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Youngkin administration removes webpage on LGBTQ resources for youth
After an inquiry from the right-wing media outlet Daily Wire this May about two websites listed on a Virginia Department of Health webpage offering resources for LGBTQ youth, internal agency emails indicate Gov. Glenn Youngkin’s administration took the entire page down, leaving agency employees who oversaw it bewildered. “Did someone request this?” asked Emily Yeatts, […]
Virginia Court of Appeals says probable cause alone isn’t enough for warrantless search
After a Culpeper deputy searched a woman who concealed drugs in her pants during a traffic stop, the Virginia Court of Appeals ruled law enforcement must have more than probable cause to suspect someone is carrying contraband in order to search that person without a warrant. “Under the Fourth Amendment, probable cause of contraband is […]
Asian longhorned ticks continue to spread in Virginia, causing cattle worries
As Asian longhorned ticks continue to spread throughout Virginia and the United States, scientists are racing to understand how the species is expanding so fast and how they can keep a virulent parasite carried by the ticks from infecting herds of cattle. “There’s a geographic niche for these ticks, and we are reaping that,” said […]
Virginia GOP leaders praise affirmative action ruling, schools vow to keep pursuing diversity
Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin Thursday praised the U.S. Supreme Court’s landmark decision striking down affirmative action at higher education institutions. “Today, after the Supreme Court’s ruling, we are closer than ever before to ensuring that an individual’s future opportunities are unlocked based on the trajectory of their potential, their aspirations and the quality of their […]
What caused Virginia’s budget breakdown? Accounts differ.
Virginia’s budget negotiators don’t agree on whether they did or didn’t agree to a preliminary deal months ago. House Appropriations Chairman Barry Knight, R-Virginia Beach, and Sen. George Barker, D-Fairfax, emerged this week from their budget talks — which the General Assembly conducts mostly in private until a deal is reached — with two starkly […]
Virginia nets almost $1.5 billion in federal broadband funds
Virginia has netted over $1.48 billion in federal funds to expand its broadband network following a state push to update the government’s map of where in Virginia the service is available. The investment “brings us a giant step closer to achieving our goal of universal broadband coverage in Virginia,” said U.S. Sen. Mark Warner, D-Virginia, […]
Virginia eyes soaring college counseling demand as an answer to workforce shortages
The kids are not all right, and they aren’t afraid to tell you that. On college campuses in Virginia and nationwide, students are increasingly reporting struggles with mental health. Study after study has shown rising cases of anxiety, depression and other forms of psychological distress among students aged 18 to 25 — trends that predate […]
Questions swirl at ABC over store thefts and high-ranking officials being put on leave
Embezzlement occurred at seven stores operated by the Virginia Alcoholic Beverage Control Authority over the last year, according to ABC officials, after employees exploited a vulnerability in the cash register system that was flagged by an internal audit report in September 2022. The liquor authority’s leadership insists that audit report went undetected by senior officials […]
Why groups are fighting over obscure 1960s-era ‘slot and perimeter’ rules at a Virginia airport
This spring has seen increased bickering in Northern Virginia over two little-known aviation regulations called the slot and perimeter rules, which govern operations at Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport in Arlington County. What exactly are they — and why are people fighting over them? Read on to figure out what you need to know. The […]
Cigna, Chesapeake hospital to extend contract expiration to June 30
Chesapeake Regional Medical Center will remain in insurance giant Cigna’s network through the end of June after the two agreed to keep their contract alive beyond a previously set June 1 deadline. “I am satisfied with the extension and hopeful that we will reach an agreement soon,” said Chesapeake Regional Healthcare President and CEO Reese […]
Virginia bags biggest spring turkey harvest ever
This spring was a good one for Virginia hunters but less so for Virginia turkeys, as the state saw its highest ever spring harvest of the bird beloved by Benjamin Franklin. On Friday, the Virginia Department of Wildlife Resources announced that 24,447 turkeys were killed during the 2023 spring turkey season, breaking the previous record […]
Contract dispute threatens relationship between Cigna and Chesapeake hospital
Insurance giant Cigna is poised to end its contract with Chesapeake Regional Medical Center June 1 unless the two can reach an agreement over reimbursement rates. The move would mean that Chesapeake Regional, a public hospital in the state’s second-largest city, would no longer be considered in-network for people in the Hampton Roads region who […]