Sales of dogs and cats in Virginia would be governed by tougher restrictions under legislation that has passed both houses of the General Assembly.  The bill limits pet shops to selling dogs that were obtained from humane societies, public or private animal shelters, and qualified breeders. One goal is to close the loopholes in state law that have allowed puppy mills some latitude to sell in the Commonwealth.

A Republican state senator is trying desperately to crack down on cigarette trafficking from Virginia to the Northeast, which evidence suggests is so profitable that it’s funding terrorist organizations and fuels organized crime. But several members of his own caucus in the House are standing in the way of one bill that’s passed the Senate.

Some Virginia students who are home-schooled may be able to participate in public school interscholastic programs under legislation that has passed both houses of the General Assembly.  Lawmakers also sought to alleviate some concerns raised by school divisions.

Ballistic knives

In Richmond, lawmakers are taking action to overturn a longstanding ban on selling blackjacks, brass knuckles, throwing stars and ballistic knives. Virginia reporter Michael Pope has more from the state Capitol.

Virginia schools could hold numerous fundraisers per year selling food that doesn’t meet nutritional guidelines under legislation that has passed both houses of the General Assembly.  The bill requires the Board of Education to craft regulations that would be more permissive than current state policy, and permit the sale of what some call “junk food” during school hours.  The Senate made its decision only after lengthy debate about what’s really best for the students.

Both chambers of the Virginia General Assembly have now approved bills that authorize ride-sharing companies such as Lyft and Uber to operate in Virginia-but under greater scrutiny.  The legislation would apply standards to the companies that are similar to those governing the taxi industry.

President Obama’s budget revived a debate at the Capitol over energy policy and climate change.

State and local government officials would be subject to more restrictive ethics rules under separate bills that have passed both houses of the General Assembly.  The measures lower the cap on gifts that officials may accept from $250 to $100, and remove the distinction between tangible and intangible gifts, such as travel or meals. However, the legislation may not completely have Governor McAuliffe’s seal of approval.

Virginia’s medical marijuana law may soon be expanded.  The House of Delegates has given preliminary approval to legislation that would allow the prescribed use of certain oils derived from marijuana if they are used for the treatment of epilepsy.  The legislation appears to be sailing through both chambers of the General Assembly.

Virginia law may soon require that homebuyers be reminded to check on whether they’re moving into a flood zone before they sign a contract. And the City of Norfolk is paying off more than a half-million dollars in federal taxes it somehow overlooked. Those stories have been among the most read over the past week at the Virginia Public Access Project’s VaNews link.

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After a very spirited debate in the state Senate, charter school proponents win a major victory. Senators passed a resolution to amend the state constitution to give the Board of Education authority to establish charter schools in Virginia.

Public employment discrimination based on sexual orientation or gender identity would be prohibited under legislation that has passed the Virginia Senate.  The bill inserts a policy into state law that has been adopted through executive order by Governor McAuliffe and several other gubernatorial administrations. The commonwealth’s Lieutenant Governor played a key role in the legislation’s passage.

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A bipartisan group of Virginia lawmakers support drilling off the commonwealth’s coast for oil and gas. But Capitol Hill reporter Matt Laslo is finding not many in the state’s congressional delegation are happy with the White House announcement it’s opening up the state’s coast to offshore drilling…

Senator Chap Peterson argues against the bill.

The Virginia Senate has shot down legislation to allow people with concealed-carry permits to possess a handgun on school property after normal school hours.  The bill applied only to those times when no school-sponsored functions or extracurricular activities were taking place. Questions about how residents would determine which events are school-sponsored were an insurmountable hurdle to some lawmakers.

It’s not unusual for Attorneys General or Governors to hire counsel from private law firms when they believe they need special expertise or legal services. Now a bill to rein in spending and hold both officeholders accountable for outside counsel they seek on the taxpayer’s dime has passed the State Senate. They also would have to explain why the special counsel IS in the public interest before entering into a contract.

Flickr User Ron Cogswell https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/

President Obama is sending a $4 trillion budget to Congress this morning, and Democrats in the region are glad it calls for lifting budget caps on most federal agencies.

Virginia law may soon require that homebuyers be reminded to check on whether they’re moving into a flood zone before they sign a contract. And the City of Norfolk is paying off more than a half-million dollars in federal taxes it somehow overlooked. Those stories have been among the most read over the past week at the Virginia Public Access Project’s VaNews link.

In Richmond, hundreds of taxicab drivers from across the commonwealth are at the Capitol to rally for new regulations for app- based, ride hailing companies.

In Virginia, Bob McDonnell’s priest says the former governor is hopeful that an appeals court will overturn his conviction for public corruption.

In Richmond, members of the General Assembly are moving forward with the plan to change high school graduation requirements. The bill is part of a larger effort to reduce the influence of standardized tests.

Virginia lawmakers have been mulling over a series of gun bills-and one is the only measure supported by gun-control advocates that has survived a Senate Committee.  While the bill has lost some of its teeth, its sponsor says it nevertheless makes progress in the fight against domestic violence.

In Richmond, the Tea Party and the American Civil Liberties Union are joining forces to crack down on what they say are unreasonable search and seizures in the digital age.

