Virginia Public Radio

Affordable housing might take a bigger role in the upcoming General Assembly session.

Michael Pope reports on the new plan proposed by the governor.

Many of us are putting the finishing touches on holiday menus today.

Roben Farzad, host of the Full Disclosure podcast, and Craig Wright explain how inflation is hitting the Thanksgiving table this year.

A new watchdog report says the federal government should do a better job inspecting pipelines and investigating accidents.

Michael Pope reports.

A teenager who wasn’t on the ballot has been elected to the Timberville Town Council.  And DNA research has produced some stunning news for a Fredericksburg man.

Those have been among the most read stories over the past week at the Virginia Public Access Project’s Va. news link.

More now from Fred Echols and Edie Gross.

Members of the General Assembly are getting ready for another session.

Michael Pope says one of the issues on the agenda this year is what to do about the potential mining of precious metals.

Virginia’s Board and Department of Education continues to struggle through a divisive and confusing process of re-writing the state’s history and social studies SOL standards.

Mallory Noe-Payne was at an hours-long meeting of the Board of Education today and has this report. 

Last year, Virginia spent well over a billion dollars on corrections – keeping nearly 24,000 people in prison.  And the bill is about to get much bigger as that population ages. 

Sandy Hausman reports on what we can expect in the years to come and how the state is preparing to care for elderly inmates behind bars.

The fallout from the November election was quickly overshadowed by the shooting at the University of Virginia.

Jeff Schapiro, political columnist at the Richmond Times-Dispatch, and Michael Pope recap the week in politics and state government.

The three students who were killed at the University of Virginia Sunday night were all football players.

Mallory Noe-Payne spoke to someone who knew the victims. 

The Virginia General Assembly will consider a bill to make de-clawing of cats illegal. And Election Day brought a surprise for some Virginia voters when they learned they’d been registered in the wrong county for decades.

Those have been among the most read stories over the past week at the Virginia Public Access Project’s Va. News link.

More now from Fred Echols and Edie Gross.

Removal of Indigenous children from their families and Tribes was stopped by Congress in 1978.

But advocates say a challenge before the U.S. Supreme Court threatens the law and the sovereignty of Virginia’s tribal nations.

Pamela D’Angelo reports.

The outcome of the 2022 election is settled, at least in Virginia.  So what does that mean for the future?

Jeff Schapiro, political columnist at the Richmond Times-Dispatch, and Michael Pope recap the week in politics and state government.

All but one of Virginia’s members of Congress are heading back to Washington for another term in office.

Michael Pope has more from some of the winners.

Republicans and Democrats alike are savoring victories in Virginia this morning.

Jeff Schapiro, political columnist for the Richmond Times-Dispatch, and Michael Pope have more on the outcome of the state’s highest-profile races.

Election Day used to be the first opportunity to cast a ballot. Now, with early voting, it’s the last chance for Virginians to vote in the races for their representatives in Congress as well as some town and city councils.

As people across the state headed to the polls Tuesday, Joe Staniunas found that many had issues of national importance on their minds.

Economic concerns are never far from the minds of voters as they head to the polls.

Roben Farzad, host of the Full Disclosure podcast, and Craig Wright talk about the potential impact.

A new report says it will take time to reverse the learning loss fueled by the COVID-19 pandemic.

As David Seidel reports, lawmakers have a number of recommendations that could help the recovery.

The clock is ticking down to Election Day.  And that means candidates and election officials alike are in high gear.

Jeff Schapiro, political columnist at the Richmond Times-Dispatch, and Michael Pope have more from the week in politics and state government.

There are more than 2,000 voting locations across Virginia. And each one is staffed by a handful of dedicated poll workers.

These folks don’t work in elections year round but choose each year to spend a day helping make democracy run.

Mallory Noe-Payne spoke with one man in Roanoke who’s been doing it for almost 30 years. 

When a Canadian company started looking for gold in Buckingham County, area residents were alarmed. 

They knew that activity could threaten their water supply, and they asked the state legislature to step in. 

Lawmakers asked the National Academy of Sciences, Engineering and Medicine to do a report on the possible impacts of gold mining here. 

Today, the report is out, and Sandy Hausman spoke with one of its authors.

The Federal Reserve seems headed toward another big interest rate hike this week.  But inflation has remained stubbornly high and the economy keeps creating new jobs.

Roben Farzad, host of the Full Disclosure podcast, and Weekend Edition host Craig Wright talk about the tightrope regulators have been walking.

One of Virginia’s high profile Congressional races may be getting closer.  And another can’t get any tighter.

Jeff Schapiro, political columnist at the Richmond Times-Dispatch, and Michael Pope recap a busy week in state politics and the General Assembly.

The area around Charlottesville has grown dramatically in the last decade, and so has the traffic. 

Now, with a $2 million grant from Washington, local leaders are planning one way to take cars off the road and put people on bikes. 

The Three Notched Trail will stretch 25 miles from the city to the Blue Ridge Mountains.  Sandy Hausman has that story.

Last week, the Nansemond Indian Nation was given back 504 acres of their ancestral lands in Suffolk County.

For the seven federally recognized Tribes in Virginia, getting back ancestral lands for conservation is key to their sovereignty.

Pamela D’Angelo reports.

A new federal student loan forgiveness program is up and running.

Roben Farzad, host of the Full Disclosure podcast, and Weekend Edition host Craig Wright talk through some of the financial and policy implications.

If you missed the voter registration deadline in Virginia you still have a chance to cast a ballot.  And grassland birds are disappearing from the Commonwealth but there’s a new effort underway to help them.

Those have been among the most read stories over the past week at the Virginia Public Access Project’s Va. News link.

Several Virginia cities are about to receive new funding to crack down on gang violence.

Michael Pope explains the project.

Virginia saw a small decrease in overdose deaths during the first quarter of this year, but the opioid epidemic is still taking a heavy toll. 

Last year, more than 2,600 people died – most from an overdose of fentanyl. 

And now doctors warn there’s an even more potent form of the drug being sold.  Sandy Hausman has that story.