VaNews
November 13, 2020

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Top of the News


** Virginia's reelected congressional Republicans back Trump's refusal to concede to Biden ([link removed])
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By AMY FRIEDENBERGER, Roanoke Times (Metered Paywall - 5 articles a month)

President Donald Trump is continuing to defy defeat and push unfounded allegations of election fraud, and most of Virginia’s Republican congressmen are reluctant to criticize the president and are sticking to the message that the election is not over. “We have people on both sides who are getting all worked up,” Rep. Morgan Griffith, R-Salem, said in an interview on Thursday. “Democrats think we shouldn’t be asking questions, and Republicans think that all the questions should be answered in their favor. We need to sort it out and do it right. The Republicans have been through this before, but you have to go through the process and it takes time.”
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** Freitas acknowledges outcome won't change in 7th District, without formally conceding ([link removed])
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By MICHAEL MARTZ, Richmond Times-Dispatch (Metered Paywall - 7 articles a month)

Del. Nick Freitas, R-Culpeper, is acknowledging his unsuccessful bid to oust Rep. Abigail Spanberger, D-7th, from the congressional seat she flipped for Democrats two years ago. Freitas hasn’t formally conceded the election or called Spanberger, after trailing the congresswoman by 8,270 votes in results certified by the 10 localities in the district.
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** Election night parties: Manassas Democrats call GOP event irresponsible ([link removed])
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By JARED FORETEK, Inside NOVA (Metered Paywall)

At this week's Manassas City Council meeting, City Manager Patrick Pate gave a sober update on the new surge in COVID-19 cases across Northern Virginia. “It is unfortunately, going in the wrong direction,” Pate said, as he encouraged residents to wear masks, practice social distancing, and avoid gathering in large groups. “Those kinds of things are what [experts] encourage everyone to do.” But less than a week before Pate’s message to the council, which did not differ much from what he’s told the governing body before, two very different kinds of election-night parties were held, and Democrats and Republicans are pointing fingers at each other over how they were handled.
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** Virginia education leaders: COVID-19 has made school staffing shortages worse ([link removed])
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By KATE MASTERS, Virginia Mercury

Virginia’s school staff shortage is getting worse during the COVID-19 pandemic, and leaders with the state Department of Education urged lawmakers to keep that in mind as they prepare for their upcoming General Assembly session. “We’ve had a teacher shortage all along, but over the past few years, even before the pandemic, we’ve seen growing shortages with special education, with bus drivers, and we’re starting to see that with support staff,” said state Superintendent James Lane, speaking to legislators Thursday morning during a briefing with the House and Senate education committees.
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** Wary Northern Virginia superintendents eye reopening, but note rising virus cases ([link removed])
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By HANNAH NATANSON, Washington Post (Metered Paywall - 3 articles a month)

Northern Virginia school officials are moving ahead with reopening plans — finalizing schedules for hybrid learning, tweaking desk spacing and plotting new bus routes — even as they point to rising coronavirus cases and warn that things may change. In virtual meetings this week, superintendents in Loudoun County, Fairfax County and Alexandria City walked a fine line between optimism and caution.
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** Judge orders tree-sitters down after more than 2 years ([link removed])
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By LAURENCE HAMMACK, Roanoke Times (Metered Paywall - 5 articles a month)

After spending two years, two months and seven days in the trees — where they have maintained an aerial blockade of the Mountain Valley Pipeline — protesters were told Thursday that they have four more days. A temporary injunction issued by Montgomery County Circuit Judge Robert Turk ordered the three unidentified tree-sitters and 10 of their supporters to be gone by Monday.
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** Militias challenge gun laws in Virginia: "It's about shooting tyrants in the face" ([link removed])
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By GRACE BAEK, CBS News

