Today's Sponsor: Yvonne Callahan

VaNews Feb. 11, 2020
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Today's Sponsor:


** Yvonne Callahan
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In loving memory of Vince Callahan, and in commemoration of our marriage on "Crossover Day," February 15, 2006.

Read Online ([link removed]) 10 Most Clicked ([link removed])


** EXECUTIVE BRANCH
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** GOVERNOR NORTHAM SAYS GUN REFORM 'NO THREAT' TO SECOND AMENDMENT ([link removed])
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By DANA SMITH, WCVE

On the heels of recent protests and second amendment sanctuaries continuing to pop up across the Commonwealth, Governor Ralph Northam assured his gun reform legislation is no threat to the second amendment. Northam welcomed the passage of gun control bills as “historic” after a House committee voted to push the legislation forward.


** GENERAL ASSEMBLY
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** HOUSE BACKS SAME-DAY REGISTRATION AND REPEAL OF VOTER ID ([link removed])
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By MEL LEONOR, Richmond Times-Dispatch (Metered Paywall - 5 articles a month)

Eligible voters in Virginia could soon be able to register to vote on Election Day, according to a measure that cleared the Virginia House on Monday.


** HOUSE OF DELEGATES VOTES TO DECRIMINALIZE MARIJUANA ([link removed])
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By MAX THORNBERRY, Northern Virginia Daily

In a sweeping bipartisan vote in the House of Delegates, members voted to decriminalize marijuana possession on Monday 64-34.... Nine of the 44 Republicans in the House voted to support the bill that would knock simple possession down to a civil fine of $25 and block a bevy of organizations being allowed to see any record of it.


** VIRGINIA MOVES TOWARD MARIJUANA DECRIMINALIZATION ([link removed])
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By MARIE ALBIGES, Virginian-Pilot (Metered Paywall - 2 articles a month)

The General Assembly took the first major step toward decriminalizing simple possession of marijuana on Monday when the House of Delegates passed a bill that would replace criminal charges with small fines.


** HOUSE BACKS MARIJUANA DECRIMINALIZATION WITH CIVIL FINE ([link removed])
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By MEL LEONOR, Richmond Times-Dispatch (Metered Paywall - 5 articles a month)

Decriminalization of marijuana is moving forward in Virginia after the House of Delegates cleared a measure Monday to do away with criminal convictions for possession of small amounts.


** SENATE COMMITTEE ADVANCES BILL TO END "THREE STRIKES" LAW ([link removed])
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By FRANK GREEN, Richmond Times-Dispatch (Metered Paywall - 5 articles a month)

A bill to strike a provision of Virginia law that can turn a third misdemeanor petit larceny conviction into a felony advanced out of the Senate Judiciary Committee on Monday.


** SENATE VOTES TO TRIM NORTHAM'S GAS TAX INCREASE; RICHMOND WOULD GET NEW LEVY ([link removed])
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By MICHAEL MARTZ, Richmond Times-Dispatch (Metered Paywall - 5 articles a month)

The Senate voted Monday to reduce Gov. Ralph Northam’s proposed 12-cent-per-gallon statewide increase in the gas tax by one-third, eliminating a 4-cent-per-gallon hike in the third year of the plan for transforming Virginia’s transportation funding system. But proposed regional increases would add about 7 cents a gallon in much of the state, including the Richmond area.


** HOUSE ADVANCES BILL TO REDUCE CARBON EMISSIONS AND BOOST RENEWABLES ([link removed])
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By MEL LEONOR, Richmond Times-Dispatch (Metered Paywall - 5 articles a month)

Legislation to reduce carbon emissions and lead Virginia to 100 percent renewable energy in the coming decades advanced in the House Monday, even as it faced heated criticism from both sides of the aisle. The proposal, titled the Virginia Clean Economy Act, faces final votes in both chambers Tuesday


** SPORTS BETTING BILL, SKILL MACHINE BAN PASS SENATE, CASINO BILL ADVANCES IN HOUSE ([link removed])
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By MICHAEL MARTZ AND JUSTIN MATTINGLY, Richmond Times-Dispatch (Metered Paywall - 5 articles a month)

Virginians would be able to place legal bets on professional and college sports under legislation both chambers of the General Assembly adopted on Monday.


** HOUSE CASINO BILL BOUND FOR THIRD READING ([link removed])
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By DAVID MCGEE, Bristol Herald Courier (Metered Paywall - 15 articles a month)

Legislation to allow casinos by referenda in five Virginia cities, including Bristol, was engrossed and advanced to third reading Monday by the House of Delegates. Also on Monday, the state Senate dispensed with the constitutional first reading of its version of casino legislation, Senate Bill 36.


