Today's Sponsor: Virginia Chamber of Commerce

VaNews Nov. 2, 2019
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Today's Sponsor:


** Virginia Chamber of Commerce
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Now hosted in Richmond, the 10th Annual Economic Summit ([link removed]) brings together business and legislative leaders from around the Commonwealth to discuss Virginia’s economic future.[link removed]

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


** FROM VPAP
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** VISUALIZATION: SURGE IN OUT-OF-STATE MONEY ([link removed])
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The Virginia Public Access Project

Out-of-state donors make up a bigger slice of campaign donations to Virginia legislative candidates, particularly to Democrats. This chart tracks donations in six election cycles over the last 20 years.


** TARGETED RACE: HD72 IN HENRICO COUNTY ([link removed])
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The Virginia Public Access Project

House District 72 looks like a doughnut twisting around western Henrico County. It starts in blue-collar Lakeside, runs through suburban Glen Allen and circles back to Tuckahoe near the James River. The election is a Dutch-American showdown: Freshman Del. Schuyler VanValkenburg challenged by Republican GayDonna Vandergriff. VPAP provides maps and charts to bring insight into the district's demographic, voter history and unusual shape.


** GENERAL ASSEMBLY
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** JUDICIAL BRANCH ASKS ASSEMBLY FOR MORE COURT STAFF ([link removed])
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By PETER VIETH, Virginia Lawyers Weekly (Paywall for some articles)

The administrative office of the Virginia Court System says the district court support system has been reduced to a crawl in many courthouses because of staff shortages, and the situation is taking a toll on the workforce. The top administrator for the state courts took a personal approach in his plea for more positions


** STATE ELECTIONS
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** IS THE ANTI-TRUMP SUBURBAN REVOLT ESCALATING? WATCH VIRGINIA ([link removed])
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By STEVE PEOPLES AND ALAN SUDERMAN, Associated Press

Republican state Sen. Siobhan Dunnavant wanted to avoid talking about President Donald Trump as she courted voters this week on Ridgefield Green Way just outside Virginia’s capital city. The middle-aged man at one door didn’t want to talk about anything else. “I’ve only got one question. Do you support Trump?” he asked. “Yes,” Dunnavant replied. “Then you’ve got my vote,” he said.


** ‘ABSOLUTELY FUNDAMENTAL’: HOW WOMEN HAVE EMERGED AS A FORCE IN VIRGINIA POLITICS ([link removed])
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By JENNA PORTNOY, Washington Post (Metered Paywall - 3 articles a month)

Democrats Elaine Luria, Abigail Spanberger and Jennifer Wexton flipped GOP congressional seats in Virginia last year with help from suburban female voters to give their party a majority of the state’s congressional delegation. Now, the trio is trying to tap into the growing political power of suburban women to help Democrats win a majority in the state legislature.


** SUFFOLK BECOMES UNLIKELY GROUND ZERO FOR ERA RATIFICATION ([link removed])
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By MARIE ALBIGES, Daily Press (Metered Paywall - 5 articles a month)

In a small brick house in a quiet neighborhood in Suffolk, there’s a women’s movement happening. Or at least, Kamala Lopez and Natalie White want you to think there is.


** IT'S A GOODITIS-MINCHEW REMATCH IN VIRGINIA'S 10TH HOUSE DISTRICT ([link removed])
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By NATHANIEL CLINE, Loudoun Times

In the 10th District House of Delegates race, incumbent Wendy Gooditis (D) is seeking her second term against former state Del. Randy Minchew (R). Gooditis defeated Minchew by nearly 4 percent of the vote in 2017.


** WRITE-IN EFFORTS WILL COMPLICATE ELECTION NIGHT IN FREITAS’ AND PEACE’S DISTRICTS ([link removed])
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By MEL LEONOR, Richmond Times-Dispatch (Metered Paywall - 5 articles a month)

Hundreds of red and white pens emblazoned with the name Nick Freitas are part of an expensive and laborious campaign encouraging voters to fill in a bubble, and accurately and legibly spell out his name. The race in the 30th House District is one of at least two General Assembly contests that will feature a write-in effort, and whose results will remain murky on election night.