On a cold winter morning last February, a woman named Samantha assembled her AR-15 semi-automatic rifle in the parking area next to Timbrook Public Library in Campbell County, Virginia. Her husband, Chad, had his AR-15 in hand and commented, "I would trust going into a gun fight right next to my wife. I've seen her shoot." Samantha was one of a handful of women attending the call for volunteers to join a group calling itself the Campbell County Militia. Along with Chad and Samantha (who asked to have their last name withheld), over 200 people were at the event, most of them carrying arms.
The Full Report
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** FROM VPAP
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** VPAP Visual Voter Turnout by Precinct ([link removed])
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The Virginia Public Access Project

This interactive map shows voter turnout in each of Virginia's 2,500 precincts. VPAP stitched together this data from two separate files from the Department of Elections. One file listed the precinct results for the 1.6 million people who voted on Election Day. The second listed the nearly 2.8 million people who voted early and included the precinct where they reside.
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** From VPAP Meet the 2020 VPAP Pundit ([link removed])
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By ALI MISLOWSKY, The Virginia Public Access Project

Jack Wright predicts the future every day. As a data analyst for Chesterfield County Fire Department, he studies trends to determine, say, how to improve 911 response times. In his past attempts at VPAP’s Pundit Contest, Jack took the same statistical approach he brings to his job. But he got burnt. “Before, I can remember creating Excel spreadsheets trying to figure out different predictions,” said Jack, 24. “This time, it was really … trying to figure out in my head how I thought things would play out.”
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** From VPAP Maps, Timeline of COVID-19 in Virginia ([link removed])
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The Virginia Public Access Project

Our COVID-19 dashboard makes it easy to track the latest available data for tests performed, infections, deaths and hospital capacity. There's a filter for each city and county, plus an exclusive per-capita ZIP Code map. Updated each morning around 10:30 a.m.


** STATE ELECTIONS
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** GOP hopeful will try again to get Virginia to split its 13 Electoral College votes ([link removed])
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By BILL ATKINSON, Progress Index (Metered paywall - 10 articles a month)

State Sen. Amanda F. Chase said Wednesday she plans to reintroduce legislation that would split Virginia's electoral-college votes based upon the popular vote in each of the state's 11 congressional districts. In a Facebook post touting a "big announcement," the Chesterfield Republican and GOP hopeful for governor in 2021 said she also plans to sponsor a bill that would create an electoral-college system for all statewide office elections. The distribution would also be based on one vote per congressional district.
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** Danica Roem seeks third term in Va. House ([link removed])
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By PARKER PURIFOY, Washington Blade

Virginia state Del. Danica Roem (D-Manassas) launched her 2021 re-election campaign Tuesday, promising to continue the work she’s started. Roem said she has pushed for LGBTQ equality, helped pass Medicaid expansion in Virginia, and led efforts to provide school meals for thousands of kids across the state since she took office. She said she is running for her third term in order to continue pushing for progressive change in her state.


** FEDERAL ELECTIONS
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** Many Va., Md. Republicans adopt Trump script ([link removed])
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By MEAGAN FLYNN, Washington Post (Metered Paywall - 3 articles a month)

“Why do people think I have to concede? I WILL NOT CONCEDE,” wrote Manga Anantatmula, the Virginia Republican who lost to Rep. Gerald E. Connolly (D) last week by 43 points and nearly 170,000 votes. “Please donate what you can to help me in my battle against potential fraud!” wrote Leon Benjamin, who lost to Rep. A. Donald McEachin (D-Va.) by more than 22 points and 89,000 votes, according to unofficial returns.
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** Virginia Republicans At Odds Over False Voter Fraud Claims ([link removed])
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By BEN PAVIOUR, WCVE-FM

The fundraising email sent by Republican Party of Virginia on Tuesday was dire: party chair Rich Anderson warned that the presidential election was “under attack by the corrupt Democrats,” who were out to “steal this election.” It followed a Tweet last week from Anderson saying it was “time to figuratively burn down” the Virginia Board of Elections and Department of Elections. That rhetoric came as a surprise to John O’Bannon, who serves as the lone Republican on the three-person Board and whom Anderson described as a “buddy” from their days serving in the House of Delegates.