** VIRGINIANS COULD SOON BUY LOTTERY TICKETS ONLINE ([link removed])
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By MARIE ALBIGES, Virginian-Pilot (Metered Paywall - 2 articles a month)

It’s been 14 years since Virginia lawmakers put a ban on online lottery sales. Since then, the iPhone and the e-commerce market have taken off, while sales from the Virginia Lottery — which go to K-12 public education — have declined. Now, lawmakers want to make it easier to buy lottery tickets from the comfort of your own home.


** SENATE BACKS VOLUNTARY LIST TO BAR GUN SALES ([link removed])
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By JUSTIN MATTINGLY, Richmond Times-Dispatch (Metered Paywall - 5 articles a month)

Virginia could soon have a list of people who would voluntarily bar themselves from buying guns. The state Senate on Monday voted to create the Virginia Voluntary Do Not Sell Firearms List, which would prohibit people who register themselves onto the list from owning or being sold a gun.


** RELIEF FROM SKYROCKETING INSULIN COSTS MAY BE COMING SOON FOR VIRGINIANS ([link removed])
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By MAUREEN PAO, WAMU

A bill that would help ease the financial burden of Virginians who rely on insulin to manage their diabetes edges closer to becoming law as it crosses over to the State Senate this week. The House of Delegates approved the measure last week in a nearly unanimous vote.


** VIRGINIA SCHOOLS WOULD HAVE MINIMUM STANDARDS UNDER SENATE-APPROVED BILL ([link removed])
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By JUSTIN MATTINGLY, Richmond Times-Dispatch (Metered Paywall - 5 articles a month)

The Virginia Senate wants schools across the state to meet the same facility standards. The body unanimously approved Senate Bill 5 from Sen. Bill Stanley, R-Franklin County, on Monday. The bill requires the Virginia Board of Education to prescribe minimum standards for public schools across the state


** LAWMAKERS BACK MEASURE TO LET COUNTIES TAX MEALS, ADMISSIONS, AND CIGARETTES ([link removed])
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By MICHAEL MARTZ, Richmond Times-Dispatch (Metered Paywall - 5 articles a month)

Legislation to give Virginia counties taxing authorities equal to cities and towns passed the Senate and received preliminary approval from the House of Delegates on Monday. The Senate voted 24-15 to approve Senate Bill 588, proposed by Sen. Emmett Hanger, R-Augusta, and Sen. Barbara Favola, D-Arlington, to allow 95 counties the authority to impose taxes on meals, admissions, temporary lodgings and cigarettes, but with caps on how high the tax rates could go.


** WRONGFULLY IMPRISONED MAN STILL HOPING FOR COMPENSATION ([link removed])
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By FRANK GREEN, Richmond Times-Dispatch (Metered Paywall - 5 articles a month)

Calvin Wayne Cunningham went to prison for a 1979 rape and burglary in Newport News that he did not commit — a conviction he says sent his life down a road to ruin. He was exonerated in 2011, but was never compensated for wrongful imprisonment. Problem is, Cunningham began using drugs and breaking the law to support his habit after his 1988 parole. He went back to prison in 1999, 2001, 2005 and 2009.


** VIRGINIA SENATE BACKS COMMISSION TO REMOVE AND REPLACE VIRGINIA'S LEE STATUE AT U.S. CAPITOL ([link removed])
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By JUSTIN MATTINGLY, Richmond Times-Dispatch (Metered Paywall - 5 articles a month)

The process to remove Virginia’s Robert E. Lee statue in the U.S. Capitol is in motion. The Virginia Senate on Monday approved Senate Bill 612 from Sen. Louise Lucas, D-Portsmouth, to create the Commission for Historical Statues in the United States Capitol.


** CLAWING BACK LEGISLATION WITH “THE CLAUSE” ([link removed])
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By DAVE RESS, Daily Press (Metered Paywall - 1 article a month)

They call it “the clause,” though the first time Shad Plank heard the term, it sounded more like “the claws” — like how, say, a particularly tough legislative lion might make his objection to some fast-moving bill that colleagues weren’t quite ready to kill. The clause is an innovation of the state Senate Finance Committee.


** HOUSE APPROVES BLIGHT-TAX BILL ([link removed])
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By BILL ATKINSON, Progress Index (Metered paywall - 10 articles a month)

Petersburg, Hopewell and Emporia are one step closer toward being able to place an extra tax on blighted properties within their city limits. On a 57-40 vote Monday morning, the Virginia House of Delegates passed legislation that would allow the three localities to levy blighted and derelict properties at a rate exceeding 5-10% of the locality’s real-estate property tax rate.


