EPA Will Not Appeal Court Decision on Accotink Watershed
EPA regulations could have cost county $300 million.
The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) effectively ended a two-year legal battle with Fairfax County when the agency announced last week it will not appeal a federal court decision favoring Fairfax County’s handling of the Accotink Creek watershed.
Letter: Preserving Electoral Board Integrity
The integrity of our elections administration is too important to be trusted in the hands of someone who may have ulterior motives or seek partisan advantage. For that reason I am pleased that Hans von Spakovsky will no longer be on the Fairfax County Electoral Board.
Two Historic Measures Mark Assembly Session
Q&A with Delegate Eileen Filler-Corn (D-41).
Transportation funding was one of the big stories to come out of Richmond during the 45-day “short session,” but it wasn’t the only one. Unlike Congressional gridlock, where lobbyists, special-interest groups and political aspirations converge to slow down legislation, the pace in Virginia’s capitol is fast and furious. Legislation gets passed in the blink of an eye. It’s a pace Delegate Eileen Filler-Corn, the second-term Democrat representing nearly 90,000 residents in Burke, Fairfax and West Springfield, knows well.
Local Leaders Praise Transportation Funding Bill
State Senator Chap Petersen wants you to curb your enthusiasm.
Politics makes strange bedfellows, and sometimes estranged ones as well. On Saturday, the last day of the Virginia General Assembly, state legislators struck a bipartisan 11th hour deal to pass a comprehensive transportation funding plan—the first long-term plan in 27 years.
Hats Off to Democratic Women of Clifton
DWC celebrates eighth anniversary in style.
Fine millinery was on full display as the Democratic Women of Clifton gathered on Sunday, Feb. 10, to celebrate its eighth anniversary in style. The theme of this year’s party was “Hats Off to Democratic Women!” and members complied by donning an assortment of colorful chapeaus—from the classic fedora, brim snapped and businesslike, to the romantic cloche and the whimsical Victorian.
Helping Parents Battle Social Media Giants
Parents demand access to son’s Facebook account after his suicide.
Ricky Rash, a self-proclaimed “country boy” and second generation Virginia dairy farmer, enjoyed his bucolic life in Nottoway County. He and his wife, Diane, a nurse, were content to raise their four children in the same house Rash grew up in. The world of social media—Facebook, Tumblr, and Twitter—held little interest for the couple who considered faith and family the bedrock of their life. But after their 15-year-old son committed suicide on Jan. 20, 2011, social media became their focus.
Three Speakers to Address GOP Women of Clifton
The Republican Women of Clifton (RWC) will feature two outstanding members at its February meeting—Dr. Ileana Johnson, bestselling author of U.N. Agenda 21: Environmental Piracy, and Stephanie Reis, founder of the Omaha ACT for America Chapter as well as property rights advocate Martha Boneta.
Community to Discuss Boundary Changes
At its business meeting on Thursday, Jan. 24, the Fairfax County School Board voted to conduct a boundary study to address overcrowding at Fairfax High School and Lanier Middle School.
Lawmakers Provide Assembly Overview
Petersen, Bulova host Town Hall meeting in Fairfax.
Transportation, redistricting and the proposed closure of the Northern Virginia Training Center were the top issues among constituents who showed up at the Town Hall meeting hosted by Del. David Bulova (D-37) and Sen. Chap Petersen (D-34) on Saturday, Feb. 2.
GOP Women Discuss Property Rights, Elections
Martha Boneta, Virginia farmer and property rights advocate, spoke to the Republican Women of Clifton (RWC) watched by Congressman Artur Davis, who also talked to the group, RWC President Alice Butler-Short and best-selling author of Agenda 21, Environmental Piracy, Dr. Ileana Johnson.
Keep Gas Tax; Cut Meals Tax; Add ‘Sausage’
Proposed changes to governor’s transportation funding plan receive local support.
After a week in which news from Richmond was dominated by partisan skirmishes, Northern Virginia Del. Dave Albo (R-41) joined with other lawmakers to refocus the legislature on the state’s transportation funding crisis, presenting an alternative to a controversial plan proposed by Governor Robert McDonnell (R).
Del. Bulova and Sen. Petersen Host Fairfax Town Hall Meeting
On Saturday, Feb. 2, Del. David Bulova (D-37) is holding a Town Hall meeting with Sen. Chap Petersen (D-34) from 9 to 10:30 a.m. in the council chamber of Fairfax City Hall, 10455 Armstrong Street. They will provide an overview of issues that are currently before the General Assembly. All constituents are invited to share their ideas and thoughts on issues that are important to the community.
Nazi Commonwealth
Bipartisan team seeks compensation for victims of forced sterilization.
Nobody knows how many people are survivors of Virginia’s forced sterilization program, which targeted people with mental illness, mental retardation or epilepsy. But a bipartisan effort now under consideration in Richmond would hand each and every one of them a $50,000 check from the people of Virginia. According to one calculation, that could mean as much as $73 million.
Four Northern Virginia Senators Targeted
Redistricting effort puts Fairfax County seats in the spotlight.
Four Northern Virginia state Senators are targets of a Republican-led effort to draw new districts — Sen. George Barker (D-39), Sen. Dave Marsden (D-37), Sen. Toddy Puller (D-36) and Sen. Chap Petersen (D-34). Democrats say the redistricting effort is a cynical attempt to take advantage of the absence of Sen. Henry Marsh (D-16), a prominent civil rights veteran, who was in Washington, D.C. for the inauguration on Monday. But state Sen. John Watkins (R-10) of Powhatan defended the effort as a way to create a sixth majority black Senate district in Southside. It passed the Senate on a 20-to-19 vote.
Republican Women of Clifton Launches 2013 Speaker Program.
The Republican Women of Clifton (RWC) will launch its 2013 speaker program with former Congressman Artur Davis talking about the recent election. The meeting will be on Wednesday, Jan. 23, at the Fairview Elementary School, 5815 Ox Road, Fairfax Station, which is a new location for RWC events in 2013. Members and guests are invited to the social hour that will begin at 7 p.m. when refreshments will be served.