** STATE GOVERNMENT
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** 25 companies apply to offer sports betting in Virginia; up to 12 licenses will be awarded ([link removed])
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By MICHAEL PHILLIPS, Richmond Times-Dispatch (Access to this article limited to subscribers)

Virginians will have no shortage of options when mobile betting on sports goes live early next year. Under rules approved by the General Assembly this year, the Virginia Lottery can award up to 12 permits to companies who wish to enter the market. During the initial application period, which ended on Oct. 31, there were 25 companies that applied. The lottery will now sort through those applications and choose the companies who will be licensed.
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** Virginia got 25 applications for sports betting permits, but officials won’t say who applied ([link removed])
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By GRAHAM MOOMAW, Virginia Mercury

Virginia received more than two dozen applications for mobile sports betting permits from companies interested in a piece of the state’s growing gambling market. But the Virginia Lottery is refusing to name the companies that applied, citing a public-records exemption the agency claims allows it to withhold information related to “investigations” of applicants or licensees.
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** State revenues drop 2.7% in October, but better than expected ([link removed])
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By MICHAEL MARTZ, Richmond Times-Dispatch (Metered Paywall - 7 articles a month)

An expected decline in state revenues last month, compared with the same month a year ago, wasn’t as bad as Virginia officials had feared. Revenues in October were down $44.5 million, or 2.7%, in October compared with October 2019, but that was because of one fewer payroll deposit day this year for income taxes withheld from paychecks — the single biggest source of money for the general fund budget that supports core state government services.
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** Melissa Friedman appointed to serve as Roanoke juvenile court judge ([link removed])
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By NEIL HARVEY, Roanoke Times (Metered Paywall - 5 articles a month)

Attorney Melissa Friedman, a longtime fixture of Roanoke’s legal community, has been appointed to a judgeship in juvenile and domestic relations court. Friedman will serve within the 23rd Judicial Circuit, which covers Roanoke, Roanoke County and Salem, and will fill the vacancy that was created when Judge Onzlee Ware was elevated to sit in circuit court earlier this year.


** CONGRESS
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** With virus spiking and economy in peril, push for vaccine, stimulus package intensifies ([link removed])
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By MICHAEL MARTZ, Richmond Times-Dispatch (Metered Paywall - 7 articles a month)

Virginia could receive the first doses of a COVID-19 vaccine by the end of the year, but some business and political leaders warn that the current Congress must pass an emergency relief package to help the state weather a long-feared winter spike in the pandemic until a vaccine is generally available sometime next year. Rep. Abigail Spanberger, D-7th, re-elected last week to a second term representing a district anchored in Henrico and Chesterfield counties, urged President Donald Trump and congressional leaders on Thursday to move swiftly to provide additional resources for responding to the pandemic and aid to struggling families and businesses.
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** Fort Lee's new name will come after extended community vetting, Kaine says ([link removed])
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By BILL ATKINSON, Progress Index (Metered paywall - 10 articles a month)

A new name for Fort Lee is still a long way from becoming reality, but the interim period between now and then presents a "wonderful opportunity" for the Tri-City area to work together on a name that stands for all rather than just some, according to Virginia Sen. Tim Kaine Kaine said in a Zoom conference with reporters Tuesday that the newest defense spending bill — to which both the House of Representatives and Senate have attached renaming requirements — is being conferenced by both chambers to work out language differences.