** A VA. REPUBLICAN CRITICIZED DEMOCRATS IN A TWEET. THEN THEY KILLED 4 OF HIS BILLS. ([link removed])
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By GRAHAM MOOMAW, Virginia Mercury

A Virginia Republican may have learned the hard way that being in the minority means you’ve got to watch what you tweet. Del. Glenn Davis, R-Virginia Beach, could only sit by Monday as the Democratic majority in the House of Delegates voted down four of his bills ahead of a critical legislative deadline. In an interview, he said he was told the series of votes against his bills were a response to a tweet posted Sunday in which he attempted to call out Del. Marcus Simon, D-Fairfax, over a point of parliamentary procedure.


** PROPOSAL TO LIMIT LEGISLATIVE IMMUNITY, INSPIRED BY HURST TRAFFIC STOP, HALTED FOR THIS YEAR ([link removed])
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By AMY FRIEDENBERGER, Roanoke Times (Metered Paywall - 18 articles a month)

A proposal to revise part of the Virginia Constitution that provides immunity from certain criminal charges for legislators won’t be dealt with this year. The Senate Rules Committee voted Friday to halt the legislation.


** CNU POLL DETAILS SUGGEST BILLS’ FATES IN GENERAL ASSEMBLY ([link removed])
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By MADISON PEARMAN, WAVY

A poll by Christopher Newport University claims to reveal the fate of several bills in the General Assembly during this year’s session. Data released Monday shows that analysis of party, age, race, gender and other factors suggest whether selected bills are likely to pass or fail.


** FEDERAL ELECTIONS
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** TRUMP CAMPAIGNS AS A 2ND AMENDMENT WARRIOR ([link removed])
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By AAMER MADHANI, Associated Press

...[A]s he primes the pump on his 2020 reelection effort, Trump is going all-in on embracing the mantle of gun rights champion, a stark turn from earlier moments in his presidency when he toyed with the idea of pushing Congress to enact stricter gun laws....Last month, he labeled Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam a “whack job” as gun rights advocates protested the Democratic governor’s moves to tighten gun laws in the aftermath of a mass shooting in Virginia Beach. Drawing a straight line from gun rights to presidential politics, Trump tweeted that Democrats in the state “will take your guns away. Republicans will win Virginia in 2020. Thank you Dems!“


** W&L'S MOCK CON PREPARED TO PREDICT THE DEMOCRATIC PRESIDENTIAL NOMINEE ([link removed])
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By MIKE ALLEN, Roanoke Times (Metered Paywall - 18 articles a month)

Four years ago, the students at Washington and Lee University’s Mock Convention predicted Donald Trump would win the Republican nomination for president, at a time when six candidates were still in the running. Their prediction proved correct.


** STATE GOVERNMENT
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** STATE LIKELY TO INVESTIGATE VIRGINIA BEACH SHOOTING, THOUGH A BILL TO REQUIRE IT HAS FAILED ([link removed])
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By MARIE ALBIGES, Virginian-Pilot (Metered Paywall - 2 articles a month)

A bill to require an independent investigation into the motives of the Virginia Beach shooter appears to have stalled. But top lawmakers could override that result by putting language in the state budget mandating the formation of a state commission to do the probe.


** CONGRESS
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** HOW THE DEBATE OVER THE ERA BECAME A FIGHT OVER ABORTION ([link removed])
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By ELEANOR MUELLER AND ALICE MIRANDA OLLSTEIN, Politico

Conservative activists waged a successful campaign against the Equal Rights Amendment decades ago by warning it would force women into combat, legalize gay marriage and erode gender roles. But in 2020, opponents are zeroing in on one line of attack: a claim that ERA would require taxpayer-funded abortions.


** GINSBURG: EQUAL RIGHTS AMENDMENT BACKERS SHOULD START OVER ([link removed])
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By JESSICA GRESKO, Associated Press

Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg said Monday that those like her who support an Equal Rights Amendment to the Constitution should start over in trying to get it passed rather than counting on breathing life into the failed attempt from the 1970s. “I would like to see a new beginning,” Ginsburg said during an event at Georgetown’s law school in Washington. “I’d like it to start over.”


** VIRGINIA OTHER
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** ‘WHY I DID IT:’ COUNTY RESIDENT CONFESSES TO TAKING SLAVE AUCTION BLOCK ([link removed])
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By LAURA LONGHINE, C'ville Weekly

Albemarle County resident Richard Allan, an amateur local historian and longtime environmental activist, has admitted to taking the bronze slave auction block marker from Court Square in the early morning hours of February 6. Charlottesville police would not confirm whether Allan was in custody.


