Virginia Public Radio

Virginia lawmakers are evaluating whether all of the state tax preferences enacted over the years are being effectively used—as well as their potential impact on revenues.  The Joint Legislative Audit and Review Commission has identified 187 credits, deductions, sales tax exemptions, and other tax breaks … but the watchdog agency says only some work the way they were intended.

Many tax preferences, such as sales-tax relief for food, were enacted to achieve policy goals of providing financial assistance or promoting desirable activities.  In 2008, they reduced taxpayer liability by $2.9 billion.  But JLARC Project Leader Ellen Miller said some to provide tax breaks for people with lower incomes also helped others:

“Only two preferences, the age deduction and low income tax credit, did so efficiently and provided the majority share of the reduced liability to intended beneficiaries,” said Miller.

Miller said the land conservation and historic rehabilitation credits did promote those activities.  Tax breaks to help save for college were only somewhat effective.  “In contrast, we found that preferences promoting the coal industry, nonprofit activity, and long-term care insurance were unlikely to achieve their goal.”

The worker retraining credit was too small to promote retraining. The report recommends creating an oversight panel to assess all preferences. Some advocates are calling for repeal of tax “loopholes”—to fund services with the revenue that’s saved.

–Anne Marie Morgan

Surveys consistently show that the vast majority of Americans fail basic tests of civic literacy.  That’s one reason why a General Assembly commission sponsored a Civics Education Summit in Richmond attended by teachers from across the Commonwealth. They discussed practical ways to help students learn political knowledge—while capturing their imaginations.

A major theme was the effectiveness of teaching and learning methods. For example, when students read, they remember about 10% of what’s read.  Hearing results in a 20% retention rate.  But students who discuss material remember 70% … and when they also do an activity, they recall 90%.  Henrico teacher Kathryn Niemeier is a trainer for the civics education program, Project Citizen.  She said hands-on learning is essential for mastering civics knowledge.

“And that’s what Project Citizen really does.  It explains to students how you can participate in the process effectively, get your voice heard.  You don’t always get the outcome you necessarily want.  But you get your voice heard.  But it’s a way of participating outside the most common form which they hear about—that’s voting,” she said.

Niemeier also said learning dispositions, such as respect, accountability, and political efficacy are also critical.  She added that research, oral language, and other skills acquired through an active approach will also transfer to other subjects.

–Anne Marie Morgan

The Commonwealth Institute for Fiscal Analysis has unveiled the latest in a series of studies that identify issues in Virginia that hinder economic growth.  The most recent study examines the labor force—and how well the state has rebounded since the economic recovery began in June, 2009. Michael Cassidy there says Virginia has a long way to go before it rebounds to pre-recession levels.  Compared to past downturns, the number of job losses continued to grow.

“So unemployment, for example, rose by 14% in our state last year, and that was the largest jump in the whole South Atlantic region,” says Cassidy.

More than 1 in 3 unemployed workers looked for jobs for more than 27-weeks. The state remains 128,000 jobs below pre-recession levels .In addition, underemployment remains a problem …as some who obtain jobs work only part-time or below their skill levels.  Cassidy says to help workers get back to pre-recession levels—the state could raise the minimum wage, provide training for new skills, and enact more earned income tax credits.

–Tommie McNeil

Just hours after celebrating a historic day of elections in Virginia and the Republican Party, Governor McDonnell embarks on an 11-day trade mission to meet with leaders in India and Israel, including Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.  But some say Virginia’s success abroad and its recognition as the most business-friendly state in the U.S. has been, in part, because of its diversity and ability to incorporate various ideas, regardless of party affiliation, into business concerns.  And with one party in power in Richmond, the Governor still thinks other nations will view the Commonwealth in the same light.

If the election results are confirmed, the GOP would have the largest majority in history in the House of Delegates and a working majority in the Virginia Senate.  Republicans also hold all three statewide offices.  McDonnell says all interests will still be represented as the state moves forward, but he believes there will be less gridlock on some key issues that may have prevented the Commonwealth from focusing on business expansion and job creation.

“The whole goal there, regardless of whose in charge back here in Richmond, my whole goal is to bring more jobs and opportunity in Virginia. I want more direct foreign investment, I want them to open up their foreign markets and to buy more things from Virginia–hopefully convince a lot of people in both Israel and India that they ought to be dealing with the most business friendly state in America–Virginia,” said McDonnell.

The Governor intends to build on the current relationship Virginia has with Israel while cultivating one with India. He will provide updates on his trade mission during the course of his travels and will return to Richmond November 22.