** ECONOMY/BUSINESS
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** Weekly unemployment claims across Virginia continued to drop ([link removed])
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By KIMBERLY PIERCEALL, Virginian-Pilot (Metered Paywall - 2 articles a month)

Both the number of first-time unemployment claims and continued claims dropped again during the week ending Nov. 7, according to the latest data from the Virginia Employment Commission. The number of first-time claims filed last week fell for the fourth week in a row, to 9,909. The number of claims continuing to be filed week after week also dropped, for the 12th week in a row, to 91,960.
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** Washington County, Va., manufacturer to expand, hire 113 new workers ([link removed])
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By DAVID MCGEE, Bristol Herald Courier (Metered Paywall - 15 articles a month)

A Washington County manufacturer of guardrail and highway safety products is expanding and plans to hire about 100 additional employees. SPIG Industry LLC on Thursday announced a $7.9 million expansion of its facility in the Bristol-Washington County Industrial Park off Lee Highway between Bristol and Abingdon. The company expects to hire 113 new employees over the next two years.
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** SWVA guardrail manufacturer announces $7.9M expansion ([link removed])
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By SYDNEY LAKE, Va Business Magazine

Nine months of hard work has paid off. Since February, InvestSWVA has been working with highway guardrail manufacturer SPIG Industry LLC on its expansion plans, and on Thursday Gov. Ralph Northam announced the Washington County-based company’s plans to invest $7.9 million to expand its operations in the Bristol-Washington Industrial Park, creating 113 jobs.
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** State Farm, DMV vacating locations on Pantops ([link removed])
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By ALLISON WRABEL, Daily Progress (Metered Paywall - 25 articles a month)

State Farm, one of the largest employers in the area, is leaving its operation center in Albemarle County. According to a statement from the company, employees will no longer physically report to 12 State Farm operation centers across the country, including the approximately 800 workers at its Pantops location.
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** Chesterfield drug company ordered to pay $600M in penalties over marketing of its opioid-addiction treatment ([link removed])
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By JOHN REID BLACKWELL, Richmond Times-Dispatch (Metered Paywall - 7 articles a month)

A Chesterfield County-based pharmaceutical firm has been sentenced to pay $289 million in criminal penalties in connection with a previous guilty plea surrounding the company’s marketing of the opioid-addiction-treatment drug Suboxone. U.S. District Judge James P. Jones of the Western District of Virginia in Abingdon entered the sentence against Indivior Solutions, a subsidiary of Indivior plc, the U.S. Department of Justice announced Thursday.


** CORONAVIRUS
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** Virginia COVID-19 cases rise by 1,521 from Wednesday ([link removed])
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By STAFF REPORT, Richmond Times-Dispatch (Metered Paywall - 7 articles a month)

The Virginia Department of Health reported Thursday that the statewide total for COVID-19 cases is 198,027 — an increase of 1,521 from the 196,506 reported Wednesday. The 198,027 cases consist of 180,623 confirmed cases and 17,404 probable cases. There are 3,758 COVID-19 deaths in Virginia — 3,490 confirmed and 268 probable. That’s an increase of 17 from the 3,741 reported Wednesday.
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** When vaccine is available, regional cooperation will be crucial, officials say ([link removed])
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By LOLA FADULU, Washington Post (Metered Paywall - 3 articles a month)

Regional coordination will be paramount for the successful distribution of an eventual coronavirus vaccine, a D.C. health official told the Metropolitan Washington Council of Governments on Thursday, and overcoming mistrust among communities of color will be essential. “Individuals get care across the borders, we have a lot of workers that move across the borders, especially amongst the federal government,” said Patrick Ashley, the senior deputy director of emergency preparedness and response at the D.C. Department of Health.
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** 170 pediatric ICU staff reporting to work despite COVID exposure ([link removed])
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By BRYAN MCKENZIE, Daily Progress (Metered Paywall - 25 articles a month)

An estimated 170 medical personnel in the University of Virginia Medical Center’s pediatric intensive care unit were exposed to a COVID-19 positive patient last weekend, but caregivers are continuing to work pending their own tests to avoid shutting down the unit. Hospital officials said they implemented ‘critical staffing protocols’ that increase testing frequency for the staff, require additional personal protective gear and additional screening to keep the children’s ICU open.
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** Richmond reports 25 coronavirus infections among city employees ([link removed])
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By C. SUAREZ ROJAS, Richmond Times-Dispatch (Metered Paywall - 7 articles a month)