** A STOLEN SLAVE AUCTION PLAQUE SHOOK CHARLOTTESVILLE. BUT THE CONFESSION WAS THE REAL SHOCK. ([link removed])
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By MICHAEL E. MILLER, Washington Post (Metered Paywall - 3 articles a month)

The humble sign in the sidewalk had often gone unnoticed, overshadowed by the giant Confederate statues towering over it in Charlottesville’s central Court Square. But Thursday, the small plaque marking a century of slave auctions suddenly went missing, stirring consternation and controversy in a city already struggling with its history.


** THERE'S A DARK CLOUD OVER PROJECT TO BRING SOLAR TO LOW-INCOME AREAS IN HAMPTON ROADS ([link removed])
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By PETER COUTU, Virginian-Pilot (Metered Paywall - 2 articles a month)

A program that has brought hundreds of solar panels to churches and businesses in low-income areas of Hampton Roads is about to hit a major roadblock: government regulation. The Norfolk Solar Fund has already installed solar panels to five churches and businesses in distressed communities in Norfolk and Chesapeake. The for-profit company installs these arrays at no upfront cost to property owners and makes its money by selling the power generated by the panels back to the consumers and through tax credits.


** LOCAL
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** ARLINGTON COUNTY SCHOOL LEADERS SIGN OFF ON DIVISIVE PLAN TO MOVE SCHOOLS ([link removed])
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By DEBBIE TRUONG, WAMU

Nearly 2,500 students in Arlington County will transfer schools after officials approved a contentious plan they say is needed to offset overcrowding in the fast-growing school system. The Arlington School Board voted 4-1 to shift students at three elementary schools to different campuses. School district leaders say the changes, which are expected to take effect in fall 2021, are needed to create space in the Rosslyn and Ballston neighborhoods.


** LOUDOUN COUNTY, CITY OF DANVILLE HOPE TO LEARN FROM ONE ANOTHER IN STATEWIDE EXCHANGE PROGRAM ([link removed])
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By NATHANIEL CLINE, Loudoun Times

Loudoun County officials are partnering with their counterparts in Danville as part of a new pilot exchange program. Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam (D) announced the new initiative in front of guests at the executive mansion Thursday. Originally a textile and furniture leader – and now placing an emphasis on 21st century workforce training – Northam said Danville’s economic history should be a great example for Loudoun and other northern Virginia counties.


** AS RESTON GROWS, AFFORDABLE HOUSING CHALLENGE GROWS ALONG WITH IT ([link removed])
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By FATIMAH WASEEM, Reston Now

Since early 2014, a little over 10,000 residential units were approved in Reston. Just under 15 percent are considered affordable. As the more residential development begins in Reston’s Transit Station Areas (TSAs) and Metro’s Silver Line ushers in more activity, nonprofit leaders and area community organizers wonder if Reston will hold true to founder Bob Simon’s vision for housing affordability.


** RICHMOND CITY COUNCIL KILLS $1.5B NAVY HILL DEAL ([link removed])
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By MARK ROBINSON, Richmond Times-Dispatch (Metered Paywall - 5 articles a month)

The $1.5 billion Navy Hill deal is dead. A majority of the Richmond City Council voted Monday night to strike the downtown redevelopment proposal from its docket, citing a lack of transparency, financial risk to the city and other issues. The decision torpedoed Mayor Levar Stoney’s signature project and dashed the hopes of the development group led by Dominion Energy CEO Thomas F. Farrell II.


** TENSIONS SURFACE AT FRANKLIN COUNTY SCHOOL BOARD MEETING ([link removed])
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By MIKE ALLEN, Roanoke Times (Metered Paywall - 18 articles a month)

The Franklin County School Board resolved the question of banning the Confederate flag in the student dress code last month with a 7 to 1 vote against a ban. The reverberations from that decision continued at Monday night’s board meeting as tensions flared.

Today's Sponsor:


** Yvonne Callahan
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In loving memory of Vince Callahan, and in commemoration of our marriage on "Crossover Day," February 15, 2006.


** EDITORIALS
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** WHY RALPH NORTHAM’S PROPOSAL TO RAISE THE GAS TAX IS A GOOD IDEA ([link removed])
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Washington Post Editorial (Metered Paywall - 3 articles a month)

When Virginia lawmakers enacted a major increase in the state’s subsidy for Metro two years ago, to match identical bumps from Maryland and the District, they did it mainly by raiding funding for other transportation projects in Northern Virginia. That move, engineered by Republicans who then controlled the state legislature, crystallized the state’s long-standing tradition of shortchanging vital infrastructure with stopgaps and financial legerdemain.


