VaNews Aug. 15, 2019
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** EXECUTIVE BRANCH
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** AG: COMPANY SHUT DOWN AFTER CLAIMING TO BE MILITARY CHARITY ([link removed])
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Associated Press

Virginia Attorney General Mark Herring says a company has been shut down after it claimed it to be a charity that sent care packages to U.S. service members overseas. Herring’s office said in a statement Wednesday that the company was Hearts 2 Heroes based out of Bunker Hill, West Virginia. It did business as Active Duty Support Services and sold care packages door-to-door.


** GENERAL ASSEMBLY
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** AFTER WINNING VIRGINIA GERRYMANDERING CASE, LAW FIRM RE-UPS REQUEST FOR $4.5M IN FEES ([link removed])
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By GRAHAM MOOMAW, Richmond Times-Dispatch (Metered Paywall - 5 articles a month)

The Democratic-aligned law firm that successfully challenged parts of Virginia’s 2011 redistricting plan is asking a federal court to award its side more than $4.5 million in attorneys’ fees and litigation costs. The Perkins Coie team led by high-profile attorney Marc Elias filed the request earlier this month after the U.S. Supreme Court settled the racial gerrymandering case in mid-June.


** STATE ELECTIONS
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** NATIONAL LGBTQ RIGHTS GROUP MAKES BIG PLAY IN VIRGINIA LEGISLATIVE RACES ([link removed])
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By LAURA VOZZELLA, Washington Post (Metered Paywall - 3 articles a month)

The Human Rights Campaign is making a “six-figure” investment in 27 Virginia House and Senate races, an unprecedented commitment to state-level contests for the national LGBTQ rights group. With digital ads, direct mail and paid field organizers, HRC aims to mobilize 1.2 million “equality voters” for the pivotal election in November


** FEDERAL ELECTIONS
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** DEMOCRATS ADD 5TH DISTRICT TO 'OFFENSIVE BATTLEGROUND' LIST ([link removed])
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By STAFF REPORT, Daily Progress (Metered Paywall - 5 articles a month)

The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee has added Virginia’s 5th District to its list of targets in 2020. The committee announced the district’s addition on Thursday. The “offensive battleground” list is 39 U.S. House districts that Democrats think can be flipped from Republican control. The 5th District seat, held by Rep. Denver Riggleman, R-Nelson, is the only one in Virginia.


** STATE GOVERNMENT
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** VIRGINIA APPEALS FEDERAL COURT ORDER MANDATING BETTER HEALTH CARE ([link removed])
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By NED OLIVER, Virginia Mercury

Inmates at Fluvanna Correctional Center for Women weren’t particularly surprised when Margie Ryder died last month. Sad, yes. But sick inmates at Fluvanna die with frequency. In 2016, a judge approved a settlement of a lawsuit brought by inmates alleging medical care at the facility was so poor it violated inmates’ constitutional rights. The Department of Corrections promised to make improvements while denying any wrongdoing.


** VIRGINIA PENSION DISCLOSES $1.8 BILLION IN PRIVATE-MARKETS INVESTMENTS ([link removed])
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By CHRIS CUMMING, Wall Street Journal (Subscription Required)

The Virginia Retirement System had a busy quarter investing in private equity, making about $1.84 billion in new commitments to eight private-markets managers over roughly the past three months.


** CONGRESS
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** WITTMAN SHIFTS STANCE ON BACKGROUND CHECKS ([link removed])
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By DANIEL BERTI, Prince William Times

After a weekend of gun violence during which 31 people were killed in mass shootings, Rep. Rob Wittman says he now supports strengthening gun background checks, an apparent shift for the congressman who has an A+ rating from the National Rifle Association. “I support strengthening our National Instant Criminal Background Check System. We must have a constructive conversation about how to put a stop to these mass shootings while protecting the rights of law-abiding citizens,” Wittman, R-1st, said in an email.


** AT COUNTY JAIL, SPANBERGER MEETS WITH RECOVERING ADDICTS ([link removed])
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By RICH GISET, Chesterfield Observer

Jodi Gayan’s addiction to heroin began without her knowledge. Kicked out of her home at age 13, Gayan was befriended by a man who began covertly putting heroin in her meals and drinks. After becoming hooked, Gayan was sold into sex trafficking and held captive for four years before escaping. As a member of Chesterfield County Jail’s Helping Addicts Recover Permanently program, Gayan’s story was one of many shared with U.S. Rep. Abigail Spanberger on a visit last Thursday.


** VIRGINIA OTHER
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** AMHERST COUNCIL APPROVES LEASE TO ATLANTIC COAST PIPELINE FOR STORAGE YARD, STAGING HUB ([link removed])
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By JUSTIN FAULCONER, News & Advance (Metered Paywall - 10 articles a month)

The controversial Atlantic Coast Pipeline project is set to have a temporary home in Amherst for a storage yard and gathering spot for pipeline workers through a land lease arrangement Amherst Town Council approved Wednesday.


** WELCOME TO THE GREENBRIER, THE GOVERNOR-OWNED LUXURY RESORT FILLED WITH CONFLICTS OF INTEREST ([link removed])
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By KEN WARD JR., Charleston Gazette-Mail

On a sunny Monday afternoon two and a half years ago, Jim Justice, the wealthiest man in West Virginia, took the oath of office as the state’s 36th governor. Standing at the base of the Capitol steps in Charleston, he assured his fellow West Virginians that his vast business empire of coal mines, vacation resorts and agricultural companies — many of them regulated by the state agencies he would soon control — posed no conflicts with his new job.


