Virginia
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Latest Virginia Regional News
March 19, 2010 - RICHMOND, Va. (AP) A new study suggests that menhaden -- the oily, nearly inedible fish -- may not have the pollution-fighting power in the Chesapeake Bay that scientists had once thought. The fish are key links in the bay's food chain. For years, it was thought that menhaden also helped by filtering out a lot of algae that otherwise would foul the bay.
WASHINGTON (AP) President Barack Obama continues to push hard for his signature issue overhauling health care in America. He travels across the Potomac River today to speak about revamping health insurance at George Mason University in Northern Virginia.
WOODBRIDGE, Va. (AP) Prince William County health officials say someone from Freedom High School in Woodbridge has a confirmed case of tuberculosis. County health officials will screen people who spent the most time with the ill person and all students will be screened with a questionnaire about symptoms and risk of past exposure.
(Copyright 2010 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
Enviro groups challenge Va.'s EPA lawsuit
March 19, 2010 - RICHMOND, Va. (AP) Two environmental groups are challenging Virginia's legal action to block federal regulation of greenhouse gases.
The Southern Environmental Law Center on behalf of Wetlands Watch filed a motion with the U.S. Court of Appeals in Washington late Thursday supporting the Environmental Protection Agency's findings that greenhouse gases are dangerous to people.
The groups say Virginia Attorney General Kenneth Cuccinelli's challenge to the EPA findings is an ``unwarranted stall tactic'' that is a dangerous distraction from the impacts of climate change.
Cuccinelli is asking the EPA to reconsider its conclusion that carbon dioxide and other emissions contribute to dangerous global warming. He's also asking the federal appeals court to review the decision.
(Copyright 2010 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
Latest Virginia Regional News
March 19, 2010 - FAIRFAX, Va. (AP) President Barack Obama led a campaign-style rally in northern Virginia today, appealing for final votes to pass his signature bill: the health care overhaul. Obama told a crowd in Fairfax that the insurance industry will still ``run wild'' if Sunday's House vote fails.
RICHMOND, Va. (AP) Gov. Bob McDonnell says he wants the federal government to remap a vast area 50 miles off Virginia earmarked for possible oil and gas exploration. The governor contends that remapping offshore acres could yield a future bonanza for Virginia from royalty payments.
RICHMOND, Va. (AP) A new study suggests that a nearly inedible fish called menhaden is not the pollution-fighting wonder that the Chesapeake Bay needs. Scientists once though menhaden filtered out the bay's gunky algae but now they're not so sure it has much impact on water quality.
VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. (AP) The Navy says a SEAL from Virginia Beach has been killed in a battle with militants in Afghanistan. A Navy statement today identified the Seal as 36-year-old Adam Lee Brown and says he had been awarded the Bronze Star and Purple Heart.
(Copyright 2010 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
Group Led by Justice's Wife Cited For Fundraising Violation
March 19, 2010 - RICHMOND, Va. (AP) A Virginia-based conservative advocacy group led by the wife of U.S. Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas has been raising money without first registering with state regulators as required by law, according to consumer protection officials.
The state Office of Consumer Affairs sent a letter Thursday to Virginia Thomas, president of Liberty Central Inc., informing her of the violation. J. Michael Wright, the office's manager of regulatory programs, said the group's lawyer told him Friday that the filing would be sent that day.
Liberty Central was founded in November but did not become active until last month, said Amy Feather, director of business development and marketing.
Wright said it is not unusual for new organizations to be unaware of the registration requirement, but Liberty Central said in a written statement that it was waiting for a letter from the Internal Revenue Service establishing its nonprofit status before beginning the state registration process. The group said it received the IRS letter Thursday.
In its letter to Thomas, the consumer affairs office said failure to register before soliciting contributions in Virginia is punishable by fines of up to $5,000 for each violation. However, Wright said it is customary for the office to work with organizations to get them to comply rather than seek sanctions.
Latest Virginia Regional News
March 18, 2010 - RICHMOND, Va. (AP) Gov. Bob McDonnell has refused to stop the scheduled execution of a man who killed a teenage girl from Manassas and also attempted to kill her younger sister. Authorities say Paul Warner Powell is to die by electrocution at 9 p.m. tonight at a prison in Jarratt.
BLACKSBURG, Va. (AP) Police say they don't believe there is any credibility to e-mail and internet postings originating in Italy that threaten another attack on the Virginia Tech campus. But college president Charles Steger ordered more security on the campus as a precaution today.
RICHMOND, Va. (AP) A former DuPont Co. worker has been ordered to 18 months in federal prison after pleading guilty to theft of trade secrets and obstruction of justice. Prosecutors say Michael Mitchell sent DuPont's Kevlar trade secrets to a rival company based in Korea.
