How the Homelessness Problem in Virginia Compares to Other States

Samuel Stebbins, 24/7 Wall St. via The Center Square

January 07, 10:41 AM January 07, 10:41 AM

On a single night in 2022, 582,462 people experienced homelessness in the United States, and numbers are on the rise. Since 2017, there has been a 6% increase in homelessness.

About six in 10 of the people experiencing homelessness in 2022 had access to emergency shelters, transitional housing programs, or safe havens, while the remainder were unsheltered. Rates of unsheltered homelessness -- which includes those sleeping on the streets, in abandoned buildings, and in wooded areas -- are also on the rise.

According to the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, there were an estimated 6,529 people experiencing homelessness on a single night in Virginia in 2022. Adjusting for population, this comes out to about 7.6 people for every 10,000 state residents, the sixth fewest among the 50 states.

Of those experiencing homelessness in Virginia, a reported 10.5% were unsheltered, the eighth lowest share among states.

All data in this story is from the 2022 Annual Homelessness Assessment Report to Congress from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development.

This Is the Best Place to Live in Virginia

Samuel Stebbins, 24/7 Wall St. via The Center Square

January 07, 08:09 AM January 07, 08:09 AM

The number of Americans who relocate each year has been trending downward for decades. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, only 28.2 million people moved to a new home in 2022, down from 41.1 million 20 years earlier. Of those who did move in 2022, the vast majority - an estimated 78% - stayed within the same state.

When Americans do decide to move, many do so to improve their standard of living. Climate, health considerations, taking or finding a new job, buying a better or more affordable home, and living in a safer neighborhood are all commonly cited reasons. But for those who are not prepared to move across the country, within every state, there are cities and towns that stand out for the higher overall quality of life they can offer.

Based on a weighted index of 22 key measures from government sources, related to community, the economy, and quality of life, McLean ranks as the best place to live in Virginia.

McLean, home to about 49,310 people, has a median household income of $242,610 and a median home value of $1,102,100. According to the 2023 County Health Rankings and Roadmaps program, a collaboration between the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and University of Wisconsin Population Health Institute, 99.7% of the local population have easy access to places for exercise, like parks. Census data also shows that there are about 14.8 recreational and entertainment venues, such as movie theaters, museums, sports clubs, libraries, and restaurants for every 10,000 businesses in the area.

We considered all places in the U.S. with sufficient data and populations of at least 5,000. Our list includes cities, towns, villages, boroughs, and unincorporated communities. Click here to read our full methodology.

Washington's streak of 718 days without snow unlikely to be broken despite East Coast bracing for storm

Misty Severi

January 05, 05:20 PM January 05, 05:20 PM

Washington, D.C.'s streak of 718 days without heavy snow will not likely be broken anytime soon, even as the rest of the East Coast prepares for a winter storm this weekend.

Although light snowfall is possible in the nation's capital in the early hours of Saturday morning, an expected shift to cold rain could stop the snow from accumulating on the ground. However, neighboring communities around Washington, such as Loudoun County, Virginia, are expected to see the most snow in the region.

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A winter advisory warning has gone into effect for Saturday in areas that are largely north and west of Washington, including Prince William County, Fairfax County, Fauquier County, Spotsylvania County, Loudoun County, and Stafford County in Virginia. Montgomery County and Howard County, Maryland, are also under an advisory.

The National Weather Service has warned pedestrians and travelers that roads and walkways could be icy in the areas under an advisory this weekend due to the mix of snow, sleet, and freezing rain.

“When venturing outside, watch your first few steps taken on steps, sidewalks, and driveways, which could be icy and slippery, increasing your risk of a fall and injury,” the NWS cautioned.

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Other winter storm warnings have been activated from North Carolina up to Maine. Cities such as Philadelphia and New York City are just outside the warning zone but could still witness some snowfall.

The last time that Washington saw more than 1 inch of snow was in January 2022, meaning there have been more than 700 days without any significant snowfall. Dulles International Airport and Baltimore have gone 663 days and 706 days, respectively. Those streaks are also not expected to break this weekend, according to the Washington Post.