–Tommie McNeil

The State Board of Elections is reporting that polls are generally operating smoothly today as Virginia voters cast ballots for all 140 seats of the General Assembly and numerous local offices.  The Board also says that most voters directly affected by redistricting appear to know their polling places have changed—although some have not initially understood how to get to their new polling locations.

There have been only isolated incidents of glitches across Virginia.  There were some problems in Montgomery County today, where a poll worker was giving out wrong ballots to voters.  The registrar there says he doesn’t know how many people may have cast ballots in the wrong races.

Isle of Wight had an operator error with the electronic pollbook and voting machines.

In Fairfax, some voters went to incorrect polling locations.

In Chesterfield, battery-operated equipment was used due to a few power problems.  In Henrico County, 954 voters were not listed in 19 precincts, which then switched to paper pollbooks.

In Giles County, voters temporarily used paper ballots when a voting machine went down

The State Board reports turnout appears to be heavier in districts with competitive races.  Four years ago in the last election for all General Assembly seats, the turnout was only about 30% statewide.

–Anne Marie Morgan

Tuesday is Election Day for all 140 seats of the Virginia General Assembly—as well as for a number of local offices statewide.  It’s the first election held after this year’s redistricting of legislative boundaries, and some displaced incumbents have even moved into different districts to try to retain a seat.  But partisan control of the upper chamber will depend on electoral outcomes in a SMALL minority of districts.

With only 37 contested House seats, the GOP’s continued majority there is not in doubt.  But a pick-up of two Senate seats would also give Republicans effective control in that chamber.  Political scientist Dr. Bob Holsworth says Senate redistricting was more favorable to Democrats—so the question is whether the GOP will continue a winning streak that began two years ago.

“The Republicans have had a major enthusiasm advantage over the last couple of years both in Virginia and in the United States.  And if they can turn out their voters, Republicans certainly stand a chance of taking the two seats they need,” says Holsworth.

And he adds that both parties are well-funded.

“The Democrats have a shot, I think, at two seats that the Republicans hope to win:  one in the Lynchburg to Louisa area and the other perhaps in Loudoun. But the reality is the Republicans have challengers in the Southwest, in Northern Virginia, in the exurban areas of Northern Virginia, in Hampton Roads.  So the difficulty for the Democrats is that they are really trying to hold on to 8 or 10 seats that are being targeted very strongly.”

Voter turnout is expected to be low.

–Anne Marie Morgan

The old adage is “One man’s trash is another man’s treasure,” but the collaboration between an environmental services company, an electric coop, a methane gas company and the local and state government is turning millions of tons of trash into the treasure of many.

The unveiling of a new trash-to-energy facility in Richmond sets an example of how innovation can help meet energy demand and preserve the environment.

Across the U.S., thousands of mountainous caches of trash do not only exist, but grow everyday… and will decompose and emit harmful methane gas.  But several companies are converting these landfills into methane wells, which are like natural gas wells and can be used to power vehicles, homes, and businesses.  Mark Comora, President of Fortistar, said this process is cleaner than just burning the methane, and is the only renewable energy source with a continuous flow. He said the new plant can power 4500 homes.

“There’s about 1.5 billion tons on landfills that have not yet been developed in the country. That would be sufficient for one-thousand megawatts of electricity. That would require about two-and-a-half billion dollars of capital. Two-and-half billion dollars means jobs, and that would be sufficient to power 675,000 homes,” says Comora.

Lt. Governor Bill Bolling said an added benefit is that except for permitting, the government has no part in building these facilities—thus promoting free enterprise without using scarce state funds.

— Tommie McNeil

Many people would like to choose careers that society holds in high regard or that generate high incomes, but some are finding that the competition is so stiff, that it’s hard to make a good living or even obtain a job in those dream occupations.  But at this year’s Governor’s Forum on Education and Workforce Training, educators and business leaders discussed how to better prepare students for modern careers that maintain a decent quality of life—and also keep jobs in the Commonwealth.

Governor McDonnell told participants he still thinks that one must get a good education to obtain a good career and be successful—but that must include training in skills that will augment what’s learned early in life and college. Secretary of Education Laura Fornash also says it’s long overdue for educators and business leaders to join together to develop a comprehensive strategy to help students set realistic goals:

“It’s trying to better align what our educational programs are providing–the preparation of our young people as well as retraining. We need to make sure that we have programs in place to be able to develop the workforce for, as I mentioned, today’s jobs as well as those for the future and that alignment is really critical,” says Fornash.