** IN BEACH DELEGATE RACE, STOLLE AND GUY DRAW BIG MONEY AND OUTSIDE HELP ([link removed])
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By GORDON RAGO, Virginian-Pilot (Metered Paywall - 3 articles a month)

A former Virginia Beach School Board member facing off against a well-established incumbent who has familial ties to the local sheriff and top prosecutor is hoping her campaign will help Democrats flip control of the state Capitol in Richmond. The race for House District 83 has featured political and celebrity endorsements from Virginia and beyond


** HOUSE BUDGET LEADER TARGETED AS HE FACES A CHALLENGER FOR THE FIRST TIME IN 14 YEARS ([link removed])
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By MARIE ALBIGES, Virginian-Pilot (Metered Paywall - 3 articles a month)

One of the most powerful Republicans in the House of Delegates is campaigning in a newly drawn district favorable to his Democratic opponent. Del. Chris Jones, chairman of the House Appropriations Committee, was first elected to represent Suffolk and part of Chesapeake in 1997. He easily beat a handful of opponents in the early years of his House career, but no one had run against him since 2005. Now he faces a challenge Nov. 5 from Clinton Jenkins, a Democrat


** HUGE MONEY POURS INTO GENERAL ASSEMBLY RACES IN HAMPTON ROADS DAYS BEFORE ELECTION DAY ([link removed])
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By BRENDAN PONTON, WTKR

With just days to go until Election Day, big money donors are flooding Hampton Roads candidates with cash. Just this week, the Beyond Carbon Action Fund donated nearly $350,000 to Democrat Nancy Guy, according to the non-partisan Virginia Public Access Project. Guy is challenging Republican incumbent in the 83rd House of Delegates race.


** RACE FOR OPEN DELEGATE SEAT IN PORTSMOUTH TURNS NASTY ([link removed])
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By GORDON RAGO, Virginian-Pilot (Metered Paywall - 3 articles a month)

If there’s one thing uniting all three political newcomers in a wide-open House of Delegates race in Portsmouth, it’s tolls. All three candidates running this year in District 80 agree a contract creating tolls to cross the midtown and downtown tunnels was a raw deal for Portsmouth, and that getting answers from the government about questions can take forever.


** AIRD FOCUSES ON NEW HOUSE DISTRICT, NOT RISE IN LEADERSHIP ([link removed])
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By MICHAEL MARTZ, Richmond Times-Dispatch (Metered Paywall - 5 articles a month)

Del. Lashrecse Aird, D-Petersburg, knows she can’t afford to look ahead to a potential Democratic takeover of the House of Delegates and a potential leadership role. Aird said she has to pay attention first to a transformed district — with almost one-third of its voters in southwestern Chesterfield County — and an independent challenger, Larry Haake, who’s lightly financed but well-known after 22 years as the county’s general registrar.


** 51ST REMATCH ALL ABOUT CONSTITUENT SERVICE ([link removed])
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By GREG HAMBRICK, Inside NOVA

In the 51st District race two years ago, Democrat Hala Ayala defeated four-term incumbent Republican Rich Anderson by 1,768 votes, 53% to 47%. Voters will see the same two names on the ballot Nov. 5 in one of the few rematches statewide.


** TRANSPORTATION A TOP PRIORITY IN 31ST DISTRICT ([link removed])
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By GREG HAMBRICK, Inside NOVA

Two years ago, Del. Elizabeth Guzman ousted eight-term incumbent Republican Scott Lingamfelter to represent the 31st District in Virginia’s House of Delegates, which includes portions of Woodbridge, Dale City and Montclair, as well as part of Fauquier County. This year, Guzman is challenged in the Nov. 5 election by Republican D.J. Jordan, who says he’ll make transportation his top priority.


** JUDGE ORDERS FAIRFAX TO ALLOW GMU STUDENTS TO VOTE AFTER THEIR REGISTRATIONS WERE REJECTED ([link removed])
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By ANTONIO OLIVO, Washington Post (Metered Paywall - 3 articles a month)

A federal judge ruled Friday that Fairfax County must allow 171 George Mason University students to vote next week after their voter registration applications were rejected for providing a generic university address. U.S. District Judge Rossie D. Alston Jr. ordered the county to allow students who submitted their applications on or before Oct. 15 to correct their address information, giving them until 5 p.m. Saturday to do so.


** VOTERS CRITICIZE 'SHAMEFUL' VOTER SCORECARD CAMPAIGN FROM REPUBLICAN PARTY OF VIRGINIA ([link removed])
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By EVAN WATSON, WVEC

Some Hampton Roads voters are criticizing what they call an "intimidating" and "shaming" mail campaign from the Republican Party of Virginia, just days ahead of Election Day on November 5. 13 News Now received multiple calls and emails from viewers about a series of mailers which compares voters to their neighbors.


** FIGHT OVER ENERGY POLICY FUELS VIRGINIA ELECTION SPENDING ([link removed])
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By ALAN SUDERMAN, Associated Press

Virginia’s hotly contested legislative races have drawn huge donations from out-of-state special interest groups hoping to send a message on guns, abortion and President Donald Trump ahead of the 2020 election cycle. But the biggest individual donor is a Charlottesville man unhappy with his electric company.


** STATE GOVERNMENT
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** VIRGINIA FORCING FAMILIES TO PAY BACK FOOD STAMPS FOR GOVERNMENT ERROR ([link removed])
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By JACLYN LEE, WVEC

The U.S. Department of Agriculture slapped Virginia with a $3.8 million fine in August because the Virginia Department of Social Services has one of the highest error rates in the country when it comes to overpaying families in Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits, commonly known as food stamps.


