Week in Herndon
Memorial Day Observance at Chestnut Grove. Town of Herndon Holiday Schedule. 2013 Herndon Festival Set for May 30-June 2. Delegate Rust Receives ‘A+’ Rating. Are You Missing Money?
Absentee Voting Starts Now for Democratic Primaries
Primaries held for lieutenant governor and attorney general.
The State Board of Elections reported Monday, May 6, that absentee voting began for the June 11, 2013 primary and all localities met the required 45-day deadline for mailing absentee ballots to voters.
Governor McDonnell Endorses Springfield Site for FBI Headquarters
In letter to FBI director, McDonnell says Fairfax County site will advance “national security mission.”
Virginia Gov. Bob McDonnell has publicly endorsed the Springfield warehouse site for the new FBI building headquarters. In an April 30 letter to FBI Director Robert Mueller and Dan Tangherlini, the acting administrator of the U.S. General Services Administration, McDonnell said the federally owned warehouse is the best choice for a number of reasons.
Fairfax County Budget Reflects ‘Increasing Needs, Decreasing Revenues’
"We as a board spend a lot of time talking about helping people in need, I can only say that when it came time to tax them, they were sadly forgotten." —Supervisor Pat Herrity (R-Springfield)
Editorial: More Obstacles to Transparency
General Assembly puts more information out of public reach, but other factors also limit access.
The first paragraph of the Virginia Freedom of Information Act, passed by the General Assembly in 1968, states that all public records "shall be presumed open." It doesn’t add, “except when we don’t want to,” although that provision does seem to be available in many cases. Individual government entities have a variety of ways of making it hard for the public to access public information.
Better Training, More Technology
The bipartisan commission released findings, recommendations regarding long lines on Election Day.
"The commission has identified a variety of improvements and efficiencies to ensure access and convenience for voters in future elections.” —Sharon Bulova
Governor Approves Conditional Budget for Medicaid Expansion
Vote-swapping operation traded transportation votes for Medicaid money.
Half a million uninsured Virginians may be eligible for Medicaid under an agreement now being worked out in Richmond — a deal in which Republican Gov. Bob McDonnell agreed to include Medicaid expansion as part of the budget if Senate Democrats supported a transportation package.
U.S. Geological Survey Tightens Services
U.S. Geological Survey stops hosting science camp, closes visitors center.
The U.S. Geological Survey in Reston is canceling its participation in the annual science camp it hosts in partnership with the Reston Association and closing its visitors center as part of its implementation of the sequester.
EPA Will Not Appeal Court Decision on Accotink Watershed
EPA regulations could have cost county $300 million.
The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) effectively ended a two-year legal battle with Fairfax County when the agency announced last week it will not appeal a federal court decision favoring Fairfax County’s handling of the Accotink Creek watershed.
Delegate Tom Rust Contributes Key Provision to Texting While Driving Bills
Last week, the General Assembly passed two pieces of legislation—SB 1222 and HB1907—which would change the offense of texting while driving from a secondary offense to a primary one. Earlier in the 2013 session, Delegate Tom Rust (R-Herndon) introduced a bill (HB1357) which, on its own, would change the status of the offense, and receiving wide bipartisan support, the bill was incorporated into HB1907.
Nazi Commonwealth
Bipartisan team seeks compensation for victims of forced sterilization.
Nobody knows how many people are survivors of Virginia’s forced sterilization program, which targeted people with mental illness, mental retardation or epilepsy. But a bipartisan effort now under consideration in Richmond would hand each and every one of them a $50,000 check from the people of Virginia. According to one calculation, that could mean as much as $73 million.
Four Northern Virginia Senators Targeted
Redistricting effort puts Fairfax County seats in the spotlight.
Four Northern Virginia state Senators are targets of a Republican-led effort to draw new districts — Sen. George Barker (D-39), Sen. Dave Marsden (D-37), Sen. Toddy Puller (D-36) and Sen. Chap Petersen (D-34). Democrats say the redistricting effort is a cynical attempt to take advantage of the absence of Sen. Henry Marsh (D-16), a prominent civil rights veteran, who was in Washington, D.C. for the inauguration on Monday. But state Sen. John Watkins (R-10) of Powhatan defended the effort as a way to create a sixth majority black Senate district in Southside. It passed the Senate on a 20-to-19 vote.
Obama’s Agenda
Herndon-Reston citizens on second term priorities for President Obama.
A man walks into a bar… actually a female journalist walked first into O’Sullivan’s Irish Pub and Restaurant on Elden Street in Herndon and then into the bar at Il Fornaio Authentic Italian Restaurant and Bakery on Market Street in Reston Town Center, and posed the same question to several patrons of each establishment: “What do you see as the priorities for President Barack Obama’s second term in office?”
Rust Speaks on Current Session
Transportation high among priorities for residents.
Del. Tom Rust (R-86) addressed his constituents at the Herndon Municipal Center Saturday, Jan. 12 to give an update on the current General Assembly session.
Editorial: More Fodder for Comedy?
2013 session of the Virginia General Assembly will tackle serious issues.
The 2013 30-day session of the Virginia General Assembly begins on Wednesday, Jan. 9. We can only hope that the various legislative proposals do not provide as much fodder for comedy as last session. The Virginia House of Delegates and the Senate of Virginia will offer live streaming video of the 2013 Legislative Sessions, and it is well worth tuning in once or twice.