She says that means building an interest for future jobs at the K-12 level and providing more trade alternatives in community colleges.  Fornash says while educators are addressing the academic component, business leaders are devising ways to enhance job opportunities and skills training so that students will want to stay in Virginia long after they are credentialed.

–Tommie McNeil

Virginia lawmakers are so concerned about the proliferation of methamphetamine in the Commonwealth that they are considering changing the state policy that governs many over-the-counter cold and allergy medicines.  With 90 percent of U.S. meth labs located in the eastern half of the country, some officials believe the status quo has become unacceptable.

Meth is often made with pseudoephedrine from cold pills.  But even after limits were set on the amount of cold medicines per purchase, meth manufacturing has increased … exacting a heavy toll in health, public safety, child welfare, and toxic chemical clean-up costs.  The Joint Commission on Health Care’s Michele Chesser says meth is more potent than cocaine:

“It also, unfortunately, depletes the brain’s dopamine stores and destroys the dopamine receptors.  And these can take up to one year to re-grow. So during that period, if the individual is not using meth, they are incapable of experiencing pleasure.  So this makes it very, very difficult to treat.  They can fall into a very deep depression and, as a result, oftentimes will go back using meth,” says Chesser.

The number of meth labs declined in the two states that require prescriptions for cold medicines.  Some lawmakers argue that a similar law would have the same effect in Virginia, but others say that would be inconvenient and expensive. Another option is a monitoring database that would require customer identification and track all cold medicine purchases.

–Anne Marie Morgan

Earlier this year, Virginia banned the sale and possession of synthetic marijuana due to its very harmful effects, but state officials have discovered a new trend:  the products are now being re-packaged and sold with similar, potentially dangerous chemicals that are not prohibited. The State Crime Commission is weighing options to help prevent clever manufacturers from skirting the law—and avoiding prosecution.

The state lab analyzed recent evidence packaged like the banned synthetic cannabinoids.  But Department of Forensic Science Chemistry Program Manager Linda Jackson said it found many more non-prohibited compounds than those that are not.

“And so, it seems that once a compound becomes prohibited, the people who are manufacturing these preparations just take that compound out because it is prohibited, and they now add in another one that is not,” said Jackson.

Commission members discussed whether to add more compounds or perhaps the class of chemicals to the law.  But some wondered if the misdemeanor penalty is a deterrent.  Senator Tommy Norment said a stiff civil fine on retailers who sell the products might be effective.

“And I’m talking in the neighborhood of $50-or-$100,000 to see whether or not they’re willing to take the business risk of selling a compound like this— recognizing that the penalty would be so monetarily severe that ‘the squeeze ain’t worth the juice,'” said Norment.

The Commission plans to make a recommendation in December.

–Anne Marie Morgan

Politifact Virginia was launched a year ago this week at the Richmond Times-Dispatch. Fred Echols reports on some of the website’s first-year numbers and learns about a claim in a GOP TV ad.

About 10% of Virginia has broadband “Dead Zones” without service.  To the Broadband Advisory Council, that’s significant—since in order to be competitive in business and development, communities need to quickly access the worldwide web.  But Deputy Secretary of Technology Karen Jackson says that creates a “Catch 22” situation because a community can only attract an Internet provider when there’s a decent return on often risky investments:

“There are community models that the community can bind together, aggregate demand, count the number of people who want service and actually build a business case and then market it back to the providers, trade off tower space, trade off high structures for wireless. There’s a lot of creative solutions that have been applied in some areas such as Franklin County, and can be applied without requiring a whole lot of cash to be spent anyway,” says Jackson.

Jackson says Virginia would like to assist communities more, but there’s not much discretionary money.  She adds that the state does not want to get into the business of providing Internet service since states that have, lost money.

–Tommie McNeil

Last year, Virginia trailed only Arkansas and Idaho in the amount required to be paid by employer-sponsored family health insurance plans.  A a new Commonwealth Institute study finds that these costs lead to more families without insurance and a less healthy workforce.

The findings reveal that Virginia reached its lowest amount of employer-provided coverage in nearly two decades —with only 40% of businesses with 50 or fewer employees offering benefits.  More than a millionVirginians are now uninsured and most are mid-to-lower wage earners.  The Institute’s Michael Cassidy says that while small businesses face many challenges, they have opportunities to mitigate the costs of insurance—such as new federal tax credits.  He adds that states are also setting up new marketplaces for individuals and businesses.

