Today's Sponsor:
Virginia Promise Partnership
The Virginia Promise Partnership recognizes early childhood educators and their contribution to Virginia families and communities during Teacher Appreciation week and every week. #GottaHaveChildCare
General Assembly budget leaders might back off expanded sales tax
General Assembly budget leaders say they will back off expansion of Virginia’s sales tax if state revenues continue to be high enough to pay for legislative priorities. Those priorities include expanded state funding for public education and health care, as well as toll relief in Hampton Roads and additional money for the Washington Metro public transit system. Senate Finance Chair Louise Lucas, D-Portsmouth, and House Appropriations Chairman Luke Torian, D-Prince William, confirmed on Friday that state tax collections appear to be high enough to support spending priorities in the next two-year budget without expanding the sales tax to digital services ...
’No other choice’: UVa president defends decision to call in state troopers amid protest
Hours after calling in state troopers to break up a quiet, rain-soaked encampment of anti-war protesters, University of Virginia President Jim Ryan issued a public statement calling the episode “upsetting, frightening and sad.” Ryan had been noticeably absent from the episode itself. His public statement Saturday evening, his first on the matter, came well after the encampment had been raided and the 25 demonstrators who had pitched tents on the patch of grass by the university's chapel were arrested and carried off to Albemarle-Charlottesville Regional Jail.
Prosecutor seeks to drop charges against five deputies in Irvo Otieno death
The Virginia prosecutor investigating the death of Irvo Otieno is seeking to withdraw charges against five law enforcement officers who were indicted on murder counts last year, curtailing the scope of what was once a sprawling case to just three defendants. Otieno, a 28-year-old Black man whose family said he was in mental distress when he arrived at Central State Hospital for treatment, died there of asphyxia as Henrico County sheriff’s deputies and hospital workers restrained him for 11 minutes, according to surveillance video and the medical examiner. Authorities in Virginia’s Dinwiddie County initially charged 10 people in Otieno’s death.
Documents show Petersburg financial advisers wanted more vetting about Bally’s future, Rivers’ hotel
The investment firm that has advised Petersburg for many years informally recommended The Cordish Companies as the city’s casino sponsor in part because of wariness about the financial status of one top bidder and another top bidder’s reluctance to include a hotel in its proposal, according to a review by The Progress-Index of the questions the firm submitted to the city. Davenport & Co. had chosen Cordish and co-developer Bruce Smith Enterprise, Bally's Corporation and Rush Street Gaming as the top three candidates for Petersburg's casino business. Davenport noted, though, that the recommendation for Cordish was "informal" based on the proposals Davenport reviewed and its previous business dealings with Cordish officials.
Nearly complete Mountain Valley Pipeline springs a leak during tests
A section of the Mountain Valley Pipeline atop Bent Mountain ruptured Wednesday during tests to determine the pipe’s integrity before it begins to carry natural gas under high pressure. The buried pipe failed as it was undergoing hydrostatic testing, which involves running highly pressurized water through it to ensure there are no leaks or flaws, a Mountain Valley spokeswoman said.
Clean-energy funding in limbo in governor–assembly standoff
Virginia could be about to leave on the table $300 million of low-cost federal financing to tackle climate change because Gov. Glenn Youngkin and the General Assembly take different views on a proposal for how to access the money. At issue is a proposal from Senate Majority Leader Scott Surovell, D-Fairfax, to set up a Virginia Clean Energy Innovation Bank. He’s proposing the new entity to tap the Department of Energy’s offer of low-interest-rate loans to finance clean energy projects, investments in reduction of greenhouse gas emissions and similar efforts. The governor wanted to amend the measure, to require a second vote by the General Assembly next year.
FROM VPAP
VPAP Visual Four Measures of Legislators’ Wealth
Annual disclosures from members of the 2024 General Assembly highlight differences, and similarities, between political parties across four measures of personal wealth.
GENERAL ASSEMBLY
Virginia repackages past incentives for Micron expansion in Manassas
Virginia is repackaging a five-year-old economic development incentive package for Micron Technology Inc. to bring a new line of semiconductor chip manufacturing from Taiwan to its production plant in Manassas. The package, which a General Assembly oversight commission approved last month, includes about $46 million in unspent financial incentives from an agreement with the Idaho-based semiconductor chip company in 2018. It included $70 million in state money for a $3 billion expansion of the plant and creation of 1,106 jobs.