RICHMOND, Va. (AP) State funding for Virginia's higher-education system is continuing to shrink. Colleges and universities say they'll have to continue raising tuition and consider more cutbacks to help close the gap, especially after federal stimulus money disappears.
(Copyright 2010 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
Free Taxi Rides Available During St. Patrick's Day
March 17, 2010 - By Kavitha Cardoza
As St. Patrick's Day celebrations get underway, police are cracking down on drunk driving, and some groups are reminding revelers there are free taxi rides available to help get them home safely.
Almost every person arrested for drunk driving says they wished they had planned a safe ride home, according to Kurt Erickson, with the Washington Regional Alcohol Program.
"Whether it be designating a driver, or using public transportation or at least remembering the number for SoberRide." Erickson says the program covers fares up to $50 and rides are available between 4 p.m. today and 4 a.m. tomorrow morning across the Washington Metro area.
Erickson says drinking and driving affects more than just the driver.
"The randomness of drunk driving is just huge," he says. "A third of drunk driving's victims are non-intoxicated drivers, non- intoxicated passengers, non-intoxicated pedestrians."
Several police and sheriff's departments are planning sobriety checkpoints and extra DUI patrols. The number for SoberRide is 1-800-200 TAXI.
Latest Virginia Regional News
March 17, 2010 - DINWIDDIE, Va. (AP) Virginia transportation officials say they will use an emergency maintenance fund to operate several highway rest areas that had been shuttered by then-Gov. Tim amid deep recession. Gov. Bob McDonnell took part in reopening one of the areas today on I-85.
RICHMOND, Va. (AP) A gay-rights group is urging public college presidents to join in their campaign to fortify Virginia' anti-discrimination law. Equality Virginia has sent a letter to college presidents urging them to get behind the fight to change the law.
RICHMOND, Va. (AP) Dominion Virginia Power says it plans to spend more than $500 million to make improvements to its power stations across Virginia. The company has announced plans to upgrade 13 power plants so that they can produce electricity more efficiently.
RICHMOND, Va. (AP) A new report suggests that counties in southern Virginia are among the unhealthiest in the state. The report by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation finds Northern Virginia counties had the healthiest behaviors when it comes to smoking, obesity and other factors.
(Copyright 2010 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
Report On Trips Taken Daily Per Person
March 17, 2010 - By Matt Bush
Older people in the D.C. region are driving more, while younger people are driving less, according to a report from the Metropolitan Washington Council of Governments.
The report analyzed two previous surveys of the number of trips each person takes per day. Those 65 years and older increased their trips from 1994 to 2008. Robert Griffths of COG attributes that to the fact seniors in this region are healthier and wealthier.
"They're making more and more daily trips, probably not in the peak period," he says. "But more trips overall, with the biggest increases being shopping trips, personal business trips, seeing your doctor, or your lawyer, or your banker."
During the same time period, those aged 16 to 24 took fewer trips. Griffiths says social media tools like Facebook and texting allow young people to stay in touch without leaving home.
Latest Virginia Regional News
March 16, 2010 - FAIRFAX, Va. (AP) A jury in Fairfax County has acquitted a 39-year-old father of murdering his infant son after a defense expert raised doubts about the validity of shaken baby syndrome. Prosecutors said that Elmer J. Midence violently shook his eight-month-old son last year at their Springfield home, causing injuries that resulted in the baby's death.
RICHMOND, Va. (AP) Virginia Department of Transportation crews have patched, repaired or filled more than 43,000 potholes since March 1st, the first day of its pothole blitz. Gov. McDonnell announced today that crews have worked day and night to address the pavement hazards on state-maintained roads.
NEWPORT NEWS, Va. (AP) A high school student is being accused of bringing a gun to a school in Newport News. Nineteen-year-old Wayne Raynod King was charged today with a felony count of having a firearm on school property and a misdemeanor count of having a concealed weapon.
RICHMOND, Va. (AP) Virginia regulators are being urged to carefully examine a proposed rate increase for Appalachian Power. The State Corporation Commission held a public hearing today to discuss the company's request for a 12.5 percent base rate increase.
(Copyright 2010 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
VA Fills 43,000 Potholes In Two Weeks
March 16, 2010 - RICHMOND, Va. (AP) Virginia Department of Transportation crews have patched, repaired or filled more than 43,000 potholes since March 1, the first day of its pothole blitz.
Gov. Bob McDonnell announced Tuesday that crews have worked day and night to address the pavement hazards on state-maintained roads.
