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Virginia’s GOP ticket to hold first united rally since controversy
Virginia’s statewide GOP ticket appears to be making amends and will appear together at a rally in Northern Virginia next week. The Republican nominees for governor, lieutenant governor and attorney general are holding a joint rally July 1 – marking the first time the ticket will appear together since nominees were finalized in April and for the first time since Republican Gov. Glenn Youngkin asked the party’s lieutenant governor nominee to drop out of the race.
Federal cuts hit coastal flooding, dam projects in Virginia
As Virginia’s various government agencies wait to hear how the federal budget will affect their funding, some departments have already seen significant cuts that are putting a hold on important hazard mitigation projects and emergency management support. In an effort to understand the full scope of federal cuts on the commonwealth, state House members have been hosting committee meetings in communities across Virginia. In a Friday meeting in Norfolk, which increasingly faces rising sea levels and coastal land loss, officials shared projects and goals that will not move forward.
Yancey: Why Google’s data center project in Botetourt gets applause while others don’t
When Prince William County approved three rezonings for the Prince William Digital Gateway complex of data centers, neighbors went to court. When a developer proposed a data center complex near Chatham, it sparked six months of controversy before the Pittsylvania County Board of Supervisors voted down the project. When Botetourt County announced Tuesday that Google — yes, that Google — has bought 312 acres in the county’s business park for what was described as the first hyperscale data center project in the western part of the state, a room full of people cheered.
Audit finds ‘significant weaknesses’ with Richmond’s government purchasing cards
An internal audit of the city of Richmond’s purchasing card system found at least $5 million in “questionable expenses” and a lackadaisical approval and oversight system that made it difficult for the city to track and control what employees were buying with their city-issued cards. A report released Tuesday by Auditor Riad Ali said the “significant weaknesses” in city controls over the purchasing cards (known as P-cards for short) led the auditor’s office to refer millions in questionable spending to the city’s inspector general office, which has more power to investigate wrongdoing such as waste, fraud or abuse.
VPAP Visual Three Leaders, Three Types of Votes
Each of the top three candidates in the Democratic primary for lieutenant governor "won" among a different set of ballots. Levar Stoney won the most early in-person votes, Sen. Aaron Rouse won the most mail votes, and Sen. Ghazala Hashmi won the election day votes, the largest category of ballots.
Audit: Richmond city credit cards used for $5M in ‘questionable expenditures’
City auditors on Tuesday morning released a damning assessment of City Hall’s purchasing card program that, among other things, identified $5 million in “questionable expenditures” made by cardholders between July 2022 and May 2024. That’s nearly one quarter of the credit card spending during that timeframe. Those transactions were referred to Richmond’s inspector general, who investigates claims of fraud, waste and abuse, auditors said.
Grand jury refuses to indict UVa student accused of antisemitic hate crime
The criminal case against a University of Virginia student accused of perpetrating a hate crime against a Jewish housemate hit a roadblock last week, at least temporarily, after a Charlottesville grand jury refused to issue a felony indictment against Robert Cabell Romer. While a lower court judge certified a threat warrant against the 20-year-old Romer last month, the grand jury hearing evidence this month marked that charge as "no true bill."
Connaughton: Senate budget plan would decimate Virginia hospitals
At this moment, the future of our health care delivery system is being decided in Congress. Access to care for millions of Americans, and Virginians, as well as the operation of hospitals is hanging in the balance. That is what’s at stake as part of budget reconciliation negotiations now occurring in Washington, D.C.
New data suggests increased flooding risks for D.C. region’s roads and transit systems
The D.C. region’s roads and other transportation infrastructure is more at risk from future flooding than previously thought, a new analysis found. The National Capital Region Transportation Planning Board (TPB) outlined its findings to leaders of member jurisdictions ... at a meeting last Wednesday (June 18). Past efforts using Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) mapping to determine flooding threats to transportation weren’t “totally sufficient,” TPB planner Katherine Rainone said. To augment FEMA’s available resources, TPB licensed data from flood maps issued by Fathom, a UK-based analytics firm.
Lewis: To governor candidates pledging a car tax repeal: Be careful what you promise
Show of hands: who loves paying the yearly tax on your personal automobiles? Don’t be shy. Raise those hands. Anybody? As Virginians, it’s perhaps our most galling duty: paying hundreds of bucks (thousands for folks with bougie rides) to your city, county or town government for the responsibility of owning a depreciating asset you pay through the nose to buy, insure, fuel and maintain. According to the Tax Foundation, Virginia is among 27 states and the District of Columbia where tangible personal property taxes are assessed. Fourteen states broadly exempt personal property from taxes; 10 allow de minimis exemptions.