Richmond and local health officials implored the public to remain vigilant Thursday after 25 city employees tested positive for COVID-19 amid an outbreak at the city’s election office. Anticipating that the number of positive cases among city employees could rise, Mayor Levar Stoney said an additional 57 workers — including 37 police department employees — are quarantining due to direct exposure to a co-worker or someone from the public with the disease.
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** Loudoun Healthcare Officials Prepare for Possible Winter ‘Twindemic’ ([link removed])
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By KARA CLARK RODRIGUEZ, Loudoun Now

Nearly a year after the stateside arrival of the COVID-19 pandemic, healthcare officials throughout Loudoun County are bracing for the likely convergence of a coronavirus spike and arrival of the winter flu season. It’s been a career-defining year for Loudoun’s healthcare heroes, who found themselves working long hours with ever-changing protocols in the spring months.
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** COVID-19 Outbreak in Richmond CA’s Office Linked to Social Gathering ([link removed])
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By WHITTNEY EVANS, WCVE-FM

Health officials confirmed Thursday there was a “cluster” of COVID-19 cases in the office of the Richmond Commonwealth’s Attorney in the last two weeks. This adds to a growing list of outbreaks in city offices; at least 25 city employees are now infected. Richmond Health Department Director Dr. Danny Avula said during the city’s weekly COVID update that six people in the Commonwealth’s Attorney’s office recently tested positive.
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** Prison COVID-19 outbreak results in a local spike of cases ([link removed])
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By JOSH GULLY, Inside NOVA (Metered Paywall)

The Coffeewood Correctional Center in Mitchell has 169 inmates and 13 employees who have tested positive for the coronavirus, according to Virginia Department of Corrections statistics. Just one of those inmates is hospitalized for treatment. Coffeewood’s coronavirus cases have more than doubled since Nov. 5, when the prison reported that 80 inmates tested positive. Since the onset of the pandemic, the prison has reported 234 total cases.
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** Charlottesville area becomes an island of low COVID cases ([link removed])
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By JESSIE HIGGINS, Charlottesville Tomorrow

While coronavirus cases in the past weeks have spiked across Virginia and elsewhere in the country, the trend in the Charlottesville-area has been quietly moving in the opposite direction. The number of new cases in the Thomas Jefferson Health District, with a few exceptions, have trended down since the beginning of October. Other indicators are also positive here. The TJHD has the lowest positivity rate in the state, and the number of cases per 100,000 people is also comparatively low.
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** Poll workers test positive for COVID-19 ([link removed])
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By ETHAN CAMPBELL, Galax Gazette

Two poll workers, who served at two precincts in the Nov. 3 election, have tested positive for COVID-19, according to Carroll County Electoral Board Chairwoman Brenda Lindsey. A fax received from the Director of Elections and General Registrar on Tuesday states that the two two precincts affected are Laurel Fork and Carroll County High School. “After contacting county health department officials, the board members recommend that all poll workers and voters at Laurel Fork and Carroll County High School monitor their health closely and to get a test if they show any symptoms or changes in their health status,” the statement said.


** VIRGINIA OTHER
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** Prosecutor asks for police probe of statue-removal contract ([link removed])
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By SARAH RANKIN, Associated Press

A Virginia special prosecutor has requested that state police investigate Richmond’s $1.8 million contract for the removal of the city’s Confederate statues. The statues were taken down over the summer, and an inquiry into the contract between the city and a Richmond-area construction company owner was initiated after a political rival of Mayor Levar Stoney’s raised concerns about the deal.