Virginia law expands shared solar into coal country
After languishing since 2022, a revamped measure to launch a shared solar program in Southwest Virginia found daylight this year. The General Assembly gave the go-ahead to a pair of measures (SB 255, HB 108) directing utility regulators to set up Appalachian Power’s inaugural 50 megawatt program by Jan. 1. Despite the modest size laid out in the new law, Charlie Coggeshall, Mid-Atlantic regional director with the Coalition for Community Solar Access, is content with the breakthrough into a part of the state historically dependent on the coal industry.
FEDERAL ELECTIONS
At a private donor retreat, Trump team says Virginia and Minnesota are in play
Top officials for former President Donald Trump’s campaign believe they can flip Democratic strongholds Minnesota and Virginia into his column in November, they told donors behind closed doors at a Republican National Committee retreat Saturday. Brandishing internal surveys, pollster Tony Fabrizio and senior advisers Susie Wiles and Chris LaCivita delivered a set of presentations that focused on finances, messaging and the political map, according to two people who were present at the Four Seasons resort [in Palm Beach, Florida].
Good and McGuire clash in 5th District GOP primary; loyalty to Trump a factor
Not far from where Rep. Bob Good, R-5th defeated his previous Republican challenger in a 2022 convention at Hampden-Sydney College, he recently spoke to a crowd of about 50 in an event room at Charley’s Waterfront Cafe. “I was ‘too conservative’ and now I’m ‘not conservative enough,’ ” Good said, speaking of how his opponents in both parties have classified him over the years. The two-term congressman now faces a challenge from state Sen. John McGuire, R-Goochland, in a June 18 primary in which the degree of loyalty to former President Donald Trump has become a litmus test.
Two Democrats seek to unseat Virginia Beach Rep. Jen Kiggans
Two Democrats are running in the June 18 primary to get the chance to challenge Rep. Jen Kiggans (R-Virginia) in the fall. Early voting for the race kicked off Friday. Missy Cotter Smasal is a Navy veteran and former small business owner. She ran for State Senate in 2019, but lost. The establishment of the party has lined up behind her. … Jake Denton is a lawyer and first time political candidate. He says many of the endorsements came before he entered the race.
Early voting begins for Virginia’s June congressional primaries
Virginia’s 45-day early voting window began Friday for the June 18 primaries that will set the stage for the state’s U.S. Senate race as well as a handful of competitive races for seats in the U.S. House of Representatives. Republicans are choosing a nominee to challenge U.S. Sen. Tim Kaine, D-Va. in a statewide contest this fall, and at least one party is holding a primary in six of Virginia’s 11 congressional districts.
Democrats hold 5th District candidate forum in Danville
Three Democrats vying for the nomination to run for the 5th District Congressional seat faced off during a candidate forum at Danville Community College on Thursday evening. The three contenders, Gary Terry, Paul Riley and Gloria Witt, hope to replace current Rep. Bob Good, R-Campbell County, who is being challenged for the Republican nomination by state Sen. John McGuire, R-Goochland.
ECONOMY/BUSINESS
‘Everything’s on fire’: Inside the nation’s failure to safeguard toxic pipelines
The inspectors warned for months that the construction crew was burying the pipeline on unstable ground. In at least a dozen reports, they described soupy soil, landslides and failed efforts to contain runoff. But the crew kept working as the problems mounted. The Revolution ethane pipeline had to get built. In September 2018, just below a neighborhood outside Aliquippa, Pennsylvania, the muddy hillside gave way. The landslide severed the pipe, and the dense gas inside erupted into a roaring inferno. The blaze incinerated a house. The family inside escaped with just the clothes they were wearing and one of their dogs. Their other pets, a dog and several cats, died in the fire. Karen Gdula, who lives nearby on Ivy Lane, raced through the neighborhood shouting, “It’s the pipeline. Everything’s on fire. Get out now!”