Glenn Youngkin’s popularity at record high, approval throughout Virginia

Paul Bedard

January 05, 01:03 PM January 05, 01:17 PM

Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin’s popularity continues to soar, even after voters turned the commonwealth’s general assembly over to Democrats.

Instead of crashing after last November’s big defeat, Youngkin’s approval rating has hit a record high of 58% in the latest Mason-Dixon survey.

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His approvals top disapprovals in every corner of Virginia, including the Washington suburbs, which are among the most liberal portions of the commonwealth. In Northern Virginia, 48% approve of the conservative governor, while 46% don’t.

The survey results could help Youngkin in his push for tax cuts when the general assembly returns to Richmond next week for its 60-day session.

According to Mason-Dixon, he has the support of 58% of independents, though just 28% of Democrats. Still, he has unusually high approval of key minority groups, including blacks at 36%. Women also approve of him, 51%-41%.

Before last Fall's election, there was talk that he might want to run for president, but many of the state filing deadlines have passed.

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He has also been considered a prime vice presidential candidate, and his 96% rating among Republicans could help his chances. What’s more, if he maintains his popularity, he could help the eventual nominee win Virginia.

In another Mason-Dixon poll released Friday, President Joe Biden leads former President Donald Trump 49% to 43%. For Trump, that is four points better than the final Virginia 2020 vote of 54.1% to 44% and suggests he is gaining on Biden in the commonwealth.

Army removes Confederate Memorial put up in 1914 from Arlington National Cemetery

David Mark

January 04, 07:10 PM January 04, 07:10 PM

ARLINGTON, Virginia — The Army has removed the Confederate Memorial at the nation’s most prominent military cemetery, capping a Defense Department effort to rid its property of rebel imagery.

The removal from Arlington National Cemetery came on Dec. 20 after a federal judge lifted a temporary injunction that briefly kept in place the towering 1914 monument. At 32 feet tall, the memorial featured a bronze, classical figure crowned with olive leaves, representing the South.

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U.S. District Judge Rossie Alston had granted a temporary injunction after the group Defend Arlington, an affiliate of Save Southern Heritage Florida, filed a lawsuit and sought the restraining order. The group had argued the removal of the monument was disturbing gravesites.

The judge’s decision to move ahead with the removal led to the dismantling of one of the most prominent Confederate monuments in the nation. More than 160 monuments and memorials to the Confederate States of America have been removed since about 2015, spurred at first by the shooting that year at a predominantly black church in Charleston, South Carolina, which claimed nine lives. Some have been removed by state and local governments, while others have been torn down by protesters.

The change at Arlington National Cemetery, with 400,000 gravesites and administered by the Army, is the final act of an effort ordered by the bipartisan Naming Commission. The panel was established by Congress and President Joe Biden in 2021 after nationwide protests over the death of George Floyd while in custody of Minneapolis, Minnesota, police. The commission was given a mandate to remove vestiges of the Confederacy from the military and recommend name changes.

It identified nine Army bases for name changes, including Fort Bragg in North Carolina, Fort Pickett in Virginia, Fort Benning in Georgia, and Fort Hood in Texas. It also identified Navy ships, buildings, street names, and memorials at military locations across the country to be changed.

The removal at Arlington National Cemetery, a 20-minute walk from Washington’s Georgetown neighborhood on a nice day, leaves a wide round dirt hole in the ground. The former Confederate Memorial site is a short stroll down from the eternal flame at the gravesite of slain President John F. Kennedy and his family, along with lesser-known Arlington burial sites, such as the graves of the late President William Howard Taft and Robert Todd Lincoln, son of assassinated President Abraham Lincoln. The younger Lincoln was a prominent Gilded Age lawyer, businessman, and sometimes official in Republican administrations.

“All bronze elements of the memorial will be relocated,” Arlington National Cemetery says on its website. “The granite base and foundation will remain in place to avoid disturbing surrounding graves.”

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Defend Arlington sued the Defense Department in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia, arguing the Pentagon had rushed its decision to remove the monument and that it did not prepare an environmental impact statement, as required by federal law. But the judge brushed aside those claims.