** LOCAL
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** APS Staff Worried About Unsafe Conditions As Some Students Return ([link removed])
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By JO DEVOE, ArlNow

Even a limited return to classrooms has some Arlington Public Schools employees worried, amid questions about safety protocols and the benefit of the in-person activity. Thirty-three schools opened their doors last week for students with disabilities, as part of “Level One” of the return-to-classrooms plan. Classroom assistants are helping the students to participate in distance learning activities, within school buildings, while teachers remain remote.
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** Purcellville Claims Sovereign Immunity in Former Police Officer’s New Lawsuit ([link removed])
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By PATRICK SZABO, Loudoun Now

The Town of Purcellville is claiming sovereign immunity as justification for the court to throw out a lawsuit alleging the town was negligent in suspending a former police officer for nearly a year. On Aug. 4, former police officer Kristopher Fraley filed a lawsuit against the town, three of its employees and two contractors alleging they were negligent in suspending him from duty for 10 months in 2017 and 2018, among six other allegations for which he is seeking $1 million in damages. Fraley claims the suspension caused him to suffer physically, emotionally, personally and professionally.
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** Supervisors seek reimbursement for $95,000 in legal fees for failed FOIA lawsuit ([link removed])
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By DANIEL BERTI, Prince William Times

Democrats on the Prince William Board of County Supervisors are seeking reimbursement for $95,400 in legal fees stemming from a failed lawsuit filed by three county residents over a meeting called by the police department in the wake of a May 30 protest in Manassas. Attorneys for all five Democratic supervisors filed a court motion Oct. 16 asking a judge to require the plaintiffs pay the legal fees, writing that the lawsuit’s claims were “frivolous assertions of unfounded factual and legal claims.” Retired Fairfax County Judge Dennis Smith dismissed the lawsuit on Oct. 7.
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** Supervisors likely to approve $1,000 bonuses for county employees ([link removed])
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By COY FERRELL, Fauquier Times

Following the Fauquier County School Board’s vote this week to approve a $1,000 bonus for all permanent full time and part time school division employees, county supervisors are set to approve a similar measure for other county employees. The move would cost about $735,000 and be taken from a $4.9 million general fund surplus from fiscal year 2020. (Fiscal year 2021 began July 1.)
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** Council candidate urges Richmond registrar to 'rebuild trust' with public after vote count error ([link removed])
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By C. SUAREZ ROJAS, Richmond Times-Dispatch (Metered Paywall - 7 articles a month)

A significant discrepancy in the latest results of a Richmond City Council race is again leading to allegations of poor transparency in the city’s election office. After seeing his count lowered by about 1,000 votes in the results certified by local officials Tuesday, wiping out what appeared to be a slim lead in the race, 2nd District candidate Tavarris Spinks said Thursday that he had not received an adequate explanation for the change.
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** Richmond City Council candidate seeks answers from registrar on 2nd District vote count ([link removed])
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By DEAN MIRSHAHI, WRIC-TV

Richmond City Council candidate Tavarris Spinks filed a Freedom of Information Act request Thursday seeking details from the city’s general registrar on what led to discrepancies between last week’s unofficial vote count and the final results in the 2nd District race. The initial margin in the race for Richmond’s 2nd District seat, which was up for grabs after current Councilwoman Kim Gray announced a run for mayor, was razor thin between Katherine L. Jordan and Mr. Spinks up until Nov. 10 when the final election results were made public online.
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** Douglas Freeman High School changes mascot from Rebels to Mavericks ([link removed])
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By ERIC KOLENICH, Richmond Times-Dispatch (Metered Paywall - 7 articles a month)

Douglas Freeman High School announced Thursday that its teams will be called the Mavericks, a move made to sever the school’s connection to a Confederate symbol. The mascot change at the western Henrico School comes five months after it began the discussion of removing its old name, Rebels.
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** Enrollment is down in Henrico, where some students are set to return to classes Nov. 30 as COVID cases rise ([link removed])
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By KENYA HUNTER, Richmond Times-Dispatch (Metered Paywall - 7 articles a month)

