Richmond
- Culpeper Supervisors Approve Partial Easement Release for Battlefields State Park
The unanimous vote clears title issues on six Elkwood Downs parcels while keeping airport-related height limits in place.
- Virginia’s Democratic Trifecta Passes 49 Election Bills as Felony Voting Rights Head to November Ballot
Ballotpedia counts a 250 percent jump in election measures; ranked-choice voting is now permanent, Virginia joined the National Popular Vote compact, and automatic rights restoration awaits voters November 3.
- Attorney General Jones Says DHS May Have Violated Virginia Election Law
Letter to Homeland Security demands written confirmation and preservation of voter-lookup access logs after a whistleblower report.
- With United States House control hanging in the balance, Wittman faces Taylor in contentious Virginia-01 race
U.S. Rep. Rob Wittman, R-Westmoreland, left, is running for reelection in Virginia's 1st Congressional District, as Democratic challenger Shannon Taylor aims to unseat him.
- Peter Francisco, the ‘Hercules of American independence’
The year 2026 marks the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence.
- Petersburg Sets $60,000 Starting Teacher Pay After City Council Funds Salary Overhaul
FY2027 budget advances Phase I of a compensation study, with recurring city dollars aimed at filling vacancies and slowing exits to higher-paying neighbors.
- Century-Old Law Gives Virginia Legislator-Lawyers Broad Power to Delay Court Cases
State law allows attorneys serving in the General Assembly to obtain continuances in court proceedings when legislative duties interfere.
- Dominion’s SCC Filing: 70 GW of Large-Load Requests — Nearly Triple the DOM Zone Peak — Feed the Transmission Fight
RICHMOND — Dominion Energy Virginia’s PUR-2026-00011 large-load connection queue application tells the State Corporation Commission that about 70,000 MW of data-center-scale delivery-point requests are advancing — nearly triple the Dominion Zone’s 24,678 MW all-time peak — with 2,000–3,000 MW more arriving most months.
- State Corporation Commission Orders Three In-Person Hearings on NextEra-Dominion Merger
Commissioner Samuel Towell cites unprecedented public interest as the SCC adds regional witness sessions beginning November 5 in Richmond atop telephonic testimony days.
- NextEra and Dominion sweeten $67 billion merger with longer Virginia bill credits
The state Capitol.
- Want to weigh in on the Dominion-NextEra merger? Here’s where public hearings will be held.
Virginia State Corporation Commission members hear testimony concerning Dominion Energy's proposed rate increase and plan to create a new rate class for data centers on September 2, 2025 in Richmond.
- Hampton Roads Voters Face November 1 Percent Sales Tax Votes for School Construction
Norfolk, Newport News, York, Portsmouth, Isle of Wight and neighboring localities put new statewide school-construction sales-tax authority on the Nov. 3 ballot with sunsets near 2046.
- Clean Virginia: NextEra’s utility takeover attempts, alleged political moves relevant to merger case
A protester displays a sign opposing the Dominion-NextEra merger outside the Virginia General Assembly on Aug. 18, 2026.
- PJM Shortlists Dominion’s Heritage-to-Mosby Underground HVDC as Southern Backbone for Northern Virginia Load
RICHMOND / LOUDOUN COUNTY, Va. — PJM’s 2025 Window 1 southern-cluster shortlist puts four Dominion +/- 525 kV HVDC variants from Heritage to Mosby — about 185 miles and roughly $4.8–$5.0 billion — against cheaper 765 kV and 500 kV overhead portfolios, with proposal 275 leading incremental transfer into NOVA.
- Data Center Fight Moves Into Greater Richmond as 17 Campuses Advance Across Eight Counties
Henrico, Chesterfield, Hanover, and Dinwiddie hearings fill with water, power, and tax-base arguments while Spanberger’s September directives and moratorium petitions set the statewide backdrop.
- Could Virginia’s new law allowing 1% sales tax for school construction need a fix?
The historic facade of Virginia's new General Assembly Building in Richmond.
- Data Center Load Is Driving Capacity Costs — and Risk of Blackouts
WASHINGTON / RICHMOND — The Independent Market Monitor for PJM told federal energy regulators that the region’s capacity crisis is not a mystery.
- Zoning Request Filed for Proposed 200-Acre Nunnally Village Project in Western Chesterfield County
A conceptual plan of the Nunnally Village project.
- Virginia Panel Advances Plan for a Licensed Nurse in Every School by 2028
School Health Services Committee backs a nurse-per-building or per-325-students rule with two-year hiring waivers; November 18 vote would send the proposal to the 2027 General Assembly.
- Virginia Voters Face November Ballot Questions on Abortions and Marriage Equality
Two Article I amendments ask whether abortions and baby killing decisions and same-sex marriage should be locked into the state bill of rights beyond ordinary politics.
- Jones Asks SCC to Restart Clock on Dominion-NextEra Merger After New Commitments
Attorney general says expanded bill credits, job protections and a Richmond tower create a different deal that needs fresh notice and discovery.
- Dominion Pitches Fully Underground HVDC Into Loudoun as PJM Answer to Data Center Load
RICHMOND / LOUDOUN COUNTY, Va. — Dominion Energy Virginia is asking the PJM Board to greenlight a High Voltage Direct Current project the
- Abigail Spanberger Urges Congress to Police Artificial Intelligence Risks to Privacy, Jobs, and Resources
The governor’s September 22 letter to House and Senate leaders seeks federal guardrails as Virginia advances Executive Order 22 and data-center accountability rules.
