Casino Watch:
As many of you are aware, one of the most controversial bills this year is SB982, which would authorize a referendum for a casino in Tysons, the northeasternmost part of my district. Since I was elected, I have maintained a firm opposition to this proposal for a number of reasons.
First, unlike previous casino authorization bills passed by the General Assembly, this proposal was not initiated by Fairfax County. In fact, in a recent letter, the Chair of the Board of Supervisors confirmed that the county has not sought this authority and is unlikely to do so due to significant community opposition.
Second, this bill differs from past legislation by specifying a predetermined site and developer, bypassing local land-use control and eliminating a competitive bidding process. This approach sets a concerning precedent, as it allows a single developer to advance a project with minimal local support, primarily through significant campaign contributions and lobbying efforts.
Finally, as the State Senator representing the proposed casino site, I cannot overstate the overwhelming opposition from my constituents. Over the past two weeks, my office has received approximately 1,300 emails and calls on this issue—less than 0.008% of which were in support. Independent polling reflects similar opposition, with a strong majority of Fairfax County residents against the project, including around 80% of Tysons-area residents. This is not a vocal minority; it is a clear majority expressing concern.
Unfortunately, this year, the bill has progressed further than it has before and will be on the Senate floor for a full vote, most likely on Monday. I will continue to oppose this legislation and keep you all updated on its status.
Trump Watch:
My office spent the week monitoring developments from the Trump Administration's OMB memo temporarily ceasing all federal grants. A large chunk of our state's budget and spending comes from these grants, and if the memo went through, it would have had catastrophic effects. On Tuesday, shortly before the memo was set to go into effect, Medicaid portals went down in all 50 states, and funds from other grants started to be turned off. After immense public backlash and confusion, the Trump administration tried a sloppy attempt to rein in some of the effects of the memo, and thankfully, a court fully stopped the full memo from going into effect. However, this is not over. We are worried that a narrower, but still devastating, version of this memo may be issued over the coming weeks. We are continuing to monitor the situation and look at ways we might be able to replace some of that funding if a new memo comes to pass.
Additionally, we are monitoring the effect of Trump's executive order on the federal workers in our region. Recently, an email went out to most federal workers offering them a "deferred resignation". The AFGE has issued the following guidance on the program if you are a federal worker: https://www.afge.org/globalassets/documents/generalreports/2025/deferred-resignation-faqs-1-30-25.pdf.
Finally, with concerning reports from around Northern Virginia and the rest of the country of the Trump Administration's we wanted to remind everyone of their constitutional rights if they are stopped by ICE.