Enrollment is down 1,400 students in Henrico County compared with last year, in large part because parents made other choices with school buildings closed this semester due to COVID-19. Elementary students remain on track to return Nov. 30 even as rising case numbers in the county push the school district into the highest risk for transmission category according to federal guidelines.
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** In Chesapeake government, dissent is rare — at least in public ([link removed])
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By GORDON RAGO, Virginian-Pilot (Metered Paywall - 2 articles a month)

If you’ve been to a Chesapeake City Council meeting, chances are you’ve seen the body vote on the bread and butter of local government: approving dog grooming businesses, extending recycling contracts or funding the school district nutrition plan. Here’s one thing you haven’t heard much of: dissenting votes. In the past two years, council members have voted unanimously on 94% of agenda items, according to a Virginian-Pilot review of meeting minutes.
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** Town Council tie broken by blind drawing ([link removed])
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By TOM CHILLEMI, Southside Sentinel

A tied vote between Urbanna Town Council candidates Marjorie Austin and Dave Lipscombe Jr. was broken by drawing the winning name. On Friday, Nov. 6, during the meeting of the Middlesex County Electoral Board, Austin’s name was pulled from a bag in a blind drawing by board chairman Barbara Cockrell. The meeting was conducted in a hearing room at the Middlesex County Courthouse in Saluda.
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** Fredericksburg hoping for regional approach to help homeless ([link removed])
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By TAFT COGHILL JR., Free Lance-Star (Metered Paywall - 10 articles a month)

As the executive servant-leader of Micah Ecumenical Ministries, Meghann Cotter finds herself in a difficult situation. Gov. Ralph Northam announced in April that $ 2.5 million of emergency funding partially paid for by the federal government would go toward providing housing for the homeless population in Virginia during the COVID-19 pandemic. There’s just one problem for Cotter and her agency—vacancies to place individuals and families long-term have been scarce in the Fredericksburg area.
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** Apple Blossom Festival to return with scaled back plans ([link removed])
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By ROBYN TAYLOR, Winchester Star (Metered Paywall - 5 articles a month)

It's baaack! After being canceled this year because of restrictions on large gatherings due to the coronvirus pandemic, the Shenandoah Apple Blossom Festival is returning this spring. Tickets go on sale Dec. 1. The theme for the 94th festival is "Back in Bloom," which Shenandoah Apple Blossom Festival President Tommy Price and Executive Director Brad Veach unveiled Wednesday night during an announcement party at West Oaks Farm Market.
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** County moves nearer to paying parents ([link removed])
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By JOSH GULLY, Inside NOVA (Metered Paywall)

Culpeper County may soon be dolling out $730,000 to parents who have suffered financially due to increased childcare requirements amid the coronavirus pandemic. Such payments have been the subject of ongoing discussions amongst county supervisors. On Nov. 10, the Rules Committee consisting of three supervisors recommended that such payments are made available to parents of students in grades K-6. While previous discussions centered around setting aside $365,000 to aid parents, the committee recommended doubling that amount to ensure it provides noticeable relief.
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** Landowners voice support for solar energy development in Bedford County ([link removed])
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By SHANNON KELLY, News & Advance (Metered Paywall - 18 articles a month)

Several Bedford County residents encouraged county supervisors Monday to keep moving forward with solar ordinance reviews and research that may allow solar farms in Bedford County if property owners wish to use their land for such purposes.
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** Much larger percentage of Danville voters supported casino than Rosie's ([link removed])
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By JOHN R. CRANE, Danville Register & Bee

Last year, there was just a 3-point difference between voters who wanted an off-track betting facility offered by Colonial Downs and those who didn't. But when it came to a casino — proposed by Caesars Entertainment and approved by Danville voters Nov. 3 — it was a blowout. City electors cast their ballots in favor of a Caesars Virginia casino by a 37-point margin — 68.73% to 31.27%.
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** Henry County General Registrar Liz Stone died after brief illness ([link removed])
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By STAFF REPORT, Martinsville Bulletin (Metered Paywall - 5 articles a month)

Elizabeth “Liz” Stone, Henry County’s popular general registrar for the past 45 years – the longest-serving registrar in Virginia – passed away Wednesday after a brief illness. Stone, 83, died at her home in Horsepasture a little more than week after overseeing one of the busiest and most extended elections in recent memory.