** CONGRESS
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** SENATE VOTES TO BOOST CLEANUP FUNDS FOR CHESAPEAKE BAY ([link removed])
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By TAMARA DIETRICH, Daily Press (Metered Paywall - 5 articles a month)

The U.S. Senate voted overwhelmingly Thursday to boost cleanup funds for the Chesapeake Bay. On an 84-9 vote, senators approved a fiscal year 2020 spending package that hikes the annual budget for the Chesapeake Bay Program from $73 million to $76 million, and adds another $2.28 million to a fund that works to conserve the bay and other major waterways.


** ECONOMY/BUSINESS
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** ATLANTIC FISHERIES PANEL TELLS STATES TO CUT ROCKFISH CATCH BY 18%, FINDS VIRGINIA VIOLATED MENHADEN CAP ([link removed])
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By SCOTT DANCE, Baltimore Sun

An interstate commission that oversees the catch for a variety of Atlantic fish has moved to reduce the harvest of the declining population of striped bass and to punish a Virginia company for netting too many menhaden, a key food source for striped bass and other species. The Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission is reducing state-by-state quotas on commercial rockfish harvests by 18%.


** ON NATION’S BIGGEST PROPOSED OFFSHORE WIND FARM, DOMINION PLANS TO FLY SOLO ([link removed])
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By SARAH VOGELSONG, Virginia Mercury

Dominion Energy intends to move forward alone with developing the nation’s largest proposed offshore wind farm, an enterprise estimated to cost $8 billion, top utility leaders indicated to investors in a third-quarter earnings call Friday morning.....The company’s approach bucks the dominant trend among East Coast utilities, which have otherwise partnered with private developers to add offshore wind energy to their portfolios.


** DOMINION LOOKS TO INVEST $330 MILLION IN PITTSYLVANIA COUNTY WITH POWER PLANT, SOLAR FARM ([link removed])
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By CALEB AYERS, Danville Register & Bee

Dominion Energy is taking steps to invest about $330 million between two projects — a power plant and a solar farm — in Pittsylvania County, according to an announcement Friday. The 500 megawatt, combustion turbine power plant, which will be a total investment of more than $200 million, is projected to be the first business at the Southern Virginia Megasite at Berry Hill, located in Pittsylvania County a few miles west of Danville.


** VIRGINIA OTHER
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** ADVOCATES ADDRESS SERVICES, HELP FOR VETERANS ([link removed])
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By CATHY DYSON, Free Lance-Star (Metered Paywall - 10 articles a month)

State leaders who advocate for veterans in Virginia and throughout Washington talked for more than 75 minutes on Friday about health care, job assistance and suicide prevention benefits available to those who have served.


** STATE BAR OF VIRGINIA DEEMS CULLEN 'HIGHLY QUALIFIED' FOR JUDGESHIP ([link removed])
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By JEFF STURGEON, Roanoke Times (Metered Paywall - 10 articles a month)

U.S. Attorney Thomas Cullen aced a review of his qualifications to become Roanoke’s next federal judge, according to a report by the State Bar of Virginia. Reviewers rated the 42-year-old Cullen as “highly qualified” for a district judgeship by a 6-0 vote. He is under consideration for a vacancy in the U.S. District Court in Roanoke.


** LOCAL
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** SCHOOL FUNDING, IMMIGRATION DIVIDE PRINCE WILLIAM CHAIRMAN CANDIDATES ([link removed])
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By EMILY SIDES, Inside NOVA

The race for chairman of the Prince William Board of County Supervisors has taken a number of twists and turns this year. After an embarrassing defeat last year in the race for U.S. Senate, Republican Chairman Corey Stewart announced he wouldn’t seek another term leading the county government. In May, accountant John Gray surprised political observers by winning the GOP nomination


** LOUDOUN CO. ADVANCES NEW TRAFFIC OFFENSE, DESPITE STATE OPPOSITION ([link removed])
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By NEAL AUGENSTEIN, WTOP

Loudoun County, Virginia’s board of supervisors is moving forward on creating a new traffic offense, to provide options to the state’s all-or-nothing reckless driving charge. Supervisor Ralph Buona, of Ashburn, says under current law, sheriff’s deputies who witness a fender bender can either cite the driver with reckless driving — which carries the potential of jail time, six points on a license, and a $2,500 fine — or nothing at all.