Around the same time in December, 44 House Republican lawmakers wrote to Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin, demanding Confederate monument efforts be halted until fiscal 2024 federal spending bills have become law — since some GOP lawmakers have included proposals in them that would reverse the Naming Commission’s decisions about Confederate monikers on U.S. military property.

“As you well know, in 1898, following the Spanish-American War, where Union and Confederate veterans fought side-by-side under one flag, President William McKinley declared in the heart of the South, Atlanta, Georgia, that the U.S. government would commit to sharing in the burden of honoring and properly burying the Confederate dead, stating, ‘Sectional feelings no longer holds back the love we feel for each other. The old flag waves over us in peace with new glories,’” wrote the GOP lawmakers, mostly from deep red districts.

One electoral exception is Rep. Ken Calvert (R-CA), chairman of the House Defense Appropriations Subcommittee, who faces a possibly strong 2024 Democratic challenge from former federal prosecutor Will Rollins in the southern Riverside suburbs to Palm Springs 41st Congressional District. Another signatory with a possibly competitive House race, Rep. Ryan Zinke (R-MT), is in his second House stint after being interior secretary in former President Donald Trump’s administration for nearly its first two years. Zinke faces a rematch in 2024 from Democratic rival Monica Tranel, an attorney and former Olympic rower, in the western Montana 2nd Congressional District.

Austin and Pentagon brass ignored the letter, and the removal process moved ahead. Meanwhile, around the same time, about 703 miles south in Jacksonville, Florida, the Confederate monument matter bubbled up after a period of relative quiet in localities.

Democratic Jacksonville Mayor Donna Deegan announced, after the fact, that the “Tribute to the Women of the Southern Confederacy” statue in the city had been removed.

The statue had been in place at Springfield Park in Jacksonville since 1915. Deegan, who was elected to the mayor’s office earlier in 2023, said in a statement that the removal was not to “erase history” but rather to “show that we’ve learned from it.”

“Symbols matter. They tell the world what we stand for and what we aspire to be. By removing the Confederate monument from Springfield Park, we signal a belief in our shared humanity. That we are all created equal. The same flesh and bones. The same blood running through our veins. The same heart and soul,” Deegan said.

“This is not in any way an attempt to erase history but to show that we’ve learned from it. That when we know better, we do better by and for each other. My prayer today is for our beautiful city to continue embracing unity and bending the arc of history towards justice. Let’s keep lifting as we climb,” she added.

The removal sparked outrage from some Republicans, including state Rep. Dean Black, who represents a neighboring district to Jacksonville. Black accused Deegan of an “abuse of power” by removing the statue without the Republican-controlled city council ever moving on a proposal to do so.

The events coincided with a brewing controversy faced by 2024 Republican presidential candidate Nikki Haley over her comments in response to a question from an attendee at a town hall in New Hampshire about the Civil War’s cause.

Haley, South Carolina governor from 2011-17, followed by nearly two years as U.S. ambassador to the United Nations in the Trump administration, said the Civil War was about government interfering in people’s freedoms.

“I think the cause of the Civil War was basically how government was going to run. The freedoms and what people could and couldn’t do,” Haley said on Dec. 27 in a visit to Berlin, New Hampshire, the first of a series of events in the Granite State in her attempt to close the gap with Republican front-runner Trump ahead of the Jan. 23 primary.

Her answer, though, drew condemnation far and wide due to her omission of slavery as the war’s driving cause. Critics said the answer was simple — that the Civil War featured one side with a righteous cause and one side with a lost cause that defended a fundamentally evil system.

Haley and her campaign quickly tried to walk back the Civil War remarks.

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“Of course, the Civil War was about slavery,” Haley told radio host Jack Heath the next morning.

“But what’s the lesson in all of that?” she continued. “That we need to make sure that every person has freedom of speech, freedom of religion, freedom to do and be anything they want to be without anyone or government getting in the way. That was the goal of what that was at. Yes, I know it was about slavery. I’m from the South, of course, I know it’s about slavery.”

