The 2019 General Assembly session served as a stark reminder of an important lesson: Leadership matters. The controversies surrounding the executive branch brought chaos and embarrassment, while the steady leadership of the Republican-led General Assembly delivered meaningful results. This session was marked by the scandals embroiling our governor, lieutenant governor,...
(Editor’s Note: In recent years Virginia teachers, parents and students have recited a mantra of “too many tests,” demanding their reduction or outright elimination. As a result, the Virginia General Assembly and Virginia State Board of Education have begun eliminating many standardized examinations. But that elimination can have severe consequences,...
Once again, both parties at the Virginia General Assembly has pushed forward doomed legislation on a proposed carbon cap and tax regime the state will soon impose on Virginia’s fossil fuel electric power plants, with the stalemate leaving Governor Ralph Northam free to move forward. It is like one of...
Amazon’s decision to scrap a $2.5 billion investment in New York City has emboldened far-left progressives in Northern Virginia to oppose the e-commerce giant’s plans for plans to build an East Coast headquarters in Arlington. Critics of HQ2 are targeting $23 million that Arlington County will contribute to the pot...
Priced managed lanes provide drivers with an option to bypass congestion for a small fee. The key to ensuring uncongested travel is raising or lowering the variable toll to ensure the managed lane operates at a level of service D or better, allowing travel at 45 mph or higher. Toll...
(Editor’s Note: With hundreds of rivers and tributaries (not to mention the Chesapeake Bay), rules defining “what is a wetland” are critically important for the state’s Agriculture industry. Here, Gary Baise explores what is (and what isn’t) a wetland under new rules proposed by the Trump Administration – and what...
For several decades, some policy analysts on the center/right have advocated a more-robust 21st century version of federalism, under which there would be something of a return to the founding fathers’ vision in which the federal government focused on a relatively limited number of functions (defense and foreign policy, macroeconomic...
The tax relief proposals advancing in both the Virginia House of Delegates and Virginia Senate return at most half of the estimated additional state revenue created by the federal Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA) over six years. As Virginia leaders have debated what to do about the situation, all...
Should Virginia teachers have equal access to any legitimate employee association offering professional support, insurance and other benefits, so they can find the best deal for their money? Legislation introduced by Senator William DeSteph would give non-profit Virginia teacher associations an equal opportunity to make their pitch to teachers in...
As Donald Rumsfeld famously said of the Iraq War, there are known unknowns and unknown unknowns — things we know we don’t know, and things we don’t have a clue we don’t know. The same thing could be said of Governor Ralph Northam’s now-infamous medical school yearbook photo of a...