** LONGTIME CHESTERFIELD COUNTY AIRPORT OPERATOR GETS APPROVAL FOR EXPANSION ([link removed])
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By SEAN GORMAN, Richmond Times-Dispatch (Metered Paywall - 5 articles a month)

A longtime operator at the Chesterfield County Airport is building more hangar space to accommodate its growing business after a divided Board of Supervisors backed the proposal. Dominion Aviation plans a new hangar covering at least 10,000 square feet at the northern ramp of the airport, which the company's president and CEO said is sorely needed for a growing fleet of aircraft it operates and maintains for corporations and private individuals.


** RACIST, DISCRIMINATORY FACEBOOK POSTS ARE BOGUS, BEACH CANDIDATE SAYS ([link removed])
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By CHRIS HORNE, WAVY

A Facebook page with the title Virginia News Source is not authentic, according to Virginia Beach School Board candidate Robert Dean, who co-founded the organization. Dean is running for the seat in the Rose Hall district.


** YEAR OF POLITICAL CHAOS IN MATHEWS CULMINATES IN HOTLY-CONTESTED SUPERVISOR RACE ([link removed])
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By MATT JONES, Daily Press (Metered Paywall - 5 articles a month)

ine candidates are running for four seats on the Mathews County Board of Supervisors, in an election complicated by resignations, a state police investigation and an injunction sought by the former board chairman against the board itself. Several of the challengers cite the board’s “dysfunction” as the catalyst for their bids.


** FINAL DRAFT OF CRB BYLAWS INCLUDES SOME CONCESSIONS ([link removed])
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By NOLAN STOUT, Daily Progress (Metered Paywall - 5 articles a month)

The Charlottesville City Council has released an updated draft of the proposed bylaws and ordinance for a police oversight panel that addresses some of the issues raised over its first draft and conceded on two main points of contention.


** HATCH ACT INVESTIGATIONS OF CANDIDATES FOR SHERIFF IN BEDFORD COUNTY CLOSE ([link removed])
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By RICHARD CHUMNEY, News & Advance (Metered Paywall - 10 articles a month)

Would-be sheriffs be warned: if your job involves federal money, campaigning in a government-issued uniform is strictly off-limits. That’s the lesson Capt. Mike Miller, a longtime official at the Bedford County Sheriff’s Office who is hoping to win election to the top job next week, learned after a federal watchdog determined he was in violation of the Hatch Act — a Depression-era law prohibiting federal employees from engaging in politics while on the job.


** MARTINSVILLE CITY COUNCIL 'S CLOSED REVERSION MEETING APPARENTLY VIOLATED STATE LAW ([link removed])
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By BILL WYATT, Martinsville Bulletin

Martinsville officials appear to have violated state law this week when they locked city hall to the public while inside they held a City Council meeting to discuss possible plans to revert to town status. City Council had called a special closed meeting for 6 p.m. Tuesday, but at the time the meeting was scheduled, the front and back doors to the City Municipal building, where council chambers are located, were locked, and no guard was present, effectively barring the public from attending an open meeting that is required before the council can go into closed session.

Today's Sponsor:


** Virginia Chamber of Commerce
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Now hosted in Richmond, the 10th Annual Economic Summit ([link removed]) brings together business and legislative leaders from around the Commonwealth to discuss Virginia’s economic future.[link removed]


** EDITORIALS
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** THE POST’S ENDORSEMENTS FOR KEY NORTHERN VIRGINIA LEGISLATIVE RACES ([link removed])
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Washington Post Editorial (Metered Paywall - 3 articles a month)

Control of Virginia’s General Assembly, where Republicans hold a paper-thin majority in both chambers, turns on the outcome of a handful of races next Tuesday for the state Senate and House of Delegates. Several are in Northern Virginia, the state’s most diverse and economically vibrant region.


** OP-ED
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** TIMMONS: REMEMBER THOSE WHO STOOD FOR FAMILIES ([link removed])
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By JAY TIMMONS, Published in the Roanoke Times (Metered Paywall - 10 articles a month)

Residents in the greater Roanoke area are represented by Republican legislators in the General Assembly that have very different views of life and family. When it counted, several stood strong for children and the unborn. But sadly, Senator David Suetterlein chose discrimination and bigotry over Life. He acted as a charlatan who sent a very clear message with his vote that our son did not even have the right to exist.

Timmons is former Chief of Staff to Republican Governor George Allen and the former Executive Director of the National Republican Senatorial Committee. He lives in McLean.


** PENCE: IT’S TIME TO PASS THE UNITED STATES-MEXICO-CANADA AGREEMENT ([link removed])
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By MIKE PENCE, Published in the Richmond Times-Dispatch (Metered Paywall - 5 articles a month)

Today I’m visiting Virginia and touring Patriot Industries, a steel and aluminum products manufacturer in Louisa County. Under President Donald Trump’s administration, the manufacturing industry has been booming, but to keep this momentum going — for Patriot Industries and businesses across the country — we must open more markets for selling U.S. products.

Mike Pence is vice president of the United States.
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