Bill banning handheld cellphone use while driving clears House, Senate

By ANDREW RINGLE, VCU Capital News Service

The state Senate voted Tuesday in favor of a bill that would prohibit holding a phone while driving a motor vehicle on Virginia roadways and which implements a penalty for the traffic violation. House Bill 874 will head to the desk of Gov. Ralph Northam, who has voiced support for prohibiting the use of handheld cellphones while driving.

House, Senate budgets reduce Northam's free community college plan

By MEL LEONOR, Richmond Times-Dispatch (Access to this article limited to subscribers)

A free community college program for low- and middle-income students sought by Gov. Ralph Northam faces cuts and changes under the budget plans advancing through the legislature. Northam in December proposed $145 million in spending over the next two years

House committee votes to stick with lower tax rates on casinos

Bristol Herald Courier (Metered Paywall - 15 articles a month)

A Virginia House committee on Tuesday reported out Senate legislation to allow casinos by referendum and voted to make it conform to the House version. The House General Laws Committee voted 12-6 to report out Senate Bill 36, which would allow five cities, including Bristol, to have a casino if approved by voters in public referenda.

State police pay plan passes House panel, conflicts with budget

By MICHAEL MARTZ, Richmond Times-Dispatch (Access to this article limited to subscribers)

Virginia State Police passed one hurdle in the House of Delegates on Tuesday for legislation that would deal with salary disparities through a new fund financed by vehicle registration fees. A House transportation subcommittee endorsed Senate Bill 972, proposed by Sen. John Edwards, D-Roanoke, by an 8-1 vote

Bill seeks to clarify workers’ rights for pregnant, lactating employees

By JULIA RAIMONDI, VCU Capital News Service

For employees who are pregnant or lactating, their workers’ rights are sometimes viewed as vague and can be difficult to discern for them and business owners alike. In Virginia, Sen. Jennifer McClellan, D-Richmond, hopes to clear things up once and for all. Her bill, SB712, is designed to expand upon the federal law that protects the rights of pregnant and lactating employees.

Virginia inches closer to requiring schools to provide feminine hygiene products

By KATE MASTERS, Virginia Mercury

Virginia has yet to eliminate sales tax on pads and tampons, which many advocates consider the Holy Grail of “menstrual equity.” But it’s inching closer with legislation that requires public schools to provide free menstrual supplies. Under an amended version of the bill, which cleared the House 60-39 on Feb. 4 and passed the Senate in a 39-1 vote on Monday, local school boards would be required to stock free pads or tampons in public school bathrooms for fifth through 12th graders.

Veterans Ask State Lawmakers To Expand Access To Medical Cannabis

By WHITTNEY EVANS, WCVE

Veterans lobbied at the state Capitol Tuesday for better access to medical cannabis. The group highlighted legislation this year that would legalize possession of medical cannabis for those who get a prescription and another bill that would create more dispensing facilities. Both have passed the full Senate. They say the drug helps manage pain from injuries and ease symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder.

General Assembly Passes Runion Bill, Tax Credit Program Left In Committee

By JESSICA WETZLER, Daily News Record (Metered Paywall - 5 articles a month)

The week after crossover day brought a new opportunity for bills to move forward, including one from Del. Chris Runion, R-Bridgewater, that would target sexual abuse education for those with disabilities.

Ranked-choice voting may be coming to local elections in Virginia

By GRAHAM MOOMAW, Virginia Mercury

If the Iowa caucuses taught us anything, said Del. Sally Hudson, it’s that sometimes it’s almost impossible to figure out which candidates have majority support from the people electing them. Hudson, D-Charlottesville, wants to bring some clarity on that front by giving local governments the option of having ranked-choice voting in elections for seats on city councils and county boards of supervisors. Legislation she sponsored to create a ranked-choice voting pilot program is advancing through the General Assembly, winning approval Tuesday in a Senate committee after passing the House of Delegates earlier this month.

