State Media Stories
Latest News
Updated every weekday as availableVirginia wine industry’s economic impact growing
Daily Progress, February 3, 2012
"Virginia’s growing wine industry seems to be bearing fruit, according to an economic impact study released by Gov. Bob McDonnell’s office Thursday. Between 2005 and 2010, the wine industry’s economic impact has more than doubled to nearly $750 million in contributions to the state’s economy every year"
Fredericksburg Free Lance-Star, February 2, 2012
"When it comes to using tourism, parks and American history to create jobs, U.S. Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar, Virginia Gov. Bob McDonnell and National Park Service Director Jonathan Jarvis sound remarkably in accord."
‘Green’ bills work through Assembly
Fredericksburg Free Lance-Star, January 31, 2012
"Much of this year’s crop of “green” bills wending their way through the General Assembly focus on perennial staples: protecting water and air quality, preserving open space, investing in clean energy and seeking more environment-friendly transportation solutions."
Bacons Rebellion, January 24, 2012
"With Virginia Tea Party activists egging them on, Republican legislators have submitted at least six bills that would repeal the Urban Development Area (UDA) requirement for Virginia localities. Overturning the law would eliminate an important tool for local governments to contain growth-related costs and hold down taxes — presumably a high priority for the Tea Party."
Weekly News
Updated every week as availableVa. legislators accepted $246,000 in gifts last year
Washington Post, February 8, 2012
"Nearly half of the gifts state legislators accepted last year came from Virginia Uranium, a company that is lobbying to mine what is thought to be the largest deposit of uranium in the United States. That’s not surprising since the company treated legislators to trips to France and Canada."
Trimmed Transportation Bill Lurches Forward
Bacons Rebellion, February 9, 2012
"Governor Bob McDonnell’s omnibus transportation bill has undergone significant revisions during the General Assembly session, sloughing off two of its more controversial proposals, but it still has the environmental and smart-growth lobbies up in arms."
See PEC's action alert--Paving Our Way to Sprawl.
Lawmaker: Trip to France dissuaded him on uranium mining
Energy Central, February 7, 2012
"A Hampton Roads lawmaker was the leading recipient of gifts and free trips from private interests last year among the 140 members of the Virginia General Assembly. Del. John Cosgrove, R-Chesapeake, received gifts and trips valued at $15,775 -- almost as much as his $17,640 annual salary as a delegate. But if his biggest benefactor was trying to win his favor, Cosgrove said Monday, it didn’t work."
Conservation easements up in Va.
Staunton News-Leader, January 10, 2012
"The amount of land the Virginia Outdoors Foundation put into conservation easements rose by 50 percent in 2011, the foundation said Monday. In all, the foundation placed 39,000 acres under permanent protection from development or environmental degradation through 215 conservation easements in 66 localities, many of them here in the Valley."
More study sought on uranium mining
Fredericksburg Free Lance-Star, January 18, 2012
"A group of Southside Virginia business leaders and Republican legislators said the question of whether to allow uranium mining needs a lot more time and study, and that lawmakers should do nothing on the issue in this General Assembly session."
Virginia Supreme Court ruling limits power of planning commissions
Daily Progress / Charlottesville Tomorrow, January 19, 2012
"The Virginia Supreme Court has ruled that planning commissions do not have the power to grant waivers that allow property developers to deviate from zoning ordinances. “Delegation of such authority to the [Albemarle] planning commission is inconsistent with the general role of planning commissions, as reflected by their enabling statutes,” reads the ruling issued last Friday from Justice William C. Mims."
Governor McDonnell Announces $1.2 million in Farmland Preservation Grants
NBC 29, January 17, 2012
"Governor Bob McDonnell today announced the distribution of $1.2 million in farmland preservation grants from the Virginia Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services (VDACS) to 13 Virginia localities. This is a significant increase from the $100,000 available last fiscal year for state matching funds. Localities must use the grant monies to preserve farmland within their boundaries through local Purchase of Development Rights (PDR) programs. PDR programs compensate landowners who permanently preserve their land by voluntarily placing a perpetual conservation easement on it. "
Albemarle, Clarke, and Fauquier were among the counties to receive funding.
Lead from shotgun pellets is poisoning area bald eagles
Fauquier Times-Democrat, January 6, 2012
"This story doesn’t have a happy ending. On Dec. 29, a Virginia conservation officer from the Department of Game and Inland Fisheries rescued a bald eagle and brought it to the Wildlife Center in Waynesboro. The veterinary staff there quickly determined that the bird, which had been found down in a field, unable to fly, was suffering from lead poisoning. "
McDonnell unveils energy agenda
Washington Post, January 5, 2012
"Gov. Bob McDonnell unveiled a package of energy proposals Thursday for the upcoming legislative that includes $500,000 to promote wind development off Virginia’s coast and increases energy efficiency programs."
New policies contribute to VA’s surge in land conservation easements
Chesapeake Bay Journal, January 1, 2012
"In 1958, Andrew Packett’s parents bought a farm on the Northern Neck of Virginia. The decision defined the rest of their lives, and their son’s life, too. Now a father and grandfather himself, Packett still lives on the 437-acre farm along the Rappahannock River where the grain grows, minnows flash in the water and geese fly overhead. "It’s not just a place," Packet said. "It’s who we are." The family’s ties to the land inspired them to protect it. In 2008, Packett worked with the Virginia Outdoors Foundation to create a permanent conservation easement for the property."