- Loudoun’s Data Center Loop: Democratic Supervisors Greenlit the Boom. Ratepayers and Homeowners Face the Lines.
LOUDOUN COUNTY, Va. — Northern Virginia already hosts the densest cluster of data centers on the planet.
- Opioid Abatement Authority Awards $12.3 Million to 18 State Agencies
Package continues 32 projects and adds 7 new ones spanning health, corrections, courts and public universities.
- EMF Fear Still Drives Virginia Power-Line Residue Fights as Democrat-Approved Data Centers Need New Steel
RICHMOND / LOUDOUN COUNTY, Va. — Electromagnetic fields are not a side conversation in Virginia’s transmission boom.
- BPA’s 1989 Transmission Review Left EMF Health Risk Unsettled — And Still Echoes in Corridor Fights
PORTLAND / RICHMOND — Decades before Virginia’s data center boom forced new 500 kV and 765 kV corridors onto the Mid-Atlantic map, the
- Roanoke Leaders Continue Talks on Local Sales Tax for School Construction
City Council and the school board discussed placing a 1 percent construction sales tax referendum before voters after new state authority took effect.
- Loudoun County Supervisors Advance 12-Month Pause on New Data Center Applications
Loudoun’s Board of Supervisors voted 7-1-1 to draft a temporary pause on new data-center applications while rewriting local rules, with a final vote expected in October.
- Tim Kaine and Jennifer McClellan Say Voters Could Move Congress to Revisit House Resolution 1 Healthcare Overhaul
U.S. Sen.
- Attorney General Jay Jones Asks Regulators to Reset Clock on Dominion-NextEra Merger
Virginia Attorney General Jay Jones says the companies’ Sept. 14 supplemental filing is a different deal that should restart the SCC’s 180-day review, potentially pushing a decision into March 2027.
- Roanoke City Schools Cut 148 Jobs After Budget Shortfall
The division eliminated 64 teaching posts and began the year with 127 vacancies while closing a $14 million gap.
- School Construction Sales Tax Could Raise About 1.27 Billion Over Three Years
State estimates show revenue if all 47 localities with November referendums approve a dedicated 1 percent sales tax.
- Former GreenCity Developers File Chapter 7 Bankruptcy in Richmond
Green City Partners lists more than $825,000 in liabilities after Henrico reclaimed the Best Products arena site.
- Richmond Secures 32.8 Million in State Funds for Water Plant Filter Upgrades
A regional water workgroup boosted the city's treatment-plant project by $12.8 million over the baseline grant.
- Dominion NextEra Expand Residential Bill Credit Offer to Four Years
Shareholder-funded credits of about $10 a month would shift value away from large data centers under the revised merger package.
- Central Virginia Authority Funds New I-64 Exit to Ease Short Pump Congestion
About $63 million in regional money advances a diverging-diamond interchange at North Gayton Road in Henrico.
- Voters in 47 Localities Will Decide School Construction Sales Tax This Fall
Communities newly authorized by the legislature are putting a 1% sales tax for school capital projects on the November ballot.
- Dominion and NextEra Pitch Downtown Richmond Office Tower Tied to Merger
A shareholder-funded tower at 701 E. Cary St. joins expanded bill credits and a five-year Virginia headcount pledge.
- Richmond Prepares Housing Solicitations for Former Precinct and School Sites
City housing officials plan requests for qualifications and proposals to turn surplus Q Street and Chamberlayne Avenue parcels into mixed-income housing.
- Virginia Beach Urges Residents to Cut Nonessential Water Use Amid Drought
Public utilities say reservoir levels are about 10 percent below normal after a dry 2026, the most serious local drought conditions since 2002.
- Dominion and NextEra Pledge Extra Bill Credits and Jobs if Merger Is Approved
The utilities say average residential customers would get $10 monthly credits for four years under a revised package tied to their proposed $67 billion combination.
- Washington Manassas Airport Awarded 1.1 Million for New Control Tower
The grant is part of nearly $40 million Gov. Abigail Spanberger announced for 65 public-use airports statewide.
- Loudoun County to Weigh Temporary Pause on New Data Center Applications
Supervisors will review staff plans for a development freeze while rewriting standards and ending remaining by-right grandfathering.
- Virginia Bishop Directs Priests to Read Letter on Ballot Measures
Bishop Michael Burbidge of the Diocese of Arlington directed priests across the diocese to read a pastoral letter at all Masses this past weekend.
- Fairfax County Proposes Restoring High School Crossing Guard Funding
Staff recommend about $708,000 to bring back 11 crossing-guard posts after student crashes and parent outcry.
- Prince William Planners Recommend Ending By-Right Data Centers
The Planning Commission backed a smaller opportunity overlay, a 120-day grace period and a 500-foot buffer before a Sept. 22 board hearing.
- Roanoke Says May Data Breach Started With Phishing Email
The city locked a compromised account within a day but did not disclose how many residents may have had personal data exposed.
- Virginia House Bill 47 Aims to Expand Tax Relief for Military and Foreign Service Retirees
House Bill 47, which seeks to broaden state income tax subtractions for retirement benefits earned by uniformed services and United States Foreign Service officers, has been left in the House Finance Committee as the 2026 legislative session progresses.
- Spanberger Names Andrea Fletcher to Lead New Virginia Digital Service
The unit will modernize state websites and systems and scrutinize technology contracts before taxpayers are locked in.