A controversy is raging in the northern Virginia suburbs of Washington, DC over Virginia DOT’s proposal to convert I-66 between the Capital Beltway (I-495) and the District of Columbia into a set of HOT lanes. Currently, that four-lane stretch of I-66 operates as HOV-only during morning and afternoon peak period,...
Colleges and universities may want to take note: The number of people in the college age range of 18 to 24 is falling. The nation’s population is expected to grow by more than 13 million, or an annual average of 0.8 percent a year, from this year through 2020. Virginia...
Judges on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit, San Francisco, issued a stinging opinion on Sept. 10 reversing an EPA decision to register a Dow pesticide for crop protection. The pesticide is Sulfoxaflor, a product developed and tested for farm use by Dow Agrosciences LLC. It is...
Today, there are more than 7,800 unfilled slots in the Virginia Preschool Initiative (VPI) program offering early childhood learning services to at-risk children. They aren’t filled because local governments can’t match the funds or because they simply have no space. Chris Braunlich, vice president of the Thomas Jefferson Institute, offered...
Imagine that award-winning teachers proposed a high school for under-performing students adding 23 days to the school calendar, and extending the daily schedule by more than an hour each day. Imagine further that this school allows students to take an additional credit course each year, provides increased “wrap-around” services for...
Perhaps the most radical education proposal before the General Assembly in the upcoming session is Delegate Senator Obenshain’s SJ 256, which empowers the Board of Education to “establish charter schools within the school divisions of the Commonwealth.” Currently, this power rests with the local school boards. For example, the Richmond...
One day earlier this month, 10,000 people living in Fairfax County lost their electric power around 7:30 a.m. Thanks to sensors and devices that Dominion Virginia Power had installed in its electric distribution system, company operators were able to quickly identify and isolate the problem. Fifteen minutes later, they had restored service...
A recent Forbes Magazine carried a story which caught my eye regarding GMO (genetically modified organisms) food labeling. The Forbes article discusses a little noticed June 18, 2015, U.S. Supreme Court decision Reed v.Town of Gilbert. The article was entitled, Supreme Court – Free Speech Clobbers GMO Food-Labeling Activists. I was not aware the Court had...
The Middle East is imploding. Islamic State butchers are annihilating Christian and other communities including Moslems. Putin is sending arms and troops to Assad. Under the Obama-Iran nuclear deal, the mullahs will get $150 billion to expand their proxy terror war on Israel and the West. Saudi Arabia has 100,000...
The Thomas Jefferson Institute, Justice Fellowship and Right on Crime issued a report highlighting new research aimed at finding meaningful solutions for Virginia’s juvenile justice system. These recommendations would advance public safety, reduce costs for taxpayers and improve proportionality of punishment for youth while providing greater tools for restoration of...
