Louise Lucas | FFXnow

Published March 17, 2026 at 1:45PM | Updated March 17, 2026 at 2:55PM

CoreSite's Reston data center campus (staff photo by James Jarvis)

A dispute over ending a sales tax exemption on data centers stood in the way of the Virginia General Assembly passing a state budget passing before its regular session ended.

Over the past 18 years, Virginia became the world’s largest data hub, but community opposition to data centers has swelled. Most recently, in Fairfax County, environmental groups are questioning plans to sell part of a county-owned parcel at 3721 Stonecroft Blvd in Chantilly to data center developer Starwood Capital Group.

Countywide

Proposed redistricting map splits Fairfax County into five Congressional districts

By Jared Serre

Published February 6, 2026 at 11:00AM

Del. Don Scott, speaker of the House of Delegates, at the inauguration of Gov. Abigail Spanberger at the Virginia State Capitol in Richmond, Jan. 17, 2026 (staff photo by James Cullum)

Virginia Democrats released their long-awaited redistricting proposal yesterday (Thursday) in a bid to expand the party’s presence in Congress while countering similar gerrymandering attempts by Republicans.

Party leaders rolled out a map that’s projected to give Democrats an advantage in 10 of Virginia’s 11 Congressional districts, and as expected, much of that comes at the expense of Northern Virginia — the bluest part of the state.