“These new marketplaces called Health Insurance Exchanges will be a key place where they’ll be able to go to buy health insurance. Subsidies will be available on a sliding scale for folks to afford the premium. They’ll be able to pool their risks in bigger pools than just their own particular employees which will allow them top get better rates,” says Cassidy.

But Cassidy says the state needs to plan now for this marketplace—and since the insured pay more as a result of uncompensated care, everyone benefits from cost-effective ways to insure all.

–Tommie McNeil

Financial experts and Virginia leaders say that if the Commonwealth is to rebound from the economic downturn and compete nationally, it’s going to need improvement to the infrastructure.

Transportation Secretary Sean Connaughton says in paving projects alone, V-DOT is investing $400-million and the same amount next year. The General Assembly also gave the Department the authority to move forward with Governor McDonnell’s transportation package, which allows more than $3-billion in capital projects over the next three years by taking advantage of low interest rates:

“Just to give you an idea, I mean–Northern Virginia—we at any given night have a hundred different project involving lane closures going on every single night. Over 70% in the Hampton Roads area, and we’re now about to start getting out on the street, a lot of these projects for construction as well,” said Connaughton.

He does say the long-term challenge to transportation construction is a reliable funding stream. Since vehicles are more fuel-efficient, the state cannot rely on a gas tax, but no other solution has yet been approved.

–Tommie McNeil

First Lady of Virginia Maureen McDonnell hosted a ceremony at the Executive Mansion to honor four nonprofit organizations that were awarded corporate grants for their community service. Her goal is to champion the many private initiatives that are taking place across the Commonwealth.

Capital One awarded $600,000 to four organizations that advance workforce development, academic achievement, financial literacy, or ending homelessness.  But the corporation’s Executive Vice President, Katherine Busser, said that’s only the beginning. “Last year, Capital One volunteered over 51,000 hours for all of the organizations in the capital region that we partner with.  And for these four alone, we had almost 7,000 hours of volunteerism.”

The grants were awarded to the Boys and Girls Clubs of Metro Richmond, Junior Achievement of Central Virginia, the Richmond YWCA, and Virginia Supportive Housing.

–Anne Marie Morgan

These days it’s not particularly shocking to hear that someone has fallen on hard times, especially if the primary bread-winner is ill.  But the State Corporation Commission is advising residents of a new law that could give a number of those who are struggling a little extra time to make ends meet.

State Corporation Commission spokesman Ken Schrad says utilities were allowed to cut the source of heat, water, and essential appliances 10 days after a notice was sent, although some did grant exceptions. The new state law establishes a 30-day exception—but only for people with a serious medical condition who can prove it.

“Keep in mind, they still owe the electric company or the water company, and there’s still a threat of service being cut off. It’s just a matter of getting additional time before that final act occurs.  Under the rule adopted by the commission, a customer can only use this provision twice in any 12-month period. So basically you have two opportunities to take advantage of this rule over the course of one year,” says Shrad.

— Tommie McNeil

The Board of Trustees of the Virginia Retirement System has once again set the level of funding that it estimates will be needed to pay into the state pension fund.

Virginia Education Association members say as the General Assembly crunches VRS numbers, it will seek ways to cut costs—and sometimes that’s been on the backs of teachers who’ve already made sacrifices. Bea Moss and other retirees say discussion of teachers paying into a 401k-type plan is unacceptable, especially given stock market downturns.

“We earn low wages for those with our level education. There’s no profit sharing, no stock purchase plan, but we are promised some dignity in retirement. The time has come to stop short changing VRS and to honor the commitment of those who have given their commitment to the students of this Commonwealth,” says Moss.

Some say another key issue is that defined benefit plans are documented to be an important tool to attract and retain a quality public sector workforce —and public employees oppose switching to defined contribution plans.

— Tommie McNeil

The state’s second annual conference on energy has wrapped up, as Governor McDonnell promotes more diverse energy sources for the Commonwealth

The Governor’s Senior Advisor on Energy, Maureen Matsen, says three very different energy company leaders— Dominion Resources’ Tom Farrell, Duke Energy’s Jim Rogers, and NRG’s David Crane—provided distinct insights. Some think the leading emerging technology may be either solar panels or electric cars, but they all agreed that the state can not move forward without traditional energy.

“I think that all three of them agreed that nuclear is a critical component of our base energy assets. That’s efficient base load that we’re going to need for the future. That coal is certainly is still a large part of what we do–we can’t keep the lights on without it. And natural gas–it was interesting–Jim Rogers isn’t sure that it’s a game changer, but others are quite sure that it’s a game changer,” said Matsen.

