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By NATHANIEL CLINE AND CHARLIE PAULLIN,
Virginia Mercury
Gov. Glenn Youngkin and lawmakers have agreed to work together on the biennium budget, after clashing for weeks over two distinctly different spending plans.
A special session will be held on May 13, Youngkin and lawmakers in both chambers announced Wednesday, to consider the revamped budget and prevent a shutdown ahead of July 1, when the current budget expires.
On Wednesday, the House of Delegates voted to reject all 233 of the governor’s amendments to the budget, and agreed to seek a new budget to present to the legislature May 13, with voting on it expected May 15. They also took up the governor’s other bill amendments and 153 vetoes.
VaNews April 18, 2024
By JILL PALERMO,
Prince William Times
Data centers in Prince William County would get hit with higher tax bills this year, while homeowners will see an average tax bill increase of just $26 if county supervisors approve their budget plan next week.
On Tuesday, the supervisors moved to advance a 70% increase in the tax rate that data centers pay on their computer equipment while cutting the real estate tax rate to 92 cents per $100 in assessed value. The latter cuts the tax bill increase on a home valued at about $500,000 to $26 from the initially proposed $243, according to Nikki Brown, a Prince William County spokeswoman.
VaNews April 18, 2024
By MICHAEL MARTZ AND DAVE RESS,
Richmond Times-Dispatch
(Metered Paywall - 7 articles a month)
Gov. Glenn Youngkin and General Assembly leaders are starting with a clean slate in an effort to reach a new state budget, avoid a potential government shutdown and buy time to determine how much new revenue they will have to spend over the next two years.
Youngkin and assembly leaders of both parties gathered in the state Capitol around Houdon’s statue of George Washington on Wednesday afternoon to declare a working truce in their ongoing battle over taxes and spending. They have been at odds over the $188 billion two-year budget that the Democratic-controlled legislature adopted last month and the Republican governor tried unsuccessfully to amend this week.
VaNews April 18, 2024
By HENRI GENDREAU,
Roanoke Rambler
Roanoke Assistant City Manager Brent Robertson has been demoted and city officials are staying tight-lipped about the circumstances.
Robertson, who also served as finance director, was stripped of his titles just as city leaders are finalizing a $379-million budget that went before City Council on Monday.
City Manager Bob Cowell appointed Chris Chittum, a longtime employee who leads the planning department, as acting assistant city manager.
Council approved that decision late Monday — but not before tabling the motion and returning after a three-hour closed door session to approve the measure unanimously.
VaNews April 18, 2024
By TIM HENDERSON,
Stateline
Juan Ramirez, watching his dog play in Chandon Park here in suburban Virginia on a Saturday morning, tries to imagine the massive office buildings next to the park becoming apartments and townhouses.
“I guess it’s inevitable. People don’t use offices as much now. I hope it’s affordable. Maybe it’ll bring more young people to town, more taxes for parks,” said Ramirez, 38, who grew up in the area and returned recently to take a restaurant management job after living in Minnesota and Ohio.
Cities and suburbs around the country are struggling with vacant office space as remote work becomes an established post-pandemic reality.
VaNews April 18, 2024
By SABRINA MORENO,
Axios
Harrison Roday, a first-time candidate vying for Richmond mayor, has raised more money than any other person running for local office in Virginia this year.
That’s according to an Axios analysis of campaign finance reports out this week, which show him raising nearly six times as much as Andreas Addison and 6.5 times more than Michelle Mosby — two other Richmond mayoral candidates.
More than half of Roday’s $365,822 comes from 10 of his former colleagues at a New York-based private equity firm, where he worked until 2022.
VaNews April 18, 2024
By KATE ANDREWS,
Virginia Business
Petersburg voters will likely get the opportunity to vote on a casino referendum this fall, as a Virginia General Assembly obstacle has been removed from its path.
SB 628, sponsored by Sen. Lashrecse Aird, D-Petersburg, replaces Richmond with Petersburg among Virginia cities eligible to host a casino following approval by voters on a ballot. An earlier version of the bill had required a second General Assembly vote in 2025 before the law could take effect, but Gov. Glenn Youngkin removed that section of the measure this spring.
On Wednesday, both legislative bodies passed Youngkin’s version — meaning a vote could take place this fall in Petersburg, expediting the possible development of a casino resort in the city.
VaNews April 18, 2024
By MARKUS SCHMIDT,
Cardinal News
The state Senate on Wednesday soundly rejected Gov. Glenn Youngkin’s far-reaching slate of amendments to legislation that would legalize so-called skill games in Virginia and create a regulatory framework and tax structure for the electronic devices.
By a 34-6 bipartisan vote, the body sent SB 212, sponsored by Sen. Aaron Rouse, D-Virginia Beach, and Sen. Timmy French, R-Frederick County, among others, back to Youngkin’s desk for a signature or a veto. The bill had passed in the Senate by 32-8 in February and in the House by 51-45.
VaNews April 18, 2024
By MIKE GANGLOFF,
Roanoke Times
(Metered Paywall - 5 articles a month)
Students at Christiansburg Middle School were told a month ago to give up their cellphones and other electronic devices during school hours – and seem happier without them, said a report presented Tuesday to the Montgomery County School Board. There also have been numerous phones confiscated after students used them despite the ban, the report said. “I’m seeing smiles on faces instead of the cellphone zombies walking down the hallways and not paying attention to what’s going on around them,” Christiansburg Middle School Principal Danny Knott told school board members.
VaNews April 18, 2024
