Democrats currently hold a 22-18 majority in the Virginia State Senate, which holds elections every four years rather than every two.
The chamber is already poised to welcome at least 11 new members next year: ten incumbents are retiring, and two incumbents are running in the same district, leaving 11 districts open, over one-fourth of the chamber.
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Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin is taking historical measures by eliminating degree requirements and preferences for nearly 90% of commonwealth classified positions.
The new “landmark” hiring preferences will provide equal consideration for all qualified applicants and allow state agencies to broaden their recruitment and talent pool.
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The Department of Defense has put a stop to a “child-friendly” drag show event slated for Thursday at Nellis Air Force Base in Nevada.
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Republican Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin will deploy National Guard troops to the southern border, his office announced Wednesday.
The Virginia governor will send 100 troops to the Texas-Mexico border to address the surge in illegal immigration and drug smuggling that he says is killing five Virginians each day, according to the announcement. Youngkin joins Florida, Tennessee and Nebraska in helping Republican Texas Gov. Greg Abbott secure the southern border.
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Middle school students in northern Virginia have created “fight clubs” with the assistance of parents, and the violence is entering the school building, the school’ principal says.
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Tea Party Patriots Action (TPPA), the national conservative nonprofit group founded at the height of the Tea Party Movement, is condemning House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-CA-20) for negotiating an increase of $4 trillion to the national debt over the next 18 months and calling on House Republicans to vote against the bill.
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by Sarah Roderick-Fitch Virginia’s Arlington National Cemetery, one of America’s most notable symbolic memorials to freedom, will soon run out of room. Despite two extensions in progress meant to expand capacity until 2060, the 639-acre cemetery’s eligibility requirements and geographical footprint must change to preserve space for future generations…
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Republican lawmakers in Virginia are requesting a spending report that focuses specifically on the diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) efforts at state colleges and universities, Higher Ed Dive reports.
Two lawmakers in particular are paving the way for this new initiative: House Speaker Todd Gilbert and House Majority Leader Terry Kilgore. In a May 4 letter, Gilbert and Kilgore requested the Joint Legislative Audit and Review Commission (JLARC) “to study the growing cost of public higher education in the Commonwealth.”
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by Ailan Evans Russia issued an arrest warrant for Republican Sen. Lindsey Graham of South Carolina Monday, following comments he made about the war in Ukraine. The warrant was issued by Russia’s Interior Ministry on Monday, with an additional announcement that a criminal investigation had been opened into Graham, according…
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Louisiana State Sen. Fred Mills (R-Acadiana), a former Democrat and a pharmacy owner backed by the pharmaceutical industry, joined with Democrats of the Senate Health and Welfare Committee to kill a bill, already passed by the state House, that would have protected minors from life-altering gender transition procedures.
HB648, a bill that would “prohibit certain procedures to alter the sex of a minor child,” including providing puberty blockers, cross-sex hormones, and surgeries such as elective double mastectomies and castrations, was killed in committee, by a vote of 5-4, with Mills, the GOP chair of the committee, breaking the tie to side with the Democrats.
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A recent poll shows a majority of northern Virginia residents support expanding the flight distance perimeter around Reagan National Airport, allowing the airport to accommodate more routes, thus making fares more competitive, according to supporters of the measure.
Recent legislation introduced by Utah congressmen Burgess Owens and Hank Johnson, known as The Direct Capital Access Act, part of the 2023 Federal Aviation Administration Reauthorization bill, would allow for the increase and creation of longer-haul flights in and out of Reagan. The legislation would add 28 flights in and out of the 1960s-era perimeter rule for incoming and outgoing flights.
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Noah Riley Teal is an Americana singer, songwriter, and guitarist who will be releasing his debut self-titled album on July 7th. His latest single, “I’m Coming Around” is out now.
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Virginia Attorney General Jason Miyares has joined a nationwide lawsuit against Avid Telecom for “violating” the Telephone Consumer Protection Act for allegedly “facilitating billions of illegal robocalls.”
Miyares is joining a bipartisan coalition of 48 attorneys general from across the country in filing the lawsuit in the U.S. District Court for the District of Arizona.