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In Virginia, lawmakers are taking action to REPEAL a system of assigning every school in the commonwealth with a letter grade. As Michael Pope of tells us, lawmakers are giving the idea and F.

Senator Tom Garrett argues for the bill.

The Virginia Senate has postponed a final vote on legislation that would prohibit the state from adopting the national Common Core standards for public education without prior approval of the General Assembly.  The standards have been widely adopted by states but have come under fire—in part, for their mandatory, one-size-fits-all approach.

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A bipartisan group of Virginia lawmakers say the Interior Department move to open up Virginia’s coast to drilling is raising more questions than answers.

Virginia voters’ partisan preferences will remain unknown — if they so choose — after a bill that would have required registration by political party narrowly dies after Senate debate.  The bill was sponsored by a Republican – and effectively killed by another Republican.

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The agenda President Obama is laying out at the start of this new Congress is being rejected by Virginia Republicans who now have more power at the Capitol than Democrats.

A state senator is proposing what sounds like a good deal for consumers – an 8-year freeze on rates charged by Virginia’s largest electric company.

Chesapeake Police Chief Kelvin Wright speaks in support of the bills.

An enormous surge in heroin and prescription-drug overdose deaths in Virginia has prompted the Centers for Disease Control to call it an epidemic.  It’s also why state lawmakers of both parties have joined together to advance a multi-faceted package of bills to tackle the challenge. They believe it’s both a law enforcement AND a public health problem.

Since 9/11, police have been given greater freedom to spy on citizens and to limit civil liberties, presumably to assure public safety, but the American Civil Liberties Union of Virginia thinks they’ve gone too far and is fighting back with several bills in Richmond.

On the 42nd anniversary of the Supreme Court’s decision that legalized abortion, hundreds of women lobbied Virginia lawmakers in person or by e-mail, asking them to increase access to contraception and repeal the state’s mandatory ultrasound law for women seeking an abortion.

About two dozen college students gathered in Richmond this week to demand lower rates for higher education.  The group is hoping for passage of House Bill 1877, which would end tax credits for coal companies and use new revenue for scholarships at Virginia’s public universities.

Virginia’s two Democratic Senators are expected to hold a lot of sway as more moderate voices in the new Republican controlled Senate.

It’s a marijuana decriminalization bill – NOT a marijuana legalization bill – that a Northern Virginia lawmaker is fighting for during this General Assembly session. Senator Adam Ebbin contends that there’s a significant difference, and the legislation is necessary in order to stop making criminals out of otherwise law-abiding citizens.

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Virginia lawmakers say while they ARE crafting more laws to nab sex traffickers, the perpetrators they label as “evil” are getting more aggressive and elusive—which is why it’s time to create one standalone statute to be able to prosecute the traffickers.

Senator Dick Black argues for the bill.

Undocumented immigrant students who’ve been granted the federal status that defers them from deportation would still be able to qualify for in-state college tuition — thanks to the Virginia Senate’s defeat of legislation that would have barred them from receiving the less expensive rates. The bill was killed by a single vote following a lengthy floor debate.

Lines were long at the state capitol Monday as supporters of gun rights passed through security on their way to lobby lawmakers against additional restrictions.  They wore stickers that read: Guns Save Lives.  Later, supporters of gun control would arrive to press for new laws restricting purchase and possession of weapons.

Theater-goers in Richmond will witness an unusual theater production tonight. Actors will stage a show not seen since 1811 – a performance that ended with a deadly fire.

Flickr User Ron Cogswell https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/

Virginia’s House delegation in Washington has a long wish list in the new Congress. Capitol Hill reporter Matt Laslo has the story on their priority list for the commonwealth in the newly seated 114th Congress.

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There’s a new coalition in town, and it aims to police the General Assembly and its policies so that citizens are always in the know. “Transparency Virginia” introduced itself to the public this week, and says it has a non-confrontational yet aggressive agenda to promote best practices in public accountability.

Virginia could soon have a new state song nearly 20 years after the first one was banished…and a fence to be built underneath a new bridge in Richmond is raising some questions. Those stories have been among the most read over the past week at the Virginia Public Access Project’s VaNews link.

Virginia’s school superintendents are applauding the General Assembly’s recent efforts to reduce the number of standardized SOL tests administered to students from 34 to 27.  But they also say that more reforms are needed moving forward—and they’ve outlined them in a new Blueprint for the Future of Education.

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Atlantic Menhaden, the tiny fish that, two years ago, created big trouble between Chesapeake Bay environmentalists and commercial fishermen, is surfacing once more. Scientists have found new data that may prove there’s more of the fish than once thought. Pamela D’Angelo reports.

State Delegate Joe Morrissey

The 2015 General Assembly convened on Wednesday with an undercurrent of drama.  Ostracized by his former party leaders and denounced by others, newly re-elected Democrat-turned-Independent Delegate Joe Morrissey left his jail cell and returned to his legislative office.  Morrissey acknowledges that many colleagues don’t want him there after his misdemeanor conviction.  But the embattled delegate says his constituents DO want him there -and he’s preparing to fight for that.

After some public uproar and contact from a civil liberties group, the four-year-old who was cuffed and shackled by a Greene County school resource officer will be invited back to school with his record wiped clean. The fight, however, goes on.