Editor’s Note: This column is informed by recent reporting from Brad Kutner at Radio IQ and WVTF on proposed changes to Virginia’s food-to-alcohol sales ratio, as well as conversations with people connected to the restaurant and hospitality industry. Virginia’s liquor...
Bills attempting to ban everything from candy-flavored vape syrups to menthol cigarettes stalled in the General Assembly this year -- but they'll be back next year. Yan Gleyzer was watching via livestream when the state Senate voted Tuesday to defeat a bill that would prohibit the sale of flavored tobacco products. As the owner and CEO of Vape...
Gun rights groups don't like it, but regardless, there's an increasing possibility that the General Assembly will pass an assault weapons ban this year. A controversial bill banning assault firearms passed the House this week along party lines, and after several amendments whittled away at certain requirements that had caused the loudest...
Both bills would seek to give victims of sexual abuse their day in court by allowing more time to file claims after the current statute of limitations has passed. Two bills recently passed the House unanimously that aim to change the state’s statute of limitations for reporting sexual abuse. One bill gives victims a two-year window to file sexual...
The delegate from Petersburg has fought hard for her place in the General Assembly, and fought just as hard to make Virginia the 38th state to ratify the Equal Rights Amendment. This is her story. A month into 2020, the General Assembly has entered a new era of historical change as Democrats have taken control of Virginia’s legislative body. One...
Fortunately, the case at George Mason turned out to be a false alarm. Nonetheless, it's a good idea to be careful and protect your health. After the U.S. had its first person-to-person transmission of coronavirus, the World Health Organization has declared the current state of the disease a “global health emergency.” There have been six confirmed...
Less than 15 percent of Virginia hospitals have the ability to conduct sexual assault exams. Several legislators hope to change that and offer better care and protections for sexual assault victims in the Commonwealth. A House subcommittee advanced a bill Wednesday to establish a statewide program to train nurses who treat sexual assault...
Dressed in red and demanding that the General Assembly "Fund Our Future," Virginia's teachers showed up in force at the Capitol building Monday. Bells chiming through Capitol Square were drowned out Monday as hundreds of education advocates dressed in red chanted for lawmakers to “fund our future.” The Virginia Education Association and...
Protecting reproductive rights requires accurate knowledge, and shows like Shrill help shed light on facts about abortion and contraception that are largely absent from political debates around the issue. In the first episode of the Hulu comedy series Shrill, writer Annie Easton learns that the morning after contraceptive she took didn't work,...
A bill designed to make animal tethering more humane and keep pets from being left outside in freezing cold is currently working its way through the General Assembly, and animal rights advocates want to see it pass. Animal rights advocates want lawmakers to advance legislation that expands on a tethering bill passed last year by the General...