** LOCAL
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** RICHMOND CITY COUNCIL REJECTS ADVISORY REFERENDUM ON PUBLIC FINANCING OF DOWNTOWN ARENA ([link removed])
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By MARK ROBINSON, Richmond Times-Dispatch (Metered Paywall - 5 articles a month)

Richmond voters won’t have a chance to vote on whether tax dollars should pay for a new downtown arena when they cast ballots in November. The Richmond City Council rejected a proposal to hold a nonbinding referendum in November on using public funds to pay for the centerpiece of the $1.5 billion Coliseum redevelopment project. A 3-5 vote, with one abstention, at a special meeting Wednesday night nixed the prospect.


** COUNCILORS ASK FOR FORENSIC AUDIT OF HOPEWELL GOVERNMENT ([link removed])
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By BILL ATKINSON, Progress Index (Metered paywall - 5 free articles a month)

A sharply divided City Council wants a forensic audit of city government to determine why it has taken so long for Hopewell to reconcile its fiscal picture. Despite warnings from City Manager John M. Altman Jr. about the cost, interruption of routine business and inference of criminal activity associated with such an audit, council voted 4-3 to direct him to look into the logistics of conducting a forensic audit of either the city as a whole or by individual departments.


** CHESAPEAKE COUNCIL VOTES AGAINST CHANGING ELECTIONS TO NOVEMBER, BUT PUBLIC OPINION IS MIXED ([link removed])
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By ALYSSA MEYERS, Virginian-Pilot (Metered Paywall - 3 articles a month)

The City Council voted against changing the date of local elections from May to November after a contentious discussion that brought more than 30 speakers to Tuesday’s meeting. The idea, first proposed by Councilman Robert Ike last August and again this year by Councilwoman Ella Ward, would have moved local elections for mayor, the City Council and the School Board to November starting in 2020, overlapping with national races.


** AFTER CRITICISM, PORTSMOUTH STARTS AIRING PUBLIC SPEAKERS AGAIN ([link removed])
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By ANA LEY, Virginian-Pilot (Metered Paywall - 3 articles a month)

Portsmouth has resumed broadcasting all public speakers at City Council meetings, reversing an unpopular decision made in response to intense criticism over the ouster of former Police Chief Tonya Chapman. Councilman Shannon Glover proposed the switch last month, asking council members to consider it at Tuesday night’s regular council meeting. The vote was unanimous.


** SPOTSYLVANIA OFFICIALS BICKERING AFTER THEFT OF TURF FIELD PAYMENT ([link removed])
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By SCOTT SHENK, Free Lance-Star (Metered Paywall - 10 articles a month)

On the heels of a scam that bilked Spotylvania County out of more than $600,000, a tit-for-tat between the Board of Supervisors and the School Board continues to fester. Members of the two boards lobbed accusations at each other at their separate meetings this week, claiming political games were being played after news broke about the theft of a partial payment for a new synthetic turf football field and a pair of fraud cases involving other county funds.


** GROUP REQUESTS MORATORIUM ON CULPEPER SOLAR COMPLEXES ([link removed])
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By CLINT SCHEMMER, Culpeper Star Exponent (Metered Paywall - 10 articles a month)

Citizens for Responsible Solar, a group of Culpeper residents, asked the Planning Commission and Board of Supervisors this week to pause the county’s consideration of Cricket Solar LLC’s proposal to build a utility-scale solar plant near the Rapidan River. On Tuesday, Citizens for Responsible Solar delivered a letter to members of the two boards formally requesting more time for officials and the public to review the third site plan Cricket has proposed


** 36,000 MAILERS WILL HELP INFORM RESIDENTS OF COURTHOUSE VOTE ([link removed])
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By JOE TENNIS, Bristol Herald Courier (Metered Paywall - 10 articles a month)

Watch your post office box: 36,000 mailers will soon be heading to the voters of Washington County, Virginia, as part of the county’s contract with a marketing and public relations firm called The Corporate Image. The mailers are part of the county’s $57,000 deal with the firm to inform the voting public about the crowded conditions of the 150-year-old Washington County Courthouse and the possible relocation of circuit court to a vacant Kmart near I-81’s Exit 17.


** EDITORIALS
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** UVA SMART TO UPGRADE RULES ON ADMISSIONS ([link removed])
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Daily Progress Editorial (Metered Paywall - 5 articles a month)

It’s not surprising that a University of Virginia review found a handful of instances where the prospect of a gift appeared to have influenced the recruitment of student-athletes. Pressure to attract top players is intense at every college. And the line between acceptable and questionable behavior can be vague. But at UVa, that’s the worst of it. No actual gifts or monies changed hands, the review found.


** CRUMBLING BRIDGES STILL CAUSE FOR ALARM IN VA. ([link removed])
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Virginian-Pilot Editorial (Metered Paywall - 3 articles a month)

A recent report that says nearly 650 bridges in Virginia are structurally deficient should be yet another call for action to improve vital infrastructure in the commonwealth. The report from the American Road Transportation Builders Associations shows that Virginia has made some progress in recent years. Five years ago, in 2014, 2,033 bridges were rated structurally deficient. The latest figure is 646.


** OP-ED
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** SAMIRAH: VIRGINIA CAN’T NEGOTIATE WITH RACISTS ([link removed])
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By IBRAHEEM SAMIRAH, Published in the Roanoke Times (Metered Paywall - 10 articles a month)

Two years ago this week, three Americans died at a white supremacist demonstration here in Virginia. In his response to the tragedy, President Donald Trump famously blamed “both sides” for the violence, equating anti-racist protesters with neo-nazis. Now, two years later, the Roanoke Times has borrowed that same rhetoric to push back against my call for direct action in the face of racist dehumanization (“Samirah is wrong. Civility does matter,” Aug. 9 editorial).

Samirah represents parts of Fairfax and Loudoun counties in the House of Delegates. He is a Democrat.
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