Youngkin seeks to aid cake pop makers over state policy restriction

Asher Notheis

January 04, 04:50 PM January 05, 02:51 PM

Gov. Glenn Youngkin (R-VA) is seeking to address food safety concerns within Virginia, which have become an obstruction for some small-business owners.

One small-business owner, Kelly Phillips, received a notice from a food safety official that operating her cake pop bakery, KP's Kake Pops & Treats, without a necessary permit from the Virginia Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services was against regulations. Should she fail to fix this, she could be given a misdemeanor charge, which she described as a "devastation."

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"We're going to fix this, Virginia will always be the best place to live, work, and bake cake pops!" Youngkin wrote online.

Phillips told the Washington Examiner that the biggest change she would like to see Virginia's state leadership make is to the Cottage Food Laws, which she described as "restrictive" and add difficulty for her "to grow as a home baker." She also added that she would like to be allowed to sell her cake pops online, even if she would only be limited to shipping within the state.

"The approved venues I am allowed to sell my cake pops are from my home/direct to the consumer, as well as at farmers markets," Phillips said. "Expanding the approved venues to include craft shows, festivals, and other community events would increase my customer base."

The notice Phillips received stemmed from how she was selling her cake pops at a craft show instead of a farmers market, along with promoting her pastries online via social media. A spokeswoman for the department indicated that there are regulatory distinctions between different types of events such as farmers markets and craft shows.

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The Institute for Justice, a law firm in Arlington, Virginia, informed the Virginia Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services that the state's policy is “breathtakingly unconstitutional."

Phillips told the Washington Examiner that she has received an "amazing outpouring of support" from her community since receiving the notice from the food official. She also told the Virginia Mercury that she hopes this dilemma can draw attention to the state's rules regarding selling cake pops, along with the limitations that these rules implement.

Majority of Virginians are against electric vehicle mandate: Poll

Jenny Goldsberry

January 04, 11:48 AM January 04, 11:48 AM

While some Virginians weren't previously aware of their state's mandate to only sell electric vehicles after 2035, most are against it.

A December poll from Mason-Dixon Polling & Strategy, Inc. found that 57% of those polled wanted the Virginia General Assembly to repeal the mandate, compared to 30% who thought it should remain and 13% who were not sure. Almost half of respondents were unaware of the mandate prior to participating in the survey.

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Out of the group that was aware of the mandate, 68% of people were against it, and a quarter were in favor of it. Among those previously unaware, 35% were for the mandate, and 45% were against it.

Democratic respondents were most likely to be for the mandate at 38% but still had a group of 45% that wanted it repealed. Almost three-quarters of Republican respondents were against the mandate, along with 54% of independent respondents.

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A total of 625 registered voters were involved in the poll, which had a margin of error of plus or minus 4 percentage points.

The mandate from the State Air Pollution Control Board passed during former Democratic Gov. Ralph Northam's term, and it is a copy of California's ban on gas-powered vehicles by 2035. The General Assembly failed last year to implement legislation that would have blocked the mandate.

It was a good year for the Chesapeake Bay

Morgan Sweeney | The Center Square

January 01, 09:07 AM January 01, 09:07 AM

(The Center Square) — After decades of conservation work and multiple pieces of state and federal legislation passed on its behalf, 2023 proved a banner year for the Chesapeake Bay, according to data gathered by the Maryland Department of Natural Resources and Virginia’s Old Dominion University.

For years, conservationists have expressed concern over the amount of nutrient pollution entering the bay and disrupting its ecosystem. This year’s data showed that the bay had the “lowest average hypoxic volume since monitoring began 39 years ago,” according to a statement released by the Maryland DNR.

Tens of billions of federal and state dollars have been spent on bay conservation efforts — including reducing hypoxia, or dangerously low oxygen levels that inhibit marine life — since 1985, a couple of years after the first piece of federal legislation to restore the bay was passed. Federal and state governments have invested over $15 billion in the bay since 2015 alone. And those involved in such efforts are attributing 2023’s good news, at least partly, to the many initiatives that both government and non-governmental organizations have championed for so long.