Dominion: Big development projects get electric bill discounts
Wooing Virginia development projects for the kind of growth that generates scores of jobs and millions of dollars of new investments can sometimes mean millions of dollars of breaks on electric bills. In Virginia, such projects received some $24 million worth of discounts on utility bills since Dominion Energy’s launch of an incentive program nine years ago, according to a Richmond Times-Dispatch analysis of State Corporation Commission filings.
Inova CEO betting $2.5B on a huge expansion
"If you take this job, you’re going to have to replace that hospital.” That suggestion was one of the first things Dr. Stephen Jones heard about Inova Health System’s Alexandria hospital when interviewing for the nonprofit’s top slot more than six years ago. ... The solution was to build not one, but two state-of-the-art facilities five miles apart, one in Alexandria and another in the Franconia-Springfield area, each spanning roughly 1 million square feet, as well as an outpatient medical complex nearby.
Climate group expanding to Richmond with focus on businesses’ energy efficiency
It’s a phrase that has been called less sexy than other energy conservation efforts to combat climate change, but a local group is focused on making energy efficiency available to a narrow sector. Climate Community Collaborative, also known as C3, is expanding from Charlottesville to Richmond after working the past few years to help businesses reach carbon neutral emission goals, a more modest approach to ultimately reaching zero-carbon goals.
TRANSPORTATION
Tunnel-boring machine resumes digging at Chesapeake Bay Bridge-Tunnel
Now that the anchor’s away, expansion work at the Chesapeake Bay Bridge-Tunnel is back at full bore. Burrowing of a new tunnel to help carry more vehicles between Virginia Beach and the Eastern Shore has resumed about 10 months after a gigantic boring machine struck an old ship anchor buried beneath a shipping channel. Tunneling was suspended so workers could investigate the obstruction, excavate the 10-foot-long anchor — which was in several pieces — and replace machine parts damaged by hitting the anchor.
HIGHER EDUCATION
Police forcefully clear encampment at UVa., detain protesters
Over 50 police officers, including state troopers in riot gear, cleared the pro-Palestinian encampment near the University chapel Saturday afternoon and detained at least 25 protesters. The removal of the encampment marked the end of a days-long protest that called on the University to disclose its investment portfolio and divest from institutions benefiting from Israeli occupation in Palestine, among other demands.
25 arrested at UVa. after clashes with police
Authorities arrested 25 pro-Palestinian demonstrators during a sustained confrontation at the University of Virginia on Saturday, university officials said, after dozens of law enforcement officers in riot gear surrounded a student encampment and used pepper spray to disperse people from the area. The clash, which U-Va. President James E. Ryan described in a letter to the school community Saturday evening as “upsetting, frightening and sad,” marked the latest escalation during the past several weeks of protests on campuses over the Israel-Gaza war.
Letter signed by at least three dozen UVa. professors condemns school leaders over police response
At least three dozen history professors at the University of Virginia in Charlottesville signed an open letter on Sunday condemning “the repression of a peaceful protest of our students” by the police, a day after officers in riot gear clashed with pro-Palestinian demonstrators, spraying chemical irritants and arresting at least 25 people. In the letter, which was particularly scathing toward President Jim Ryan and Ian Baucom, the provost, the professors also demanded answers about the intensity of the police response, who approved it and why, and whether protesters at the school could be guaranteed the ability to protest peacefully.
More than 125 arrested at four Virginia universities amid nationwide protest over Israel-Hamas war
Following the strong reaction to the Israel-Hamas war across the country, some Virginia colleges and universities are still responding to last week’s series of on-campus demonstrations that resulted in dozens of students’ arrests and lingering questions about upcoming graduation ceremonies. Some of the most notable Virginia protests that led to arrests occurred at the University of Mary Washington, Virginia Commonwealth University, Virginia Tech and, most recently, the University of Virginia.
VCU protesters arraigned as dozens appear in court to support them
Twelve people were arraigned in a packed courtroom at the John Marshall Courts Building on Friday morning on charges related to Monday’s violent clash between pro-Palestine protesters and police outside the James Branch Cabell Library on VCU’s Monroe Park campus. [They] have all been charged with participating in an unlawful assembly and trespassing on VCU property after a group of protesters established an encampment on the lawn outside the library and refused to disperse when ordered by officers dressed in riot gear and carrying guns and pepper spray.