** ASSEMBLY SAYS GOOD-BYE TO LEE-JACKSON DAY ([link removed])
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Free Lance-Star Editorial (Metered Paywall - 10 articles a month)

Lee-Jackson Day, that awkward Virginia holiday that recognizes Confederate generals Robert E. Lee and Thomas J. “Stonewall” Jackson, will itself soon become history now that both General Assembly chambers have passed bills to do away with it. The number of state holidays will remain the same because the bills make Election Day a state holiday, which for some Virginians will make getting to the polls a little bit easier.


** ON CROSSOVER DAY, A CLEAR VIEW OF THE MESS ([link removed])
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Virginian-Pilot Editorial (Metered Paywall - 2 articles a month)

Today marks the middle point of Virginia’s legislative session — the process by which the commonwealth, with lofty goals always, collective eyes keenly focused on the future, attempts to do too much lawmaking in too short a time. That is not new. There have been deficiencies — obvious to all — in the way Virginia makes laws for a very long time.


** WITH THE VIRGINIA LOCAL GOVERNMENT EXCHANGE PROGRAM, WE CAN FIND UNITY ([link removed])
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Richmond Times-Dispatch Editorial (Metered Paywall - 5 articles a month)

The first half of the 2020 Virginia General Assembly session had its share of divisive moments. From rural counties considering secession, to cities seeking local control amid the bounds of Dillon’s Rule, legislative harmony can at times seem out of reach. The cultural and geographic diversity of the commonwealth should be an asset, not a liability. With the Virginia Local Government Exchange Program, we can find unity.


** OP-ED
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** HOROWITZ: A WEALTH OF EVIDENCE BACKS HIGH-COST LOAN REFORM ([link removed])
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By ALEX HOROWITZ, Published in Roanoke Times (Metered Paywall - 18 articles a month)

There’s a popular saying that it’s expensive to be poor. But the reasons for that at times aren’t grounded in the laws of economics, but in the laws enacted by our elected representatives. High-cost loans are a perfect example. How much does it cost to borrow $1,000 for a year for a person with a low credit score living paycheck to paycheck? It depends on what state they live in.

Horowitz is a senior research officer at The Pew Charitable Trusts.


** MILLER: VIRGINIA ON CUSP OF REDISTRICTING REFORM AT LAST ([link removed])
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By SHARRON KITCHEN MILLER, Published in Virginian-Pilot (Metered Paywall - 2 articles a month)

For more than a decade, I witnessed the dedication and determination of a true believer in redistricting reform, the late Sen. John Miller, present bills in the Virginia Senate addressing constituents' concerns regarding this issue. Between 2008 and 2016, Sen. Miller, often joined by both Democrats and Republicans, patroned or co-patroned 12 redistricting initiatives. Many cleared committees and were successfully passed on the Senate floor — only to be killed in the House of Delegates by unrecorded voice votes in pre-dawn subcommittee meetings.

Sharron Kitchen Miller, a native of Newport News, is a retired pediatric administrator, community leader and volunteer. She is the widow of Sen. John Miller


** CASEY: PAROLE REFORM — AN AMERICAN REDEMPTION STORY ([link removed])
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By TARA CASEY, Published in Richmond Times-Dispatch (Metered Paywall - 5 articles a month)

Redemption is a theme that Americans generally love. How many redemption tales have won Pulitzers and Oscars? How many newspaper stories have featured those who, after turning their lives around, seek to help others? We read these articles, we see these movies, we choose these books for our book clubs. We all marvel in awe at the resilience of the human spirit and its capacity for redemption.

Tara Casey is an associate clinical professor and director of the Carrico Center for Pro Bono and Public Service at the University of Richmond School of Law.


** BARKSDALE, KENNEDY AND SMITH: TO MEET VIRGINIANS’ HEALTH CARE NEEDS, TRAIN MORE NURSE PRACTITIONERS ([link removed])
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By DEBRA BARKSDALE, CHRISTINE KENNEDY AND SHELLY SMITH, Published in Richmond Times-Dispatch (Metered Paywall - 5 articles a month)

The Virginia General Assembly approved expansion of Medicaid last year, providing access to health care for 400,000 Virginians. The question is: Who will provide care to all of these citizens? The American Association of Medical Colleges estimates the nation will face a shortage of primary care physicians until 2032. One viable option for providing high-quality primary care is nurse practitioners.

Debra Barksdale, Ph.D., is a professor at Virginia Commonwealth University School of Nursing. Christine Kennedy, Ph.D., is a professor at University of Virginia School of Nursing. Shelly Smith, DNP, is director of VCU's Doctor of Nursing Practice program.
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