When released, the Maryland DNR’s Program Chief of Water Quality Informatics commented on the results.

“This year’s Chesapeake Bay dissolved oxygen conditions are the best on record,” said Mark Trice in a statement. “These results illustrate that nutrient input reductions can produce a significant improvement for fish, crab and oyster habitats, and that we need to continue to advance our management efforts throughout the watershed.”

Trice referred to the management efforts, including agricultural and urban strategies to reduce polluted runoff implemented in parts of Delaware, the District of Columbia, Maryland, New York, Pennsylvania, Virginia and West Virginia.

“We can say these efforts are working — in the last reporting year (2021), we found that 77% of nitrogen reductions came from the agricultural sector,” said Rachel Felver, Program Communications Director for the Chesapeake Bay Program, in an email to The Center Square.

However, Felver also told The Center Square that during the most recent reporting period from 2019-21, the Program found that nitrogen and phosphorus, which are abundant in agricultural fertilizers and can contribute to hypoxia, still entered the bay in numbers that are difficult to comprehend — 286 million pounds of nitrogen and 19.9 million pounds of phosphorus. Nearly 18 billion pounds of sediment entered the bay during that time.

“These figures are lower than the long-term average (1985-2021) but are increases from the previous year,” Felver said.

It will take time to know what those numbers were for 2023.

This year’s low hypoxic volume happened despite imperfect conditions. Freshwater inflows (which carry runoff) to the bay were close to historical lows, but air temperatures were among historical highs, contributing to lower oxygen levels in the water.

Hypoxic volume can also fluctuate significantly with the seasons.

“Dissolved oxygen was better than average in May through August, with early August having the lowest volume of hypoxia ever measured during that time period,” Maryland’s DNR reported. “Hypoxia remained into September with worse than average conditions of 0.84 cubic miles observed versus a September historical average of 0.45. No hypoxia was observed in October.”

The Center Square previously reported on congressional legislation bolstering bay conservation projects for the next 10 years.

New year, new laws coming to the commonwealth

Sarah Roderick-Fitch | The Center Square

January 01, 09:05 AM January 01, 09:05 AM

(The Center Square) — The new year signals change, specifically new laws which will take effect in Virginia, especially in the health care sector.

The Commonwealth will see a slew of new laws aimed at improving health insurance coverage, recognizing specific out-of-state counseling licenses, streamlining home studies for adoption and changes to the state's medical marijuana oversite.

Hearing aids

Earlier this year, the Senate passed legislation requiring health insurers to provide hearing aids for minors at an affordable rate if recommended by a doctor. Every two years, families will be able to receive up to $1,500 for minor's hearing devices.

Counseling Compact

The House passed a bill making it easier for counselors to practice across state lines through Compact permits, making Virginia the 20th state to join the Counseling Compact. Eligible licensed counselors must be licensed in at least one member state.

Continuity of care

In addition, the House also passed a bill to improve the continuity of care through health insurance carriers, which will be required to notify enrollees if a provider is removed from the carrier's panel. Even if the provider is removed, patients can still receive care for up to 90 days following removal.

The new law makes exceptions for pregnant women to continue care with their provider through postpartum. It also provides care for up to 180 days for those with life-threatening conditions. Additionally, the provider may continue care for patients receiving inpatient treatment until discharged from the inpatient facility.

Paid sick leave

Under a new law passed by the Senate, employers must provide paid sick leave to health care providers and grocery store workers. Currently, employers are only required to provide sick leave to certain home health care workers. The bill also removes a requirement that workers work on average a minimum of 20 hours per week, or 90 hours per month, to be eligible.

Home studies

Under a new law, home studies for adoptions will become transferable, providing flexibility to the adoption process. The law will allow home studies conducted by adoption agencies or social services boards to be transferred between localities and state-licensed adoption agencies.

Medical Marijuana

A new law will affect the oversight of the commonwealth's medical marijuana program, transferring it from the Virginia Board of Pharmacy to the Virginia Cannabis Control Authority. The CCA will be required to adopt previously enacted regulations for medical marijuana dispensaries.