Armed man protests at delegate’s house over proposed Virginia gun ban

By GREGORY S. SCHNEIDER, Washington Post (Metered Paywall - 3 articles a month)

Virginia's debate over gun control took a personal turn last weekend when a man armed with a semiautomatic long gun stood outside the Alexandria home of Del. Mark H. Levine in a manner the lawmaker said was intended "to coerce or threaten" him to drop support for an assault weapons ban he had sponsored.

Bloomberg, Sanders lead in Virginia with Biden close behind, poll shows

By JUSTIN MATTINGLY, Richmond Times-Dispatch (Access to this article limited to subscribers)

Former New York City Mayor Mike Bloomberg and Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders lead the Democratic field in Virginia two weeks ahead of Super Tuesday, a new poll shows. The Monmouth University poll, the first focused on Virginia released this year

Tulsi Gabbard campaigns in Richmond

By JUSTIN MATTINGLY, Richmond Times-Dispatch (Access to this article limited to subscribers)

Facing an uphill battle to the Democratic nomination for president, Hawaii Rep. Tulsi Gabbard came to Richmond on Tuesday, hoping to spark her campaign in a state with the fourth-most Super Tuesday delegates.

Amazon is ramping up its HQ2 employment

By JONATHAN CAPRIEL, Washington Business Journal (Subscription required for some articles)

Less than two months into the new year and Amazon.com Inc. says it has more than 600 employees at its second headquarters — a fairly significant staffing jump considering there were some 400 employees there as of late December. Those employees are currently occupying roughly 300,000 square feet in Crystal City,

Microsoft Files for Wetlands Permits for Leesburg Campus

Loudoun Now

As part of its plans to construct a data center campus on the Compass Creek property just south of Leesburg, Microsoft Corp. has filed for state and federal permits to address the loss of 3 acres of wetlands and 4,527 feet of stream.

Norfolk Southern to cut operations in Roanoke

By JEFF STURGEON, Roanoke Times (Metered Paywall - 18 articles a month)

Norfolk Southern will close its historic locomotive shop on Campbell Avenue in Roanoke this spring and relocate the work and interested workers to Pennsylvania, according to a company announcement Tuesday.

Hitch in transition to new company providing disabled transportation in Hampton Roads

By NIA TARIQ, Daily Press (Metered Paywall - 1 article a month)

Sheran Manning uses paratransit to get to work every day. The federally-mandated service allows her to use public transportation that accommodates her disability. She is supposed to be dropped off early in the morning on Joint Expeditionary Base Little Creek, near D Street in Virginia Beach, but multiple times last week she was taken to D Street in Norfolk.

Saines Pushes to Rename ‘Negro Hill’

By RENSS GREENE, Loudoun Now

Supervisor Koran T. Saines (D-Sterling) is pushing to rename a spot near Claude Moore Park long known as “Negro Hill,” to instead honor one of the area’s most prominent black farm families.

Richmond's George Mason Elementary will be renamed for Henry Marsh, city's first black mayor

By SAMUEL NORTHROP, Richmond Times-Dispatch (Access to this article limited to subscribers)

The Richmond School Board on Tuesday night picked new names for three schools, including renaming George Mason Elementary for the city's first African American mayor.

Despite state law, Va. Beach has not paid interest on thousands of business tax refunds

By PETER COUTU, Virginian-Pilot (Metered Paywall - 2 articles a month)

For two decades, Virginia Beach has been withholding tens of thousands of dollars a year owed to local businesses because of a possible misreading of a state law requiring localities to pay interest on certain tax refunds. The problem could add up to hundreds of thousands of dollars for businesses operating in Virginia Beach since the law was passed in 1999,

Council appoints seven to Police CRB

By NOLAN STOUT, Daily Progress (Metered Paywall - 25 articles a month)

Eighteen months after Charlottesville kicked off the process to establish a Police Civilian Review Board, the City Council has appointed seven members to the panel. City Council unanimously voted to appoint Gwendolyn Allen, Nancy Carpenter, Stuart Evans, Dierdre Gilmore, Dorenda Johnson, William Mendez Jr. and James Watson to the board at its meeting on Tuesday. The council received 25 applications for the board, which is geared toward improving public trust in the police department after the violence of 2017.

