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Legislators suggest Virginia needs to take more active role in food safety
Virginia may need to enact more food safety requirements at the state level in response to cutbacks and deregulation efforts by the Trump administration, two legislators and several advocates said at a recent forum. “We have historically, in my opinion, not done the kind of oversight we need to do. We’ve let the federal government do most of it,” Del. Mark Sickles (D-17) said during the press event on May 28. Sickles, who chairs the Virginia General Assembly’s House Committee on Health and Human Services and represents the Franconia and Huntington areas in Fairfax County, was joined by state Sen. Ghazala Hashmi (D-15), chair of the Senate Committee on Education and Health.
Vienna energy expert launches bid for 11th Congressional District seat
A special election to fill the late Rep. Gerry Connolly’s now-open seat in Congress still hasn’t been officially ordered, but the number of Democrats seeking to stake a claim is now up to six. Amy Roma, a Vienna resident and lawyer who specializes in energy policy, officially launched a campaign for the 11th Congressional District yesterday (Thursday) — the same day that Leopoldo Martínez, who’s also a lawyer, announced his own bid to become the Democratic nominee.
Warner discusses affordable housing in Williamsburg
U.S. Sen. Mark Warner said housing needs “more fresh ideas” during a Thursday community roundtable focused on affordable housing. More than 40 people, including Williamsburg and James City County civic, community and faith leaders, filled the Williamsburg Community Building to listen to Warner’s ideas on increasing the housing supply and helping homeowners. Among the initiatives he discussed was the historic tax credit, which provides state tax credit to property owners helping to rehabilitate historic buildings.
Newport News Shipbuilding to furlough 471 workers
Newport News Shipbuilding announced on Friday that it will furlough 471 shipbuilders for up to five months. All impacted employees, which include salaried engineers and other workers, were notified Friday. For those impacted, Friday is their last day of work for the time being, and the furlough will be effective starting Monday. Although it is not a job termination, furloughed employees will not be paid for the time they’re out of work.
Virginia businesses hope for clarity on tariffs after Trump’s court defeat
Anh Vu had repositioned her shipping company to bring goods from Vietnam into the United States instead of sending exports to the Southeast Asian country. Her business, SAM Cargo Express, planned to develop a warehouse in Northern Virginia to handle the imported handicrafts and other goods from Vietnam. ... The planned warehouse "has been put on hold because not a lot of companies want to do that because of tariffs," Vu said after a meeting between Sen. Mark Warner, D-Va., and small business owners in the Vietnamese community here on Wednesday.
Virginia localities puzzled by inclusion on federal ‘sanctuary cities’ list
The Department of Homeland Security is identifying 20 counties and 13 cities in Virginia they call “sanctuary jurisdictions.” To understand the list of 33 sanctuary cities in Virginia, perhaps it’s best to focus on one county that is NOT on the list: Loudoun County in Northern Virginia. Freddy Mejia at the Commonwealth Institute says this is the example used to strong-arm local law-enforcement officials to cooperate with federal immigration authorities. “Loudoun County saw a real large spike of car searches for Latino residents in that community," Mejia says. "And we know that that community, that sheriff is cooperating with ICE under a 287(g) agreement in Loudoun County.”
Richmond slapped with ‘sanctuary jurisdiction’ label and familiar threat of funding cuts
Richmond and its surrounding counties have been dubbed “sanctuary jurisdictions” by the Department of Homeland Security. In a news release Thursday evening, DHS Secretary Kristi Noem said that city policies are “endangering Americans and our law enforcement in order to protect violent criminal illegal aliens.” The department published a list with hundreds of qualifying cities and counties nationwide. “Sanctuary” status is a catch-all for local governments whose policies shield undocumented immigrants from agencies like DHS and its enforcement agency, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). The release said Richmond, Henrico, Hanover, Chesterfield and Dinwiddie obstruct the enforcement of federal immigration laws.
Hampton Roads cities accused by Homeland Security of obstructing federal immigration officials
The Department of Homeland Security released a list of localities around the country that it alleges are obstructing enforcement of federal immigration law, including several in Hampton Roads. The list, which DHS says will be updated regularly, was compiled after an executive order from President Trump. Hampton Roads cities on the list: Virginia Beach, Hampton, Portsmouth, and Newport News — along with Gloucester County. In all, the list targets 33 Virginia localities — including Richmond and Fairfax County ...
Funding cuts tearing holes in region’s health care safety net, officials say
Federal and state funding cuts, freezes and delayed payments are hammering Richmond’s free clinics, the region’s health care safety net, officials from the groups told a community town hall at Health Brigade’s clinic near Scott’s Addition. The cuts, some of which date back to last year, have been particularly deep for services for prevention and treatment of HIV, the virus than can cause AIDS. It also leaves people vulnerable to difficult-to-treat tuberculosis and other contagious disease.
Lynchburg business owners keep pressure on city council behavior
Lynchburg business leaders brought their concerns about the conduct of elected officials to City Hall on Tuesday, letting council members know their patience has run out and they want to see changes that will allow the city to move forward. The criticism ramped up after the previous city council meeting on May 13 when Dave Henderson ... sent an email to city leaders and the business community letting them know about his worries about council’s actions possibly costing the city business. During the public comment period Tuesday, business owners told council about the messages of support they received after they decided to speak out about council in response to Henderson’s email.