As this month's wet weather and varying temperatures create more potholes, McDonnell said crews will continue to prioritize repairs based on severity and location.
Melting snow and ice from a barrage of winter storms revealed thousands of potholes across the commonwealth.
The state budgeted $45.8 million for asphalt and concrete patching through June 30.
To report a pothole, call 800-367-7623 (ROAD). TTY users should call 711.
On the Net: www.VirginiaDOT.org
(Copyright 2010 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
Latest Virginia Regional News
March 15, 2010 - PETERSBURG, Va. (AP) Authorities have identified a fellow patient as a suspect in the death of a 22-year-old Alexandria man at Central State Hospital. They said yesterday that 31-year-old George Phillips also is charged with bank robbery and attempted murder of a police officer.
FRONT ROYAL, Va. (AP) An experiment to save endangered Virginia big-eared bats from a deadly fungus by creating a colony at the National Zoo's conservation center in Front Royal is drawing accusations of mishandling. Five months after the project began, most bats in the colony are dead.
RICHMOND, Va. (AP) While lawmakers took an unusual step to provide temporary relief to thousands struggling to pay electric bills, some say the state needs to take a closer look at utility regulation. A law signed last month reduced rates for Appalachian Power customers in Virginia while regulators evaluate the company's recent 12.5 percent rate increase request.
NORFOLK, Va. (AP) Hundreds of Navy personnel have disembarked from the hospital ship USNS Comfort in Norfolk as it returns from a seven-week mission treating earthquake victims in Haiti. The hospital ship arrived at Naval Station Norfolk on Saturday.
(Copyright 2010 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
Northern VA Leaders On State Budget: It Could Have Been Worse
March 15, 2010 - By Jonathan Wilson
County governments in Virginia are still sorting through the details of drastic funding cuts included in the budget approved by state lawmakers over the weekend. But many leaders in our area are breathing a cautious sigh of relief.
It could have been worse. That's the refrain you hear from many leaders in Northern Virginia.
Fairfax County Board of Supervisors Chair Sharon Bulova is especially pleased lawmakers moved away from the more than $700 million in public education cuts proposed by Gov. Bob McDonnell and the Republican-controlled House of Delegates.
"It looks like the budget puts us in a better place than we had originally believed we would be," she says.
The compromise still cuts $253 million from public schools, but it restores something called Local Composite Index funding, netting Northern Virginia school districts an extra $100 million. Sixty-one million dollars goes to Fairfax schools.
Arlington County Board Chair Jay Fisette says he was pleased the education cuts weren't deeper, but he says the cuts are still unprecedented.
Fisette says cuts to public safety, library funding, and money for constitutional offices like sheriff and treasurer will also hurt.
"I'm putting a good face on it because the worst case scenario didn't come through, but there are still cuts being passed on to local government," he says.
Bulova and Fisette say their respective counties will have to raise property tax rates this year to compensate for the state cuts. Bulova says she's hoping residents of Fairfax won't see an increase in their actual tax bills because of declining property values. Fisette says it's unlikely Arlington will be able to pull off the same feat.
Virginia Plans Tornado Drill
March 14, 2010 - By Matt McCleskey
A statewide tornado drill is planned this week in Virginia. The state's Department of Emergency Management says 16 tornadoes struck Virginia last year, and it's urging all residents and schools to take part in this year's drill.
The drill will begin Tuesday at 9:45 a.m. when the National Weather Service sends out a test warning. According to the department's website, more than 500,000 people have already registered to participate.
The department says to prepare, designate a tornado shelter in a basement, if the building has one. If it doesn't, the best option is an interior room away from windows, like a center hallway, bathroom, or closet on the building's lowest floor.
You can find more information online.
Virginia Lawmakers Expect Final Agreement on Budget Cuts
March 14, 2010 - Negotiations toward a bare-bones state budget have ended with a final vote on the two-year spending plan set for Sunday evening.
A dozen House and Senate members have resolved final differences over public education and state-supported health care and revenue sources.
House and Senate leaders expected final handshakes and signatures on a compromise that the House and Senate will consider in a late afternoon Sunday session, bringing the session to a close a day later than lawmakers planned.
Majority Leader Dick Saslaw planned to convene the Senate at 5 p.m. Sunday, allowing a vote after members are briefed on recommended changes.
Any compromise will contain draconian reductions, ensuring thousands of governmental layoffs and pressure on local governments to boost their taxes to preserve some services.
Jonathan Wilson reports...
VA Lawmakers Agree On $70 Billion Spending Plan
March 14, 2010 - By Jonathan Wilson
In Virginia, negotiations toward a bare-bones state budget have ended with a final vote on the two-year spending plan, scheduled at 5 p.m. Sunday.