Dominion, the state’s largest energy provider, is diversifying its resources—but says all forms of energy will be needed to keep up with surging demand. Matsen adds that state leaders are working to make Virginia the East Coast leader in wind energy—and consulting with other countries to ensure that coastal wind power is more efficient than other projects nationwide.

State employees have accumulated hundreds of millions of dollars in unused leave and Virginia policymakers say the potential unfunded liability is enormous.  That’s because many state workers can cash out their unused vacation and sick days when they retire and that number is expected to surge as Baby Boomers leave the workforce.

Efforts are underway to overhaul the 60-year-old system.     In addition to vacation and sick leave, there are now more than 20 time-off alternatives, including community service and family illness.  But Human Resources Management Director Sara Wilson said the complex rules vary among workers. “Whether it was tenure-based, look at the different ways we provide leave.  It’s credited, accrued, earned—the different categories.  And some you can carry over, some you can’t, some have a leave year, some have a fiscal year, some have a rolling calendar year,” says Wilson.

Wilson led a study of potential changes to make the system more simple and flexible.  They include freezing old leave balances, capping paid time-off, and combining classifications into all-purpose leave that would be used or lost.  Delegate Joe May said that merits more study.  His own informal survey suggested that some abuse sick leave.  “I concluded that if you were over 50 and married, you were five times healthier than if you were under 30 and single,” says May.

Lawmakers have not yet endorsed any plan but agree there must be reforms.

–Anne Marie Morgan

Concern over patient access to certain chemotherapy drugs has prompted the Joint Commission on Health Care to research costs and cancer treatment trends in the Commonwealth.  The commission has found a disparity in insurance coverage … and is weighing whether a new mandate might be necessary.

With more than 30,000 cancer cases diagnosed in Virginia each year, treatment regimens may include oral or intravenously administered chemotherapy, or both.  But Delegate Chris Peace said a constituent told him about an unexpected problem.

“His wife had been offered IV treatment and then ultimately the oral chemotherapy treatment. She developed a tremendous rash and other complications from the IV medications. There were some considerable benefits to the oral.  What they found was that the oral was much more expensive because the coverage was different,” explained Peace.

One study found that average out-of-pocket expenses for oral chemotherapy drugs were more than $2900 per month.  And one in six cancer patients with high out-of-pocket costs fails to take the medicine as prescribed. The commission’s report said one reason for the disparity is that many insurers count IV treatments as a medical benefit and oral drugs as a pharmacy benefit.  The panel said legislation requiring parity may be an option.

–Anne Marie Morgan

While large corporations are more than welcome to set up shop in Virginia, Governor McDonnell told a gathering of small business leaders that they are not being overlooked, especially since they provide the majority of jobs within the Commonwealth and the U.S.

But he also said at the first Governor’s Small Business Summit that the legislature cannot do it alone. He’s asking these business leaders to devise plans and innovative ways to become world-class local and global competitors.

The Governor said the state wants to cultivate a positive environment where businesses can prosper, expand, and hire Virginians. He also expressed how he feels about the “Occupy Wall Street” protests around the state and country.

“It’s sort of disappointing to see some people that have points to make and are free to make them, but camping out in the parks and protesting against business. Well, that’s what creates jobs. And I want people in Virginia to know that we’re pleased with our businesses coming here and investing and creating opportunities.”

McDonnell said that while Washington may not be listening to the needs of the people, Virginia lawmakers are, and he believes the entrepreneurs who head smaller businesses in Virginia are the same type of visionaries who created Microsoft and Apple. He believes that the thousands of U.S. regulations are preventing those companies from expanding. Although the Governor supports the creation of higher paying technology jobs, he would like to see a resurgence of manufacturing jobs here.

-by Tommie McNeil

This week, the Commonwealth Institute for Fiscal Analysis released a report that reveals a wage gap between Virginia’s top and lowest earners.  It stressed that the top tier of earners experienced more wage growth recently than the lowest tier in the past 30 years.  But the study also defines clear trends and suggests what could be done to address them.

The Institute’s Michael Cassidy says several factors lead to the disparity, including job sectors.  Areas such as accommodations, tourism, and food service still pay much less than others that do not require a college degree.   “We’ve also seen a real decimation of the middle income jobs in our economy. So, sectors like construction and manufacturing have seen among the highest employment losses since the recession,” says Cassidy.

And he says while those with at least bachelors degrees often see higher wage gains than those without, it’s not the only factor.

