Category: LEAD

Express Lanes to Open Along Virginia I-95 Corridor

The Center Square

A ribbon cutting this week will commemorate something that Stafford County residents and D.C.-area commuters have long awaited – sometimes impatiently, while cursing out their car windows: The opening of approximately 10 miles of express lanes along the infamously congested I-95 corridor.

The District of Columbia was ranked the eighth-worst American city for traffic in U.S. News & World Report’s 2022 rankings and has ranked second-worst in the past. And the southbound stretch of I-95 is chief among D.C. roads notorious for gridlocks and traffic delays, according to the National Capital Region Transportation Board.

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Governor Youngkin Kicks Off ‘Parents Matter’ Town Halls Across Virginia

The Center Square

Gov. Glenn Youngkin is leading a ‘Parents Matter’ town hall tour across the commonwealth to engage Virginia parents on crucial issues impacting youth.

The tour began over a month ago in Salem, and since then, the governor has spoken at Bristow, Richmond and Fredericksburg – areas that lean heavily Democratic.

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Major Drug Trafficker in Virginia Sentenced

The Center Square

A man convicted of trafficking large amounts of methamphetamine from Mexico into Virginia was sentenced to 25 years in federal prison yesterday, Attorney General Jason Miyares announced today.

“Cantu-Cantu was the major source of supply for a drug conspiracy that distributed more than 33 kilograms of crystal methamphetamine and six kilograms of cocaine into Southwest and Central Virginia through a multi-jurisdictional drug trafficking organization,” according to a press release from Miyares’ office.

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Proposed Virginia Toll Hikes May Have Been Avoidable

The Center Square

The application by Toll Road Investors Partnership II L.P. to raise tolls on Virginia’s Dulles Greenway is now open to public comment, and a date has been set for the hearing of January 24, 2024.

If the State Corporation Commission approves TRIP II’s application, the new “maximum tolls for most drivers” will be $6.40 during off-peak hours and $8.10 going eastbound during the peak hours of 6:30 a.m. to 9 a.m and driving westbound between 4 p.m. and 6:30 p.m. The current rates are $5.25 and $5.80, respectively.

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Federal Prosecutors Securing Convictions in COVID-Related Fraud Cases

The Center Square

So far this year, the Eastern District of the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Virginia has secured convictions in 14 cases of COVID fraud, where defendants were responsible for more than $11.3 million in calculated loss, Karoline Foote, a spokesperson for the office, told The Center Square.

In March, a Georgia woman by the name of Nikki Mitchum was sentenced to 51 months in prison for conspiring with others in Hampton to obtain millions of dollars in COVID-relief Economic Injury Disaster loans and Paycheck Protection Program loans, according to a press release from the office.

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Virginia Paid for Medicaid Services for over 12,000 Deceased Enrollees

The Center Square

The U.S. Office of Inspector General audited Virginia’s Medicaid program from 2019-21 and estimated the commonwealth paid managed care organizations at least $20.8 million in capitation payments for more than 12,000 deceased Medicare enrollees during those years.

As Medicaid is a government-provided benefit, whereas individuals or their employers typically pay a monthly health insurance premium for coverage, Virginia pays that amount on behalf of the enrollee to managed care organizations and is reimbursed a percentage by the federal government.

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Virginia U.S. Rep. Bob Good Among Conservative Representatives Who May Push for Government Shutdown

Virginia Star Staff

As the federal government’s funding deadline of September 30th approaches, several conservative members of Congress have advocated for another government shutdown, calling it a positive thing.

As reported by Politico, some of the most conservative members of the House of Representatives have floated the idea in recent weeks. Congressman Bob Good (R-Va.) said last week that if the federal government were to shut down, “most Americans won’t even miss” it.

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University of Virginia Adds Racial Identity Question to Admissions Essay

Virginia Star Staff

The University of Virginia (UVA) announced a new essay question for the 2023 to 2024 admissions cycle that circumvents the Supreme Court’s ruling that universities can no longer consider race in college admissions.

Applicants are now required, in 300 words, to answer: “What about your background, perspective, or experience will serve as a source of strength for you and those around you at UVA?”

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Virginia Gas Prices up 15 Cents in the Last Week, 30 Cents in a Month

The Center Square

Virginia’s price for a gallon of unleaded gasoline has risen nearly 30 cents in a month, half of that in just the last week.

The American Automobile Association’s daily tracking put the state average at $3.59 on Monday, up from $3.42 a week ago and $3.30 a month ago.