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A group of Virginia bipartisan congressional leaders are leading the charge with legislation to improve access to mental health services and reduce suicides among Navy sailors.
Reps. Jennifer Kiggans, Rob Wittman, Bobby Scott and Jennifer McClennan are leading efforts to increase access to mental health resources while requiring mental health screenings for sailors on limited duty, entitled the Sailor Standard Care Act.
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South Carolina Gov. Henry McMaster (R) signed the Fetal Heartbeat and Protection from Abortion Act Thursday morning, legislation that protects babies in the state from abortion from the time a heartbeat is detected.
McMaster’s signature on the bill now makes South Carolina the 23rd state to protect babies with a heartbeat, and marks that half of the United States is now protecting babies from abortion at or before 12 weeks.
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Virginia’s labor participation rate rose to the highest recorded in nearly a decade, according to the Bureau of Labor and Statistics Local Area Unemployment Statistics.
April’s labor force participation rate increased by 0.3% to 66.2%, the highest since June 2014. The labor force in the commonwealth has risen by 21,687 this month. The BLS recorded more than 25,000 Virginians were employed in April than in March – leading the decline in unemployment to 3.1%.
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Republican Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin is reportedly “reconsidering” his decision not to run for president in 2024, according to Axios.
Youngkin was often named as a potential candidate for president, but seemingly closed the door when he announced on May 1 that he wouldn’t run for president “this year.” Republican donors are urging Youngkin to reconsider as Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis is expected to jump in the race Wednesday and former President Donald Trump continues to dominate in the polls, according to Axios.
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Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin took final action on 17 pieces of legislation pending from the reconvened legislative session, signing 12 and vetoing five.
The legislation ranged from energy to medical marijuana. The governor celebrated the General Assembly voting approving nearly all of his amendments. Youngkin expressed disappointment for a few pieces of legislation rejected by the Assembly – mainly a key piece of energy legislation and the protection of minors regarding social media.
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Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin says the commonwealth is ahead almost $500 million for the year-to-date general revenue collections – consistent with a prior forecast.
The revenue collections in the first 10 months of the fiscal year were 2.7% higher – adjusted for policy or timing impacts. Although, the unadjusted revenue collections were down 8.2% in April, a 0.9% reduction for the fiscal year-to-date.
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The director of the Christian Defense Coalition told The Star News Network in an interview Friday it is crucial that the FBI release The Covenant School shooter Audrey Hale’s manifesto to the public, especially in the wake of the “scathing report” by Special Counsel John Durham that has led to a firestorm over the federal law enforcement agency’s integrity and analysis.
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Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin signed legislation to expand sales tax exemptions for controlled environment agriculture commercial facilities.
The new law will promote emerging agriculture cultivation systems, which proponents believe will create a source of sustainable, nutritious food options – aiding worldwide food insecurity.
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Virginia Attorney General Jason Miyares has joined nearly two dozen state attorneys general imploring the Biden administration to protect female athletes by upholding Title IX.
The opposition from the coalition follows a proposal from the Department of Education to allow biological males to compete in female sports.
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Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin announced funding to provide 20 predominantly rural, underserved communities with broadband access.
More than $59.5 million in grants will be made through the Virginia Telecommunications Initiative, supplying broadband access to nearly 30,000 homes, businesses and community institutions, such as schools, libraries, public safety centers and health care providers.
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Virginia Democrat Rep. Gerry Connolly said Monday a person entered his district office with a baseball bat and beat two members of his staff, leaving them hospitalized.
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Republican Gov. Glenn Youngkin of Virginia signed a bill requiring pornography sites to verify their users’ age Friday night, WTKR reported.
The bill, SB 1515, states that online providers who have a “substantial port” of sexual content on their sites are open to civil liability if they do not take steps to verify their users are above the age of 18. SB 1515, which passed the state senate by a 37-3 vote, and a 96-0 vote in the House of Delegates, defined “substantial portion” to be more than a third of the content on the site.
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Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin has announced a grant program to improve student safety by beefing up security infrastructures in schools of higher needs.