The two sides shook hands on a $70 billion two-year spending plan around 1 a.m Sunday morning. It includes the most dramatic cuts to state services and programs in modern Virginia.
The new budget is without the unpaid days off that were initially part of the budget initially in December. It provides state workers no pay raise but gives them 3 percent bonus in 2011 contingent on revenue growth.
It retains substantial reductions in state support to local school districts, but not as severe as the cuts the House had sought in its version of the budget a few weeks ago.
The full House and Senate are expected to take the final budget vote Sunday afternoon, bringing the session to a close a day later than scheduled.
Area Flooding Expected To Continue For Next Few Days
March 13, 2010 - By Jonathan Wilson
Steady rains have led to flooding in spots across our region, and some areas expect to see high water continuing over the next few days.
Rising river waters led the National Park Service to urge visitors to stay away from the C & O National Historic Park at least through the start of next week, and further inland, to close parts of historic Harpers Ferry in West Virginia until further notice.
In Old Town Alexandria, a street sweeper brushed away debris left by rising waters Saturday morning.
"I think we've probably seen as bad as it's going to get-- which was that the water came up on King Street just a little bit west of it's intersection on Union," says Richard Bair, the city's environmental services director.
He says this storm's winds weren't as strong as some had predicted, helping to lessen the impact of tidal flooding.
Heavy Rains This Weekend
March 12, 2010 - By Matt Bush
A flood watch is in effect for the entire region through tomorrow. The Potomac river is very rough and choppy this morning, but it as yet has not overflowed its bank. Joggers and dog walkers are moving along it as if it's any other day.
The city of Alexandria did not pass out sandbags to businesses in Old Town this morning, something it normally does whenever there's a threat of flooding. But that could change, with weather forecasts calling for periods of heavy rain tonight and tomorrow. There have been reports of ponding on some roadways and authorities recommend extra caution while driving this weekend.
Latest Virginia Regional News
March 12, 2010 - HARRISONBURG, Va. (AP) A man has claimed a $200 million Mega Millions jackpot, nearly five months after winning the prize. Lottery officials say Steve Williams of Shenandoah waited to cash in his winning ticket until after he could meet with financial and legal advisers.
RICHMOND, Va. (AP) Gov. Bob McDonnell has met with House and Senate budget negotiators in an effort to expedite budget talks ahead of the General Assembly's scheduled adjournment tomorrow. He met separately behind closed doors with House and Senate budget conferees early today after more than a week of negotiations on a new $70 billion budget.
RICHMOND, Va. (AP) Virginia Commonwealth University is offering a $5,000 reward as the search continues for a missing exchange student. The school announced the reward today for information leading to the location of Jonathan Dorey. Dorey was reported missing March 4th.
MOUNT CRAWFORD, Va. (AP) Shenandoah Valley Electric Cooperative is reducing the amount it charges consumers to recover the cost of fuel used to generate electricity. It says a typical consumer using 1,000 kilowatt hours of electricity per month will see their monthly bill decrease from $122.28 in March 2009 to $108.49.
(Copyright 2010 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
Soldier Portraits Mystify Metro Riders
March 12, 2010 - Peter Granitz
Each stark image shows a soldier from Fort Drum, New York, lying down, gazing off the frame or directly at the viewer. Some look as if they're feigning death. Photographer Suzanne Opton says focusing on each soldier's face humanizes her subjects.
"We put these billboards in eight different cities across the country because people see soldiers as heroes, and they are heroes, but they’re also fathers and brothers," she says.
Afifa Taleb Dean says she’s walked past the image at the Pentagon City Metro station all week and wants to know more.
"It struck my interest," says Taleb. "When I get off I usually don’t pay attention to many things or see many things. It struck my interest."
Fellow Metro rider Dana Faulkner says she heard about the images and wanted to know who the soldiers were and if they were comfortable with the photos.
"Was it scary to them, to lie in a pose that sort of imitates them being dead?" she asks. "That’s some place they don’t want to go."
Opton will be at the Chinatown Metro stop Saturday morning explaining the photos.
Gridlock In The Commonwealth: Interview With Northern VA Transportation Alliance
March 11, 2010 - Bob Chase is the president of the Northern Virginia Transportation Alliance, a local advocacy group that lobbies for-and is funded by-Northern Virginia's business community.
For the past twenty years Chase has called for new highway construction, a stance that puts him at odds with many public transit backers, who say more roads are not the answer. But it also puts him at odds with the Commonwealth's Republicans, who are reluctant to raise taxes for transportation. Chase says that despite Republicans' wishful thinking, there's just no getting around a tax increase...