“Just having more folks in the economy with a college degree doesn’t necessarily mean that there are going to be jobs there for them. Here in Virginia we’ve seen that in the recent years, that has certainly been the case.”   Cassidy says policymakers must find ways to promote workforce training in sectors that are growing, such as healthcare.  But he says state officials also must discover ways to boost demand for products and services that businesses provide–to make hiring and higher wages possible.

–Tommie McNeil

With Virginia set to add another 400,0000 Medicaid recipients in a few years due to a federal mandate, the General Assembly asked its investigative agency to find out why the program has been making millions of dollars in improper payments.  The Joint Legislative Audit and Review Commission found that most of the mistakes seem to originate in local social services agencies.

Medicaid is the largest program in the state budget, and it often grows by double digits each cycle… making mistakes costly.  The improper payments could be provider or recipient fraud, errors, or intentional abuse.  JLARC Project Leader Ashley Colvin said 20% of Medicaid cases had errors.  “Some improper payments were prevented through pre-payment reviews, fraud resulted in few improper payments, and the most costly improper payments appear to result from agency errors made during the process of enrolling recipients.”

Colvin said the mistakes’ budget impact may be enormous. “The greatest financial risk to the state comes from eligibility errors made by local departments of social services. But our analysis of federal data indicate that improper payments are estimated to have occurred in a range from $18 million to $263 million in federal fiscal year 2009.”

According to Colvin, the dollar range was wide since some recipients may have been eligible, but the paperwork could not prove it.  Better training of caseworkers and replacing outdated software were two JLARC proposals to mitigate errors.

— Anne Marie Morgan

The availability, costs, and practices of medical care vary significantly across Virginia, so a legislative subcommittee is examining whether a database that aggregates statewide information could help improve the state’s health care delivery system.

Twelve states have all-payer claims databases, which gather medical, pharmacy, and dental claims from private and public payers, including insurers and Medicaid.  Delegate —and Doctor— John O’Bannon chairs the Health Care panel that’s exploring the idea.

“The whole goal of this is to begin to measure things across various systems, tests, or procedures across providers to see if we can get begin to get a handle on some of the things that are driving up the costs of care—but more importantly, to focus on the quality side to make care better,” says Dr. O’Bannon.

O’Bannon said the data could answer many questions, such as which diagnostic tests are used, outcomes of different treatments, which providers cost more, who uses emergency rooms, or how clinical guidelines are met.  He envisions that everyone, including communities and businesses, could use the data.  He says to protect privacy, names would not be collected.

–Anne Marie Morgan

There’s a lesson to be learned for those who say that Virginia is still fighting the Civil War.  It comes straight from the halls of the State Capitol—which was once the Confederate capital—to mark the War’s sesquicentennial.  The bronze statue is called “Brothers” …and it symbolizes how amidst opposing views and divisive issues, it’s how they’re resolved that makes the nation great.

The life-sized statue depicts two brothers: the older Confederate—poor, weathered, and battled-torn—and the younger Yankee—recently recruited and supplied.  On a field of battle, they have set aside their arms and fallen to their knees embracing.  One faces the sky as if thanking his Maker for the chance to make amends.

“After the Civil War was finished, Southerners began to organize into camps–United Confederate Veterans and they would establish camps in different cities. Likewise, the Union Veterans would associated together in Grand Army of the Republic posts that began dawning the landscape. And what I can’t help but notice, is that by the 1890’s when Civil War veterans were holding various reunions, they began to invite their counterparts to the same reunions,” says State Capitol Historian Mark Greenough.

The statue is the work of nationally recognized sculptor Gary Casteel … but was donated by an anonymous Virginian.

–Tommie McNeil

People seem to either love or hate timeshares—and although some say their timeshares have paid for themselves many times over, others find the costly maintenance fees or unfulfilled promises of amenities burdensome.  A large number of Virginians have tried to unload their properties but found that they could not.

At first, Delegate John Cosgrove thought of legislation to allow owners to divest themselves of their timeshares, but the state constitution forbids it. So now he’s trying a new approach to help those with problems. “Basically, there are some really unscrupulous groups out there saying, ‘We’ll sell your timeshares, send us 500-bucks,’ and you never hear from them again. Luckily, I haven’t fallen victim to that scam, but a lot of people have.”

His proposed bill does not solve all problems entirely.  “But what it does do–it looks forward so that when people sell timeshares they must disclose on a separate piece of paper in larger print that you can’t buy a timeshare as an investment—that resale is very difficult. That once you buy it, it’s for your personal use and, you’re pretty much stuck with it,” says Cosgrove.