Here’s how Hampton Roads colleges are responding to student-protest trend
As pro-Palestine protests have spread across U.S. campuses in the past few weeks, the response of college administrations has come under scrutiny. Protests began escalating when students at Columbia University in New York formed an encampment April 17, leading to the university president calling in police to clear the camp. ... In Hampton Roads, protests were held near Christopher Newport University and Old Dominion University campuses last week. Both remained peaceful with no arrests.
Daily Progress sues UVa after school withholds review of fatal 2022 shooting
A Daily Progress reporter who has repeatedly sought access to a fact-finding report on the 2022 shooting that killed three University of Virginia students has won a legal victory over a team of lawyers that UVa has hired to shield the report from public view. Last month, a judge rejected UVa’s effort to dismiss the petition filed by reporter Jason Armesto, the Daily Progress and the newspaper’s parent company Lee Enterprises and greenlighted the matter for trial later this summer.
Excavation of graves begins at University of Richmond
After gaining state approval, the University of Richmond has begun excavating graves on campus that might belong to enslaved workers who lived on a plantation there 180 years ago. The state’s Department of Historic Resources on Monday approved UR’s application to excavate, and work began immediately, said Joanna Wilson Green, an archaeologist who oversees cemetery preservation for the department.
VIRGINIA OTHER
Dinwiddie prosecutor moves to drop charges against five more defendants in Irvo Otieno case
Dinwiddie County’s new commonwealth’s attorney has moved to drop murder charges against five defendants accused in the death of Irvo Otieno in 2023. Initially, 10 defendants were charged last year with second-degree murder of the 28-year-old in a case that rocked the nation after video surfaced of a shackled Otieno being held down by multiple officers and hospital personnel. ... Later, charges were dropped against two hospital employees who appeared to have the least amount of contact with Otieno in video showing his death. ... The latest move, first reported by television news station WTVR, would bring the number of defendants down to three.
Chesapeake Bay cleanup far from 2025 goals, despite some progress
Virginia and the other states in the Chesapeake Bay watershed are continuing to cut pollutants flowing into the bay but are still well short of targets for nitrogen and phosphorus that they have promised to hit by next year. Nitrogen and phosphorus feed the summertime algae blooms that starve the bay and its creatures of oxygen, which fish and shellfish alike need to stay alive.
LOCAL
Bids for SPSA landfill alternative arrive
Bids proposing alternatives to the Southeastern Public Service Authority’s near-capacity Suffolk landfill are in but staying secret for now. SPSA, which operates the regional landfill on behalf of Isle of Wight County and seven other Hampton Roads localities, solicited proposals due May 1 from companies looking to fill the void come June 30 when the WIN Waste, formerly Wheelabrator, waste-to-energy plant that had been diverting more than 70% of the region’s municipal waste from the landfill shutters.
Higher costs, fewer jobs likely at Danville casino
It looks like numerous changes will be made to Danville’s agreement with Caesars Virginia, including an increase in the casino project’s cost to $750 million and language allowing the company to hire fewer workers than initially promised. The changes also propose elimination of a promised separate entertainment venue. Instead, the venue would occupy a 40,000-square-foot conference center included in the project. The Danville City Council will consider whether to approve the revisions, along with several others, during its Tuesday meeting.
After decades on the sidelines, North Danville is in line for revitalization
Across the Dan River from Danville’s River District, a largely revitalized part of the city, is North Danville, a business district with a rich history that lost investments and attention after the tobacco and textile industries left town. This part of Danville is the city’s next target for revitalization. But an unorthodox approach is needed to make sure this work is done correctly, said Lashawn Farmer, director of design and expansion for the River District Association. The crux of this approach is community engagement and input, said Farmer.
Today's Sponsor:
Virginia Promise Partnership
The Virginia Promise Partnership recognizes early childhood educators and their contribution to Virginia families and communities during Teacher Appreciation week and every week. #GottaHaveChildCare
EDITORIALS
Election workers fear threats and political interference. Listen to them.
