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Amazon breaks ground on 3 million-square-foot Goochland fulfillment center
Construction of a massive new Amazon facility in Goochland got off to a ceremonial start this week. Officials from the e-commerce giant crowded into the county’s agricultural center Wednesday morning to officially announce plans for (and ceremonially break ground on) the previously reported 3.1 million-square-foot robotics fulfillment center on a 105-acre site at 2022 Ashland Road in the Rockville area.
Amazon picks Goochland for next fulfillment hub
Amazon is building a new state-of-the-art robotics fulfillment center in Goochland County, the company’s fourth in Virginia, creating more than 1,000 jobs and further deepening its footprint in the commonwealth. The 3.1 million-square-foot facility, known as RIC6, will occupy a 107-acre parcel in the Rockville Opportunity Corridor. It joins a growing network of Amazon investments in Virginia that include fulfillment and delivery centers, dozens of data centers, Whole Foods Markets, Amazon Fresh stores, and the company’s second headquarters in Arlington.
Advocates say cuts to SNAP would have significant impacts for Virginia families
Families that are in poverty and struggling to make ends meet might be cut off from social welfare benefits if Congress moves forward with a funding proposal now under consideration. Virginia could be facing a shortfall of more than $350 million – that’s if Congress moves forward with a budget proposal to change the funding formula for the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, commonly known as food stamps. One of the new features is a work requirement that Lily Roberts at the Center for American Progress says is a misnomer.
GOP presents plan to seize legislative majorities in Virginia and New Jersey this November
The Republican State Leadership Committee is looking to make key expenditures in this year’s New Jersey and Virginia state legislature races. Republicans are wary of how well Democrats tend to over-perform in off-year elections, but they have a strategy to “defy” expectations in November. In a memo, the RSLC said the races “present significant challenges for Republicans, reminiscent of the complex political landscape of 2017, the last odd-year election Republicans had full control of Washington.”
Republicans prioritize data centers in attempt to flip House seat in Prince William County
With just a little more than a month left in their primary election campaigns, Sahar Smith and Gregory Lee Gorham are focusing their campaigns on data centers and taxes in an attempt to represent Republicans come November and flip Prince William County-based House District 21, one of the few Virginia House of Delegates swing districts in the region. ... State Del. Joshua Thomas currently represents this district and is running unopposed in the Democratic primary for his second term.
House clerk blocks three Youngkin vetoes of budget items
The clerk of the House of Delegates exercised his rarely used power to reject gubernatorial budget vetoes on Wednesday by declining to recognize Gov. Glenn Youngkin’s attempts to veto three items in the revised two-year budget he signed early this month. House Clerk Paul Nardo, acting in his capacity as keeper of the rolls, informed Youngkin that he cannot publish three of the governor’s vetoes because they are unconstitutional under the Virginia Constitution.
Commonwealth’s attorney revokes Norfolk city attorney’s authority to prosecute shoplifting charges
While Norfolk City Council made good on Mayor Kenny Alexander’s pledge during his State of the City address to allow the city attorney to prosecute shoplifting cases, Commonwealth’s Attorney Ramin Fatehi quickly nixed the plan, revoking the city attorney’s authority to do so. Fatehi sent a letter to City Attorney Bernard Pishko Wednesday saying he planned to revoke Pishko’s ability to prosecute criminal cases in Norfolk Circuit Court as of 5 p.m. Friday, and put into place added oversight of General District Court charges being pursued there.
4 things Virginians need to know about Medicaid decisions made by the U.S. House
At the Bradley Free Clinic, patients fill exam rooms for medical, dental, and behavioral health care. For 50 years, this safety-net clinic has served some of the region’s most acutely ill and vulnerable residents. Now, as the federal government moves forward with Medicaid cuts, clinic leaders like Janine Underwood are bracing for fallout. ... The U.S. House Energy and Commerce Committee, which oversees funding for Medicaid, voted along party lines Wednesday to move forward with a spending bill that would enact work requirements for people seeking Medicaid coverage.
Supporters of Loudoun County theater teacher ask Virginia attorney general to investigate his removal
Supporters of Rock Ridge High School theater teacher Tony Cimino-Johnson are asking the Office of the Virginia Attorney General to investigate why he was placed on leave from his job by Loudoun County Public Schools April 1, and to investigate alleged wrongdoing by LCPS. In a May 12 letter to Virginia Attorney General Jason S. Miyares, a Republican, supporters say Cimino-Johnson's removal from class was retaliation for actions he has taken. Cimino-Johnson has taught at the school in Loudoun Valley Estates since 2014.
Hotline between military and air traffic controllers in Washington hasn’t worked for more than three years
A hotline between military and civilian air traffic controllers in Washington, D.C., that hasn’t worked for more than three years may have contributed to another near miss shortly after the U.S. Army resumed flying helicopters in the area for the first time since January’s deadly midair collision between a passenger jet and a Black Hawk helicopter, Sen. Ted Cruz said at a hearing Wednesday. The Federal Aviation Administration official in charge of air traffic controllers, Frank McIntosh, confirmed the agency didn’t even know the hotline hadn’t been working since March 2022 until after the latest near miss.