News

The Smithsonian’s National Air and Space Museum has no intention right now of shipping off a centerpiece of its Chantilly facility to Texas.

The federal budget bill that squeaked through the Republican-led U.S. Senate on Tuesday (July 1) includes a provision directing NASA to transfer the Discovery space shuttle from its longtime home at the Udvar-Hazy Center to the Johnson Space Center in Houston, allocating $85 million toward transportation and construction costs.


Countywide

A Fairfax resident who served in the U.S. Army and was recently let go by the Federal Aviation Administration job as part of the current White House’s push to drastically downsize the federal government will attend President Donald Trump’s joint address to Congress.

Virginia Sen. Tim Kaine announced yesterday that he has invited Jason King as his guest for Trump’s first speech to Congress since the president returned to office for a second term on Jan. 20.


News

The Trump administration’s freeze on federal grants and loans has left early childhood education programs like Higher Horizons in Bailey’s Crossroads facing financial uncertainty, even after a court ruled the funding must resume.

On Friday (Feb. 7), Sen. Tim Kaine (D-Va.) met with staff and educators at the nonprofit Head Start provider to discuss the lingering effects of the freeze, which was triggered by a White House directive pausing federal aid while the administration reviewed how the funds align with its policy goals.


Countywide

A new federal grant will enable Fairfax County Public Schools to upgrade more than three dozen school buses to more environmentally friendly models.

Virginia’s largest public school system will receive $12.9 million from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s Clean Heavy-Duty Vehicles Grant Program — enough to replace 43 buses with electric or zero-emission vehicles, Senators Mark Warner and Tim Kaine announced last week.


Countywide

Construction is moving along on United Airlines’ new concourse at Dulles International Airport, a 14-gate expansion that officials say will usher in a “new era of growth” for the D.C. region’s largest airline.

Expected to open in late 2026, the 435,000-square-foot Concourse E will directly connect to the airport’s underground Aerotrain station, add capacity for international flights and offer new amenities, including retail, concessions and a 40,000-square-foot United Club for the airline’s members.


News

Almost seven years after his death, federal officials have determined that the two U.S. Park Police officers who pursued and shot McLean resident Bijan Ghaisar complied with department policies.

The report released yesterday (Tuesday) concludes officers Alejandro Amaya and Lucas Vinyard were reasonable in their belief that Ghaisar “presented a clear and immediate threat to public safety” when he fled after being rear-ended by a rideshare driver on the George Washington Memorial Parkway in Alexandria on Nov. 17, 2017.


Countywide

Fairfax County saw high early voting turnout for this year’s presidential election, though the numbers didn’t reached the levels seen during the last presidential cycle.

Since early voting began on Sept. 20, over 322,000 residents, or 43% of the county’s 748,492 registered voters, have cast a vote, as of Friday (Nov. 2), the last day of in-person early voting, the Fairfax County Office of Elections posted on Twitter.


Countywide

After weeks of speculation and reported angst within the Democratic Party, President Joe Biden announced yesterday (Sunday) that he will no longer seek a second term, instead endorsing Vice President Kamala Harris as his party’s nominee.

Reps. Gerry Connolly and Don Beyer, who represent parts of Fairfax County in the House, and Virginia senators Tim Kaine and Mark Warner quickly expressed support for Biden’s “difficult decision” and joined him in backing Harris.


Countywide

Fairfax County is set to receive close to $51 million from the federal government to buy 60 new diesel-electric hybrid Connector buses.

Sens. Tim Kaine and Mark Warner announced yesterday (Wednesday) that the county has been awarded over $50.5 million for the buses from the Federal Transportation Administration’s Low or No Emission Grant program, which has funded more than 1,100 buses in 47 states.


Countywide

(Updated at 3:35 p.m.) Congress has passed another short-term budget package, averting a partial shutdown of the federal government just hours before a midnight deadline.

In addition to funding the Justice Department, Housing and Urban Development, and other key agencies, the slate of bills passed 75-22 by the Senate on Friday (March 8) includes $12.7 billion in “pork” — money designated for local projects requested by lawmakers for their constituents.


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