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Fairfax County considers new tax options
The Fairfax County Board of Supervisors is exploring its taxing options, including possible taxes on meals and event admissions, in the hopes of reducing its reliance on property taxes. Supervisors discussed new revenue diversification proposals at Tuesday’s (Sept. 17) budget policy committee meeting after calling on County Executive Bryan Hill to identify ways to ease the tax burden on homeowners and fill reported shortfalls in state funding for public schools. The recommendations include raising the transient occupancy (hotel) tax and introducing new taxes on meals, admissions and probate, which is imposed on the property of someone recently deceased.
As Youngkin promotes new school cell phone rules, Democratic delegate asks what about guns?
Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin is excited about new guidelines that will ban public school students from using cell phones during the school day. The guidelines require students to turn off and store their phones from the first bell to the last. … The governor believes removing cell phones will improve both the educational and social environment for students, particularly for those struggling with issues like depression linked to social media. … Virginia Delegate Mike Jones, a Democrat from Richmond, said that while there is bipartisan support for the cell phone ban, he wishes leaders would unite to address gun safety in schools as well.
How did a WWII-era gun spend decades in a Chesterfield evidence room?
The agendas for any local government’s summer meetings are usually filled with pro-forma requests, recognitions of school bus drivers and plaques for middle school teachers. This past summer, a motion crossed the desk of the Chesterfield County Board of Supervisors that seemed like another everyday request: a motion to allow the county’s police department to donate an artifact to the Virginia War Memorial. But the artifact in question was an MP40 machine pistol made in 1941 — in Nazi Germany. The firearm had been sitting in the Chesterfield County Police Department’s Police Property and Evidence Unit for the past 40 years, where it was a bit of a departmental curiosity.
Jan. 6 rioter from Virginia who assaulted police gets weekends in jail
A Jan. 6 rioter who was convicted of assaulting police with a deadly weapon was sentenced to spend his weekends in jail for the next year, one of the lightest penalties yet imposed on a rioter convicted of attacking law enforcement. Paul Russell Johnson, 38, of Lanexa, Va., was one of five men who grabbed the bicycle racks being used as barricades by U.S. Capitol Police, lifted them into the air and smashed them into several officers, clearing a path from the Peace Circle to the Capitol for the thousands of Donald Trump supporters marching from the Ellipsis.
In Chesapeake region, Indigenous council sees conservation, sovereignty as one
After a long day at the Sovereign Nations of Virginia Annual Conference in 2022, the federally recognized tribal chiefs grabbed dinner. All the buzz was about how the Rappahannock tribe finally obtained jurisdiction over its ancestral land along Fones Cliffs. “That was the impetus,” said Reggie Stewart, second assistant chief of the Chickahominy Indian Tribe. As they considered their shared interests in restoring tribal lands, the chiefs established the Indigenous Conservation Council for the Chesapeake Bay region. It’s designed to be a resource for tribes working to steward and reconnect to their ancestral lands. Now, it’s up and running as the first of its kind in the Bay watershed.
Drug recovery court gets $2 million grant to expand program
The Lynchburg Adult Recovery Court received a $2 million federal grant that will be used to add a probation officer to supervise program participants, as well as provide housing for people with drug addictions. The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, a branch of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, provided the grant to the Lynchburg drug recovery program, according to a recovery court news release Tuesday. Since its inception in 2017, there have been 81 participants and 21 graduates of the recovery court, which provides treatment for people in the criminal justice system struggling with drug addictions.
Neighborhood residents oppose Norfolk’s long-planned floodwall project
A long-planned Norfolk project aimed at protecting the city from major coastal storms is drawing criticism from residents of a historic neighborhood. Residents of the West Freemason, a cobblestone-lined district near downtown, say a planned floodwall will block views and lower property values.
Stafford OKs data center campus the size of a ‘little city’
Stafford County approved the necessary rezoning and Comprehensive Plan changes this week for the Stafford Technology Campus, a 262-acre “little city” comprised of 23 data center buildings and six electric substations.
Gov. Youngkin receives election security update ahead of early vote start
Virginia’s governor is sharing an update about the state’s readiness for early voting, fresh off a briefing about it. And all signs appear to be positive. “I’m very pleased with the work that’s going on and I think Virginians should be confident that this election will be secure. This election will be safe and that finally this election will reflect their views,” said Youngkin. The governor met with the state election commissioner, among others Thursday, a day before early voting starts.
As early voting starts in Virginia, political parties rally their bases
Starting Friday, voters across Virginia can begin casting their ballots in this year’s critical elections for the White House, a U.S. Senate seat, and the state’s 11 congressional districts that will not only impact the future of the commonwealth but also help shape next year’s gubernatorial race. An amendment to the Constitution of Virginia and a variety of local offices are also on the ballot.