The bill to allow a casino in Fairfax County has reemerged after nine days of negotiations with some significant changes from the version that passed the Virginia House of Delegates earlier this month.
The State Senate voted 22-16 today (Friday) to accept a substitute for Senate Bill 756 that would allow a temporary casino establishment in Fairfax before a referendum to permit a permanent development goes to voters.
Virginia students would be allowed to take the state’s annual learning assessments in a language other than English under a bill that advanced out of a House Education subcommittee on Tuesday.
Del. Laura Jane Cohen, D-Fairfax, introduced the legislation, after the Virginia Board of Education recently made changes to include more testing results from English learners, who have typically been excluded because of the language barrier, into a school’s accountability calculations.
Under current Virginia law, adults placed into a guardianship or conservatorship are automatically deemed ineligible to vote. One Northern Virginia legislator, backed by a key advocacy group and a number of affected individuals, is working to change that.
State Sen. Barbara Favola (D-40) has introduced legislation that would eliminate the automatic stripping of voting rights of those who come under a guardianship.
Two Virginia lawmakers are proposing sweeping measures to improve the state’s provision of special education services as criticisms from parents and the federal government over Virginia’s compliance with the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act continue.
Sponsored by Del. Carrie Coyner, R-Chesterfield, and Sen. Barbara Favola, D-Arlington, the proposals would create a statewide system to oversee the development and use of individualized education programs (IEPs) for students with special needs, require more training for educators about how to provide inclusive special education instruction, set up eight regional “special education parent support centers” and provide additional specialists to divisions.
The project to extend the I-495 Express Lanes north toward the American Legion Bridge has been under construction for half a year now, but some McLean residents remain as determined as ever to fight the Beltway’s encroachment into their neighborhoods.
Residents along Live Oak Drive in particular have consistently argued that they will face the most disruptions from the I-495 Northern Extension (495 NEXT) without getting the congestion relief benefits touted by the Virginia Department of Transportation.