Three times states went to war with the NCAA in 2023

Jack Birle

December 31, 06:00 AM December 31, 06:00 AM

Several states have gone to war with the NCAA over various matters in 2023, marking a bumpy year for the governing body of college sports.

The NCAA felt the wrath of state governments for several issues ranging from name, image, and likeness, or NIL, legislation to football postseason selections. Here is a look at three subjects that caused states to go to war with the NCAA this year.

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NIL legislation

Several states have passed laws that conflict with the NCAA's NIL policy, creating tension between the states and the college sports governing body.

Laws passed in Texas, Arkansas, and Oklahoma would allow groups associated with a university that are separate entities to pay athletes for NIL endorsements, but the NCAA has told schools to follow its guidance.

"The Association has been clear and maintains that schools must adhere to NCAA legislation (or policy) when it conflicts with permissive state laws," the NCAA's executive vice president of regulatory affairs, Stan Wilcox, wrote in a letter to schools in June. "In other words, if a state law permits certain institutional action and NCAA legislation prohibits the same action, institutions must follow NCAA legislation."

The tension between schools, states, and the NCAA on this matter is the latest in the saga of NIL issues. Because of the inconsistency, the Senate has explored options for federal legislation outlining how NIL can work for schools and athletes.

James Madison Football's bowl eligibility

The James Madison Dukes were denied a waiver to be eligible for a bowl, having to rely on how many teams were bowl eligible to receive a bid, which caused uproar among Virginia lawmakers.

James Madison is in the second of their mandatory two-year postseason suspension because they moved from the Football Championship Subdivision to the Football Bowl Subdivision. The suspension is standard practice for the NCAA when a team moves to the higher subdivision, but the university had asked for a waiver to participate in 2023 postseason action.

The program's waiver was first denied in April and again in November despite the team being 11-1 and ranked 24th in the Associated Press college football rankings heading into the postseason.

Virginia Attorney General Jason Miyares threatened legal action against the NCAA, and Democratic Virginia Senate President Pro Tempore L. Louise Lucas said the state would "go to war on this."

"Let me remind the [NCAA] that they are required by their charter to follow state laws where they operate. If they continue to hold [James Madison football] hostage to a technical rule and stop them from competing in the postseason they will face a very unfriendly future from our legislature," Lucas said in a post on X, formerly known as Twitter.

The Dukes would receive a berth in the Armed Forces Bowl against Air Force on Dec. 23 because too few teams were bowl eligible to fill all the postseason games.

Florida State's College Football Playoff snub

The Florida State Seminoles's exclusion from the College Football Playoff enraged Florida lawmakers, who vowed to investigate the playoff committee over the snub.

The Seminoles finished the season undefeated, 13-0, and won the Atlantic Coast Conference, a Power Five conference, but the committee chose the 12-1 Texas Longhorns and 12-1 Alabama Crimson Tide over Florida State for the four-team playoff.

Florida Attorney General Ashley Moody called the decision an "injustice" and said she would launch an investigation to see if the playoff committee had committed any "anticompetitive conduct" in December.

"No rational person or college football fan can look at this situation and not question the result. The NCAA, conferences, and the College Football Playoff Committee are subject to antitrust laws," Moody said in a statement.

“My Office is launching an investigation to examine if the Committee was involved in any anticompetitive conduct. As it stands, the Committee’s decision reeks of partiality, so we are demanding answers — not only for FSU, but for all schools, teams and fans of college football. In Florida, merit matters. If it’s attention they were looking for, the Committee certainly has our attention now,” she added.

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As part of the investigation, she sent the committee a civil investigative demand seeking various communications, including those "relating to deliberations to or from the SEC, ACC, NCAA, ESPN, Group of Five conferences, Power Five conferences or any other person relating to the deliberation." Moody also requested information about the final vote for the playoff, including tallies of the committee members.

Sen. Rick Scott (R-FL) has also demanded information from the playoff committee, seeking to see what went into Florida State's historic snub.