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Stimulus Package Rural Health Care Grants Awarded in Virginia

The Center Square

Three health care entities in western Virginia will receive a total of nearly $11 million in federal funding from a program established by the American Rescue Plan Act. 

The 2021 stimulus package included the creation of a temporary grant program through the U.S. Department of Agriculture called the Emergency Rural Health Care Grant Program. The bill allotted up to $500 million for the expansion of health care services to eligible public bodies, community-based nonprofits and federally-recognized tribes – some specific to COVID-19 – like testing and vaccines, and also for projects dedicated to “the long-term sustainability of rural health care.”

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Virginia High School Sports League Rejects GOP Gov. Youngkin’s Transgender Athlete Policy

Just the News

The Virginia High School League, which oversees most of the state’s high school sports, says it has no immediate plans to change policies governing transgender athletes, despite Republican Gov. Glenn Youngkin’s new guidelines that call for competition to be among those of the same biological sex. 

Youngkin’s model policies state student-athletes be grouped as such, as opposed to by gender identity, with “reasonable modifications” granted only to the extent required by law.

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Virginia School Safety Forum Brings Educators, Law Enforcement Together

The Center Square

More than 1,100 people registered to attend the 2023 Virginia School Safety Training Forum, which will address roughly 20 topics pertaining to school safety and student well-being.

The Virginia Department of Criminal Justice Services and its Center for School and Campus Safety partner with several other organizations, including the attorney general’s office and the Virginia Department of Education, to put on the forum, now in its 22nd year.

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Virginia Senator Reintroduces Legislation to Increase Funding for Teacher Recruitment and Training

The Center Square

Democratic Virginia Sen. Tim Kaine joined Republican Sen. Susan Collins of Maine in reintroducing legislation that would increase funding opportunities for teacher and school administrator recruitment and training, as well as minority-serving colleges and universities.

The Preparing and Retaining Education Professionals Act, or PREP Act, was initially introduced in the Senate a couple of years ago as the PREP Act of 2021. Though touted as bipartisan, Collins is the only Republican cosponsor alongside seven Democrats.

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Virginia Community Colleges Approve Tuition Hikes

The Center Square

Tuition is increasing at Virginia community colleges for the first time in five years due to a unanimous decision from the State Board of Community Colleges.

Virginia’s 23 community colleges are increasing their tuition by $4.61 per credit hour, about 3% of the previous in-state tuition rate. For most of them, tuition will be $158.61 per credit hour for the 2023-24 school year or $2,379.15 for a 15-credit-hour semester. Other mandatory fees will vary, depending on the college.

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The Anti-Defamation League’s ‘No Place for Hate’ Program to Push Inclusion Popular Among Northern Virginia, Maryland Schools

The Center Square

Many schools in the Washington, D.C., region participate in a program called “No Place for Hate” designed to promote inclusion among students.

At least 143, and possibly closer to 200, are in Virginia and Maryland.

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Budget Revisions at Impasse over Tax Cuts and Underfunded Virginia Schools

The Center Square

Virginia entered the fiscal year on July 1 without a revised budget for the first time in over 20 years due to a lack of consensus in the General Assembly – to the tune of roughly $1 billion.

Virginia operates on a two-year budget that is passed in even years, but revisions are made in odd years to keep up with state programs, priorities and changes in legislation.

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Virginia and Maryland Debate New Criteria for FBI Headquarters

The Center Square

In response to talks with Maryland and Virginia officials, the GSA – the government agency tasked with choosing a location for the new FBI headquarters – has again adjusted its criteria, leaving the neighboring states still jockeying for selection after years of indecision.

It took a decade of complaints about the security, space and functionality of the existing Washington, D.C., FBI headquarters for Congress to appropriate funds and authorize the search for a new one in 2012.

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Virginia Ends Previous School Transgender Policies, Now Requires Parent OK to Student Pronoun Change

Virginia Star Staff

The Virginia Education Department announced new model policies regarding the treatment of transgender students in the state’s public schools in guidance that separates students by biological sex and gives parents the sole authority to change their children’s names and pronouns in school.

The policies, released Tuesday, deliver on a significant campaign promise from Virginia Republican Gov. Glenn Youngkin to promote parents’ rights, as the guiding principles of the policies emphasize respecting all students and giving parents priority in making decisions for their children.

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Program Continues to Support International Expansion of Virginia Companies

The Center Square

Eleven companies graduated, and 13 joined Virginia Leaders in Export Trade on Thursday, a two-year Virginia Economic Development Partnership program representing 12 counties and eight independent cities across the commonwealth.