The Stronger Connections program is a $16.4 million competitive grant program aimed at improving school security to curb assaults on schools, which may be vulnerable to attacks.
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The Federal Bureau of Investigation and Metropolitan Nashville Police Department have refused to release the manifesto and related documents of the Covenant School killer, citing spurious reasons for their denials.
But is a shadowy Department of Justice unit billing itself as “America’s peacemaker” behind the information freeze? Some say the disclosure dance has all the markings of the Community Relations Service.
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Gov. Glenn Youngkin has issued an executive order to combat the fentanyl crisis in Virginia.
The executive action is a “first-of-its-kind comprehensive fentanyl strategy” titled Right Help, Right Now.
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The Star News Network is suing the Federal Bureau of Investigation alleging the law enforcement agency has broken a critical First Amendment guard in repeatedly denying Freedom of Information Act requests seeking the Covenant School killer’s manifesto. Filed Wednesday, the federal lawsuit asks the U.S. District Court for Middle Tennessee to order the FBI to release Audrey Elizabeth Hale’s manifesto and related documents and to issue a declaration that the agency violated FOIA in denying the request for the information.
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Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin, in an exclusive interview with The Center Square, had strong words for the Biden administration’s handling of the crisis at the southern border and the lifting of Title 42.
Youngkin signed an executive order Tuesday while delivering remarks at Stafford High School in Stafford County, marking National Fentanyl Awareness Day. During his speech, the governor blamed the Biden administration for failing to take action against the flow of the deadly drug across the border.
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A South Carolina parent challenged the school board of Richland School District Two in Columbia where Blythewood High School (BHS) hosted the Anti-Defamation League’s (ADL) “No Place for Hate” program that invites children to “explore identity,” and “apply this understanding to recognize the relationship between identity, bias and power.”
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House of Delegates Speaker Todd Gilbert has requested the Joint Legislative Audit and Review Commission (JLARC) to look into the rising cost of public higher education in Virginia – particularly the increase of administrative staff positions tied to diversity, equity and inclusion.
In a letter addressed to Hal Greer, executive director of the commission, Gilbert cites a November 2014 report from the commission entitled, “Addressing the Cost of Public Higher Education in Virginia.” In it, the commission adopted 16 recommendations. The speaker says it is “unclear which, if any,” of the recommendations were adopted from the 168-page report.
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Gov. Glenn Youngkin joined Virginia education leaders and Google executives in announcing a new cybersecurity training program with Northern Virginia Community College.
The announcement was made at an event Thursday at the NOVA campus in Alexandria. The new program will offer a Google Career Certificate in cybersecurity, which is proponents say is an emerging technical field.
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Virginia Attorney General Jason Miyares has announced Virginians affected by the alleged “tricks” from TurboTax owner Intuit will receive more than $3.6 million as part of a nationwide settlement.
Miyares says more than 119,000 Virginia consumers were “tricked into paying to file their federal tax return.” The commonwealth’s restitution is part of a nationwide settlement of $141 million to be distributed to millions of lower-income Americans.
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Virginia U.S. Sen. Tim Kaine has joined a bipartisan group of lawmakers in introducing the College Transparency Act, which would give students and their families access to make more informed decisions about colleges and areas of study to best fit their needs.
Kaine and his colleagues hope the legislation will help students and their families make better, more transparent decisions looking at the larger picture when determining the best path in higher education, ultimately leading to successful careers.
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Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin praised the new integrated plan released by Dominion Energy, touting his administration’s energy plan in comparison.
The energy company released its 2023 Integrated Resource Plan, which outlines “strategic pathways” to ensure the energy provider can consistently deliver power to residents and Virginia businesses.
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Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin has ended months of speculation he will make a run for the White House in 2024.
Youngkin was asked by Wall Street Journal editor-at-large Gerard Baker at the Milken Institute’s “Governing America” discussion if he was planning on “dusting off” his fleece jacket to hit the campaign trail this year. Youngkin didn’t mince any words with a simple, “no.”