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** Craft + Design Online, presented by the Visual Arts Center of Richmond
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Shop the work of over 120 artists at Craft + Design Online, a virtual craft show, November 20-29! [link removed]


** EDITORIALS
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** Election winners and losers ([link removed])
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Roanoke Times Editorial (Metered Paywall - 5 articles a month)

Not all the winners and losers in last week’s election were on the ballot. Here are some of the others: 1. Reps. Ben Cline, R-Botetourt County; Morgan Griffith, R-Salem, and Rep.-elect Bob Good, R-Campbell County: Winners. OK, all three were on the ballot and all three won but it’s not their 2020 election campaigns that made them winners — it was the passage of the state constitutional amendment that sets up a bipartisan commission to redraw district lines after this year’s census numbers are in.
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** New crisis number will help save lives ([link removed])
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Virginian-Pilot Editorial (Metered Paywall - 2 articles a month)

Believe it or not, there was some good news out of Washington in October: Bipartisan majorities in the House and Senate passed, and President Donald Trump signed, a law creating a three-digit number for people to call during mental-health emergencies. The nationwide, easy-to-remember three-digit number is such a good idea that the wonder is that one wasn’t put in place years ago. It’s also an encouraging sign that our system occasionally works the way it’s supposed to, with people from across the political spectrum cooperating for the good of the country.
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** Return of in-person learning should be based on science and safety, not fatigue ([link removed])
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Richmond Times-Dispatch Editorial (Metered Paywall - 7 articles a month)

This week marked eight months since COVID-19 was declared a pandemic. Since the initial closure of Virginia’s public schools in late March for a stay-at-home order, we have gleaned some key information about how to support a safe, in-person reopening. Masks, hand hygiene and social distancing are uniform tools to minimize the spread of COVID-19, regardless of location. Whether learning in Chesterfield County or in Craig County, science and safety are promoted through those behaviors.


** OP-ED
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** Reynolds: Chamber is on wrong side of its mission ([link removed])
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By ED REYNOLDS, published in Roanoke Times (Metered Paywall - 5 articles a month)

Re: “Putting a pipeline through a forest a foregone conclusion,” Nov. 2 story by Laurence Hammack. Thanks, Laurence Hammack, for digging this Freedom of Information Act information out of the U. S. Forest Service files. NOT surprising; this pipeline permitting issue has been a corrupted slime-ball process strapped to the backs of hard-working Southwest Virginia families since day one.

Reynolds is retired from a global engineering and technology company. He has worked in the Roanoke City Schools for the last eight years as a volunteer and substitute teacher.
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** Rush: Change legislative terms to make government more responsive ([link removed])
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By MARK RUSH, published in Virginian-Pilot (Metered Paywall - 2 articles a month)

With the passage of Amendment 1, Virginians took an important step towards improving the conduct of our elections. The commonwealth now joins the growing number of states that have taken the redistricting process out of the hands of the legislature and turned it over to a commission. This is a tremendous step forward. No one doubts the integrity of our elected officials. But, allowing them to control the process by which they are placed into or returned to office is nothing short of a conflict of interest.

Rush is Waxberg professor of politics and law and director of international education at Washington and Lee University.


** THE FRIDAY READ
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** A teen with autism lost motivation for his walks to the post office. So strangers are sending cards. ([link removed])
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By SYDNEY PAGE, Washington Post (Metered Paywall - 3 articles a month)

Carson Swazey does not read, write or speak, but he just sparked a spontaneous letter-writing campaign that’s all about joy and giving — and it’s gone international. The 19-year-old Canadian, who has autism, will soon be the recipient of a torrent of personalized cards, mailed to him from strangers around the world.


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