Only 25 companies are accepted into the VALET program each year, and 375 have graduated since it was established in the late 90s. Candidate organizations must demonstrate “firmly established domestic operations” and “[commitment] to international exporting as a growth strategy” to be accepted into the program, according to a press release from VEDP.

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Legal Battles Leave Natural Gas Pipeline in Virginia Short

The Center Square

With the passage of the Fiscal Responsibility Act in June, it looked like the Mountain Valley Pipeline would finally be completed in Virginia, but environmental groups are fighting back in a legal battle that could end up at the Supreme Court.

The Mountain Valley Pipeline (MVP) is a natural gas pipeline routed to run 303 miles from Wetzel County in northern West Virginia to Pittsylvania County in southern Virginia. Mountain Valley, LLC, began construction in 2018 and, by November 2021, had completed 270 miles of the pipeline. At that time, the company planned to finish the project by the summer of 2022.

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Federal Program Targets Virginia Landscapes to Combat Climate Change

The Center Square

A Department of Defense-supported program designed to combat climate change came to Virginia on Monday.

The Sentinel Landscape Partnership is tackling two new landscape projects in Virginia abutting its Maryland project, the Middle Chesapeake Landscape. The commonwealth landscapes comprise public and private lands in a swath of nearly three million acres that includes 10 military installations and stretches from Maryland to North Carolina, according to The Pew Charitable Trusts, the lead nonprofit that worked with federal and state officials on the designation.

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Virginia AG Miyares and Other AGs ‘Demand Answers’ from BlackRock

The Center Square

Virginia Attorney General Jason Miyares is the latest to join a coalition of attorneys general “demanding answers” from global investment firm BlackRock Inc., questioning its ability to manage funds passively.

Since August 2022, three groups of attorneys general representing 24 states have banded together in actions challenging company practices at BlackRock – the largest asset manager in the world and the first to reach $10 trillion in assets – claiming that it has allowed political persuasions to interfere with the investment of its clients’ funds.

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Study: Virginia Ranks No. 2 for Business

The Center Square

Virginia ranked second in the nation in CNBC’s America’s Top States for Business study – up from third in 2022 and scoring first in education.

The survey released Tuesday is likely to be music to Gov. Glenn Youngkin’s ears, as the businessman-turned-politician has often touted the commonwealth’s business-friendly policies.

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Audit Indicates Virginia K-12 Schools Underfunded

The Center Square

A report released Monday indicates Virginia’s K-12 education system has received inadequate state funding for years — and Republicans and Democrats are blaming each other for the results.

The Joint Legislative Audit and Review Commission staff reviewed Virginia’s K-12 funding formula – the mechanism used to determine the state’s education budget – upon being directed to do so by the 2021 General Assembly and shared its findings and recommendations in the report.

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Virginia Set to Benefit from Defense Budget

The Center Square

Negotiations are underway for the Fiscal Year 2024 National Defense Authorization Act, which currently contains some hefty defense investments for Virginia.

The NDAA has been passed and enacted for 62 years, allowing Congress to authorize and provide guidance on defense policy and military spending. This NDAA seeks to authorize a total of $886.3 billion for national defense funding in FY 2024, with $844.3 billion going to the Department of Defense, $32.4 billion to the Department of Energy and $9.5 billion for “defense-related activities outside of NDAA jurisdiction.”

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State Board of Education Approves Core Instructional Programs for K-3

The Center Square

The Virginia Board of Education took another step in its efforts toward improving students’ literacy when it approved a new list of core instructional programs for grades K-3 on Thursday.

“I believe that the Board of Education’s vote to approve these research-based literacy programs will prove to be one of the most consequential actions of my seven years on the board,” said Board President Dan Gecker.

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Feds in Miami Arrest 18 Criminal Foreign Nationals, Target for Removal

The Center Square

Miami-based agents with Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Enforcement and Removal Operations, working with Border Patrol agents, arrested 18 criminal foreign nationals who they say pose a danger to their communities.

The four-day operation was conducted from June 26 to June 30 by officials working in ICE ERO Miami Stuart suboffice. The majority arrested are Guatemalan citizens, followed by citizens of Mexico, Honduras, Brazil and Saint Lucia.

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Virginia National Guard Units Being Sent to the Border Announced

The Center Square

Three of Virginia’s National Guard units will lead Joint Task Force Cardinal as part of Operation Lone Star to help secure the southern border. 

Troops will be deployed from the Guard’s Portsmouth-based 2nd Squadron, 183rd Cavalry Regiment and the 116th Infantry Brigade Combat Team, with assistance from Army and Air National Guard units from Lynchburg, Winchester, Fredericksburg, Danville, Staunton and Hampton.

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