation is resolute. We were in Washington, D.C., recently and enjoyed every minute of being able to travel by subway. We’d love for Richmond, and Richmonders, to so robustly support a system of transportation that decreases our reliance on driving (and parking). To be able to go downtown and not have to worry about where we’ll stash the Suburban is our dream. That said, we can’t make heads or tails out of what officials at Richmond’s public transportation company, GRTC, were complaining about last week.
OP-ED
Foster: General Assembly should look at rail option for I-81
Joyce Waugh’s op-ed on January 16 (“Virginia deserves a better I-81”) urges us to support the $2 billion construction plan proposed for I-81. It is important to put this in context. She heads the Roanoke Regional Chamber of Commerce and goes to Richmond each year as a lobbyist. The Chamber does not represent you or other taxpayers. It exists to promote the agenda of its business members, who include gravel, concrete, and asphalt companies, along with others whose engineering and construction interests closely align with road-building.
Pennock: Protecting the gift of cooperative preschools
I am a college professor. During the school year, I teach students at the University of Virginia — giving lectures, leading workshops, and helping prepare graduate students for public policy-related careers in Richmond, D.C., and around the world. But one day a month I teach a very different group of students. I walk with my twin 5-year-olds into the basement of St. Paul’s Church, directly across from Thomas Jefferson’s Rotunda.
Petersen: Real-world experience: A proposal to cure senior-itis
In my small law practice, I hire a lot of young people. I need interns for research, assistants to answer phones, and paralegals to prepare cases. Every summer, I hire summer assistants right out of high school. Some of these kids work out great, but a lot of them arrive in the workplace unprepared for professional life.