Six months before Americans cast their ballots for president, members of Congress and a host of local offices, election workers are deeply concerned about their safety and worried that unscrupulous officials will interfere with the vote. Those are among the findings of a recent survey conducted by the Brennan Center for Justice, which makes for grim reading. Virginia recently took an important step to protect poll workers, but they also need responsible leaders to build trust in the system rather than maligning it for political gain.
VCU should embrace peaceful dissent, not send in the riot police
No matter one’s religious or political beliefs, there is no denying the anger and passion fueling the recent nationwide surge in student protests over the Israel-Hamas war. In the city, after a violent clash between police and demonstrators at Virginia Commonwealth University on Monday night, the streets are once again littered with proverbial eggshells. To this point, Richmond is but a snippet. The pro-Palestinian movement has been slowly building in RVA for months, but so far most of the violent imagery flashing across our screens is from elsewhere.
COLUMNISTS
Schapiro: Budget deal is work in progress
In their fight with short-timer Gov. Glenn Youngkin over Virginia’s new $188 billion budget, Democratic legislators appear to be going long, betting that they can get what they want — higher taxes and more spending — after the Republican drifts into history in 19 months. Ahead of their scheduled — but unannounced — meeting with Youngkin this coming Tuesday, General Assembly budget writers are floating a possible deal under which both sides, over the approaching two-year fiscal cycle, retreat on taxes: Democrats backing off on expanding the sales tax to digital services; Youngkin surrendering on income tax cuts.
Yancey: Protesters want Virginia Tech to divest from Israel. Why divestment is easier said than done.
The pro-Palestinian protesters at Virginia Tech want the school to divest of any investments tied to Israel. This will not happen. Even if Virginia Tech wanted to do this, divestment from Israel is easier said than done. Let’s look further at each of these. The reason Virginia Tech will not divest from Israel is simple: politics. Technically, a public school’s investment funds are managed by a nonprofit foundation — in this case, the Virginia Tech Foundation, which is governed by its board. However, we all know that these foundations are closely tied to the universities they support. The foundation’s board includes the Tech president and the rector of the board of visitors, the gubernatorial-appointed board that governs the school. The board also includes three other top Tech officials. As a practical matter, the foundation is not going to do something the school doesn’t want.
Williams: Congressional bill is about curbing college speech, not antisemitism
Antisemitism was on the march on a college campus in August 2017 when torch-carrying Nazis and other white supremacists chanted “Jews will not replace us” during a rally at the University of Virginia. Antisemitism was on the hunt on Oct. 27, 2018, when a gunman open fired during the Shabbat morning services at Pittsburgh’s Tree of Life Synagogue ... But it was not until Wednesday that the U.S. House of Representatives passed the Antisemitism Awareness Act, as if suddenly cognizant of the lethal power of anti-Jewish hate.
OP-ED
Locke: Youngkin administration actions undermine academic freedom
Back in the fall of 2021, while teaching a unit on the presidency in an American government class, I encountered a question from a student about why I would even address Donald Trump. My response was straightforward: “Because he was a president.” This simple exchange illustrates the essence of academic freedom — a principle that is currently under threat in Virginia. The question didn’t arise from mere curiosity; it stemmed from a broader political critique, suggesting a “thinly veiled attempt to incorporate the progressive left’s groupthink on our students.”
Anderson: Campus protesters are making it clear their threats aren’t empty
“Hamas make us proud, kill another soldier now.” That quote is not from a terrorist in a cave in a war-torn country like the ones I’ve served in. That’s from a student at an Ivy League American university this week. Let’s take stock of this uniquely terrifying moment in American history: Antisemitism has, horrifically, become socially acceptable with the progressive left. Jewish students and professors continue to be targeted on a daily basis.
Coakley: Election officials aren’t just vote counters. We’re part of the community
Election officials and our work can be a heated subject, particularly in a world of viral media where conflict and extreme views often get the most reach. It would be easy for any voter to imagine “election officials” as a far-off group of people in their state capital or in Washington, D.C., who don’t know them or understand their community. In reality that couldn’t be further from the truth — election officials are part of every single community in the nation, and we conduct elections according to the highest standards of ethics and integrity.