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Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin met with South Korean Prime Minister Han Duck Soo during his final stop on an Asian tour to promote economic, education and trade relations.
Youngkin and the prime minister met Friday in Seoul to expand on bilateral trade relation opportunities between the commonwealth and South Korea. Youngkin also highlighted the education partnership between the commonwealth and South Korea and how he hopes it will lead to more business opportunities.
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Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin met with Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida in Tokyo to discuss trade and business investments between the commonwealth and Japan.
Japan is the second stop on Youngkin’s Asian tour, concluding with a visit to South Korea. The governor highlighted mutual economic interests, which they hope will strengthen relations.
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Virginia Attorney General Jason Miyares held a press conference in Lynchburg to provide an update on Operation Ceasefire, which was initiated late last year in an effort to reduce gun violence and violent crime through a “multifaced approach.”
Joining Miyares at the press conference were several prosecutors and law enforcement officers to discuss their ongoing plan for tackling rising crime.
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Virginia has shattered a record with more than 4.5 million people in the commonwealth’s workforce, Gov. Glenn Youngkin says.
The workforce was recorded at 65.9 percent in March, which is over 1 percent higher than it was before the beginning of the pandemic. Virginia eclipsed the national average by 3 percent, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.
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On Saturday, 264 congregations part of the United Methodists of the Holston Conference had their requests processed to leave the denomination, citing “issues around human sexuality and other matters.”
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Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin took historic steps by signing an executive order establishing a foreign trade office while meeting with President Tsai Ing-wen of Taiwan in Taipei earlier today, kicking off his Asian tour.
This will be the commonwealth’s fourth international office; others are in Japan, South Korea and Germany. Youngkin is scheduled to visit Japan and South Korea during his Asian trip.
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Virginia has been crowned No. 1 for best highways in the country for performance and cost-effectiveness, according to a new report.
The commonwealth’s highway system moved up one spot from last year, according to The Reason Foundation’s 27th annual Highway Report. Within the report’s key metrics, Virginia also ranked No. 1 overall and in the “capital-bridge disbursements ratio” category.
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Mississippi Gov. Tate Reeves (R) signed multiple pieces of legislation Wednesday that provide support for mothers and babies, particularly in the areas of adoption, foster care, pregnancy care centers, and parental rights.
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Gov. Glenn Youngkin announced $1.5 million in grants to support revitalization projects in the Virginia port communities of Newport News, Norfolk and Portsmouth before his trade mission trips to Asia later this month.
The grants come from Port Host Community Revitalization Fund, which supports redeveloping dilapidated structures, improving maritime operations, expanding business opportunities, creating jobs and preventing environmental hazards.
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Nearly 19,000 voters will be removed from the voter rolls in Virginia after the Department of Elections discovered death records had not been previously shared.
The Virginia Department of Elections has announced it has begun instituting improvements to cull its voter rolls of voters “who are known to be deceased.” General registrars made a request to allow more ways to confirm the death of registered voters.
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Arkansas Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders issued a line-item veto Friday for $5 million in pandemic expenses included in the Department of Corrections budget.
“During my first days in office, I terminated several existing Executive Orders related to the COVID-19 pandemic,” Sanders said in her veto letter. “I believe in freedom and personal responsibility – not COVID mandates or shutdowns. The COVID-19 pandemic is over.”
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The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit reversed the dismissal of a lawsuit made by Loudoun County, Virginia, parents against their public school system over a bias reporting system, which they argue could chill their children’s freedom of speech.
The appeals court overturned a lower court decision to dismiss the lawsuit Friday, saying that the case against Loudoun County Public Schools’ based on student’s First Amendment rights could continue in federal court.
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Amazon applied for economic development incentives from Virginia for its new HQ2 campus in Arlington, requesting the state pay $152 million to the company by 2026.
Arlington was chosen as the site for Amazon’s second quarters four years ago – a move the company said would bring 25,000 jobs to the area by 2030. The tech giant has roughly 8,400 employees assigned to HQ2, and the average wage of these jobs must meet or exceed $156,800, according to Amazon spokesperson Rachael Lightly.
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