It also requires companies that resell timeshare weeks to comply with stronger regulations to do business in Virginia, including describing their costs and consumer benefits.  But those who feel cheated will still have to take a timeshare developer to court, and Cosgrove says there have been many such lawsuits in Virginia.

–Tommie McNeil

With the election only a month away, the campaigns for all 140 House of Delegates and Virginia Senate seats have kicked into high gear.  Dozens of seats are uncontested, but the stakes are especially high in one chamber of the General Assembly.

 A number of long-time incumbents are defending their seats.  But the Senate is more competitive than the House, with the two major parties vying for control.  State Election Services Assistant Manager Matt Abell says the Senate has only 14 uncontested seats.  “That leaves 26 contested races of the 40.  Twenty-four of the 26 are contested between the major parties—the Republican and Democratic candidates.”

The House has only 37 contested seats, with 27 between the major parties. The rest have Independents, Libertarians, or Independent Greens on the ballot.  But Abell says the number of competitive House races has recently declined. “In 2007, there were 59 uncontested House of Delegate races. That dropped to 32 in 2009.  And now in 2011, we’re up to 63 uncontested races,” he says.

Virginia will also hold local elections, including those for constitutional officers, supervisors, and school boards.
–Anne Marie Morgan

Many consumers don’t know this, but the State Corporation Commission has very extensive shoppers’ guides on buying various types of insurance.

Given the ease of shopping via the Internet, the SCC says it is  imperative to know the best practices.

Surprisingly, the SCC lists the top 50 insurance carriers statewide.  Although there are a handful of well-known insurers, many more exist, including some that do not have great reputations and offer bargains that turn out not to be so good. The SCC’s Rick Wright says his agency recommends that consumers shop their insurance periodically, even if they’re satisfied.

“What we recommend though is that insurance, when you’re shopping for insurance, you start out with an apples to apples quote. Have your own policy in hand and make sure that whoever you’re dealing with is quoting the same coverage that you’ve got on your existing policy,” says Wright. “And that way, you’ve got a fair measure to go by whether or not you’re getting a better deal or not.”

But Wright says a cheaper deal is not a better deal if consumers do not get equal or better coverage. He says one essential part of auto insurance is the maximum liability coverage paid to each person in a vehicle if you are at fault. The person who’s liable must pay for everything that the insurer does not pay, which can cause financial ruin due to one fender bender. Wright also suggests shopping for umbrella policies that extend the automotive coverage; they are typically less expensive than traditional ones.

-by Tommie McNeil

A project that’s a hobby of a Virginia Web developer will soon be made public. It will enable citizens who are not attorneys to find and understand the Commonwealth’s laws.

The goal is to make statutes that appear to be perplexing more interesting and user-friendly.

The Website is the brainchild of Waldo Jaquith, the Web Developer for the University of Virginia’s Miller Center. Jaquith wants citizens to be able to access and comprehend state laws free of charge whenever they need to do so. He told the Virginia Code Commission, which works to update state laws, that the Commonwealth’s current Website is confusing. Jaquith said the laws are more useful when cross-referenced with context.

“I want to take the state Code to connect it with Court decisions, Attorney General opinions, scholarly publications, bills that have been or currently are before the General Assembly that propose to modify the state Code, Legal Aid Societies, legal self-help guides, you name it. Iif we can tie it back to the Code I want to do it in one place on one Website.”

The site also refers to each law’s history and will be automatically updated.  It is in the final testing phase and will soon be officially rolled out.  Jaquith has received a grant from the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation to develop similar sites for other states.

-by Anne Marie Morgan

At least 17.6% of Virginia’s unemployment benefits during the last three years were paid in error.  That’s according to the U.S. Labor Department … which has targeted the Commonwealth and a handful of other states for special monitoring in an effort to decrease the rate of mistakes.  85% of the overpayments were caused by three errors.
The 3-year total of overpayments was $434-million.  11% of claimants collected benefits after going back to work. 12% were paid before notice was received that their work separation made them ineligible.  62% were paid even though it could not be validated that they met work-search requirements.

Attorney General Ken Cuccinnelli said his office will be advising the Employment Commission about the problem. But he adds that employers had to pay higher taxes to the state trust fund after it was depleted last year. “ We do have businesses that are strained.  They’re struggling to keep on the black side of the ledger versus  the red side of the ledger.  And if we can keep their tax rate from rate from artificially rising—improperly rising—we’ll leave them with more assets to grow, to invest, and to create more jobs,” said Cuccinnelli.