Militia group seeks Franklin County's blessing

By MIKE ALLEN, Roanoke Times (Metered Paywall - 18 articles a month)

Franklin County residents unhappy with gun control laws winding their way through Virginia’s General Assembly intend to form a militia. On Tuesday, the group’s organizers requested recognition from the county board of supervisors. The formation of a Franklin County militia falls in line with similar efforts underway in Amherst, Bedford, Campbell and Floyd counties.

'Red flag' laws must be handled with care

Winchester Star Editorial (Metered Paywall - 5 articles a month)

So-called “red flag” laws have been suggested by some as at least a partial answer to keeping firearms away from those who might use them to harm themselves or others. Democratic majorities in the Virginia Senate and the House of Delegates have both passed legislation during the current General Assembly session to enact a red flag law in Virginia, and Gov. Ralph Northam is expected to sign the proposal once its finalized.

A half billion dollars That's how much the legislature is passing up for schools

Roanoke Times Editorial (Metered Paywall - 18 articles a month)

The General Assembly could raise a half billion dollars for school construction in the closest thing to free money that the state will ever see. Instead, it’s poised to pass up all that revenue at the behest of out-of-state corporations who instead are ready to lower the median household income of some localities that are already among the state’s poorest. That’s an uncharitable but otherwise quite accurate view of what’s currently happening in Richmond

Protecting HRBT seabirds

Virginian-Pilot Editorial (Metered Paywall - 2 articles a month)

Environmentalists were naturally appalled when the Virginia Department of Transportation recently and needlessly displaced an estimated 25,000 migratory waterfowl which make their home on the south island of the Hampton Roads Bridge-Tunnel. Now, Gov. Ralph Northam and several state agencies have responded with a plan to provide a new habitat for the birds

Virginia's tech talent pipeline can't flow without high-quality teachers

Richmond Times-Dispatch Editorial (Access to this article limited to subscribers)

When Amazon chose Virginia for its second headquarters, a critical piece of the commonwealth’s pitch was the creation of a talent pipeline. Over the next five years, Virginia is expected to add 150,000 jobs in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) fields. To fill these high-demand positions, great attention is being given to the Tech Talent Investment Program

Virginia is on the verge of major gun-policy reform

Washington Post Editorial (Metered Paywall - 3 articles a month)

The defeat by Virginia lawmakers of a bill that would have banned the sale of assault-style weapons is disappointing. But the setback cannot obscure the significant, indeed historic, gun-control reform on its way to becoming law in Virginia. The changes will make the commonwealth safer.

Hincker: State shows vision for passenger rail; where's Norfolk Southern?

By LARRY HINCKER, published in Roanoke Times (Metered Paywall - 18 articles a month)

Virginia and Gov. Ralph Northam are getting kudos after the recent blockbuster announcement to invest $3.7 billion expanding rail service along the busy I-95 corridor from Richmond to Washington DC. Scattered throughout the deal are more tidbits to improve the state’s ability to expand passenger rail service…and bolster private rails’ freight capacity.

Larry Hincker is a retired public relations executive and lives in Blacksburg. He assists the NRV Passenger Rail initiative.

Northup and Pelletier: New federal rules will harm Virginia patients awaiting liver transplants

By PATRICK NORTHUP AND SHAWN PELLETIER, published in Richmond Times-Dispatch (Access to this article limited to subscribers)

Seriously ill Virginia residents in need of lifesaving liver transplants face longer wait times and a greater chance of dying under ill-considered regulations implemented Feb. 4 by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS). A new policy developed by the United Network for Organ Sharing (UNOS) — a federal contractor ironically headquartered in Richmond -