The state budget had to include funds this year to repay interest on federal loans given to keep paying jobless benefits.  The state does try to recover improper payments, but it’s now required to submit a strategic plan and be monitored until the error rate falls below 10%.

–Anne Marie Morgan

One of the key strategies in incarcerating criminals is rehabilitating them while they’re in prison so that they can become more productive citizens upon their release.  However, statistics show that many re-offend … and say they returned to their former lives because they can’t reintegrate into society.  But  a state Prisoner Re-Entry Policy group led by the Secretary of Public Safety says it will propose a plan that could help reduce those recidivism rates.

Chief Deputy Superintendent at the Virginia Department of Correctional Education Drew Malloy says many proposals will not only make prisoners useful upon release, but while they’re in prison. One of his department’s cost-savers is a commercial drivers’ license program, which will help low-risk offenders find work upon release, but also allow them to be delivery drivers for the DOC for a lower cost than outside contractors. Malloy says they’ve also been concerned about younger offenders.

“The fact is we want the juvenile offenders to come back into the communities so that they can go right back into their old schools if possible, or at least back into their communities with a G.E.D. or a high school diploma, and some cases, post-secondary work already, because we do have community college programs,” says Malloy.

The group will also propose providing housing for youth and adult ex-offenders …and allowing working inmates to deposit some of their wages into accounts that they will have upon release.  Another measure would map what each prisoner should do during each stage of incarceration before reentering society.

–Tommie McNeil

Participants from 14 states and the District of Columbia convened in Richmond for the “Northeast Family Strengthening Conference” hosted by several Virginia state agencies.  The programs focused on strategies to build positive family relationships, increase financial assets, improve workforce development, and other best practices.  State officials believe a holistic approach could significantly decrease the number of poor and fragile families.

Using federal data, the speakers drew a correlation between higher poverty rates and fractured families … which they said increases dependence on the public sector.  “Virginia families that are headed by women have a 31% chance of experiencing poverty, while families that consist of married couples have only a 4% chance,  says Lietenant Governor Bill Bolling.

The cost for child support cases and many social services—is nearly $2.4 billion in Virginia per year.  “Children who are raised by single parents are at greater risk of dropping out of school.  They’re at greater risk for teenage pregnancy, juvenile delinquency, living in poverty, and experiencing health, emotional, and behavioral problems,” says Bolling.

Children living with one parent with an unmarried partner had the highest rates of abuse.  A new state initiative is developing multi-prong strategies that include reducing non-marital births, connecting fathers with children, and increasing household income through innovative policies.

–Anne Marie Morgan

Virginia is in an unusual position of having to ask the federal government for disaster assistance as result of four natural disasters occurring back-to-back.  But  even if FEMA denies some claims, the Commonwealth will still have to rebuild and find funding to help repair the damage.

FEMA already denied assistance for the tornadoes in May, but has granted SOME funding for the earthquake, Hurricane Irene, and Tropical Storm Lee.  Virginia Department of Emergency Management Director Michael Cline told the Senate Finance Committee that the earthquake alone caused $14-million in damage.

Cline says it remains to be seen if FEMA will provide funds for other claims.  He said some state costs were mitigated because for the first time, the primary flooding areas had flood insurance.  Additional damages include $87 million  to private property, $130 million  to agriculture, and $52 million in local government costs.

–Tommie McNeil

Futurologists predicted this day was coming—when children would no longer spend their days in school learning … but work instead in the comfort of their own homes using the latest innovations.  But Virginia is still laying the groundwork to make that a reality, and the Senate Finance Committee is examining the cost-effectiveness of virtual schools and how they can provide high-quality education to students.

While several states have adopted Virtual Schools, none has totally submerged its students in a world with no school walls or daily interactions with teachers and others.  Allison Powell, the Vice-President for the International Association for K-12 Learning, admits that each state and local jurisdiction will have different needs.  States would need universal rules for full implementation and some regions may still have funding challenges based on the variety of schools and courses they offer.

“You do still have the administrative piece of running a school, the instruction is a little bit different, they’re not necessarily using textbooks. Some of these companies do ship out boxes of books and videos, and science kits, and all that kind of stuff as well, so the kid isn’t in these full time programs sitting in front of a computer for eight hours a day,” she says.

Powell says many costs are similar to brick and mortar schools ….but without transportation or building expenses. She says another benefit is providing students with alternative teaching methods designed to keep their attention and use individual learning styles.

–Tommie McNeil