David Sherfinski

Va. House advances ban on mandatory labor agreements

The Virginia House of Delegates on Monday gave preliminary approval to a bill that would prohibit mandatory labor agreements on state-funded construction projects that opponents argue favor union workers and can lead to ballooning costs.

January 30, 2012

Virginia GOP flexing muscle to advance legislation

About a quarter of the way through the state's General Assembly session, Republicans thus far have flexed their strengthened muscles to advance legislation on redistricting, abortion and gun rights — with many Democrats left simply to stand and protest.

January 29, 2012

Community care boosted in agreement on disabled in Virginia

Virginia has reached a wide-ranging settlement with the U.S. Department of Justice over its system for treating the intellectually and developmentally disabled, forestalling a federal lawsuit on charges the state needlessly institutionalized many people instead of placing them in community-based care.

January 26, 2012

Va. House advances repeal of HPV mandate

The Virginia House of Delegates on Thursday gave preliminary approval to a bill repealing a mandate that young girls receive a vaccination against the human papillomavirus (HPV), which is known to cause cervical cancer, before they enter the sixth grade.

January 26, 2012

Bill requiring ultrasound before abortion advances in Va. Senate

The Senate Education and Health committee on Thursday advanced a bill that would require women to first undergo ultrasound imaging before having an abortion, a measure that had routinely died in the previously Democrat-led committee.

January 26, 2012

Va. House gives preliminary approval to repeal of HPV vaccine mandate

The Virginia House of Delegates on Thursday gave preliminary approval to repealing a mandate that young girls receive a vaccination against the human papillomavirus (HPV), known to cause cervical cancer, before they enter the sixth grade.

January 26, 2012

Va. Senate passes bill to allow Sunday hunting

The Virgina Senate passed a measure Thursday to allow state-wide hunting on private property on Sundays.

January 26, 2012

Va. Senate panel kills repeal of ‘Kings Dominion’ law

A bill to repeal a mandate that Virginia schools open after Labor Day failed to make it out of Senate committee Thursday morning.

January 26, 2012

Virginia, DOJ reach settlement on care for disabled

Virginia has reached a wide-ranging settlement with the Justice Department over its system for treating the intellectually and developmentally disabled, agreeing to close four training centers, downsize another and provide thousands of additional waiver slots to help move people from institutional-based settings to community care.

January 26, 2012

Bills take aim at tax code to improve accountability

Billions of dollars in tax credits, incentives and exemptions which in many cases were poorly targeted or ineffective have prompted a bipartisan push in the Virginia General Assembly for greater disclosure and better accountability in the state tax code.

January 25, 2012

Va. Senate panel backs gun buy limit repeal

A key Senate committee on Wednesday voted to repeal Virginia's law banning the purchase of more than one handgun a month, a longtime priority of gun-rights activists and a measure that now has the backing of Gov. Bob McDonnell.

January 25, 2012

Cuccinelli asks Va. Supreme Court to intervene in redistricting suit

Virginia Attorney General Kenneth T. Cuccinelli II is asking the Virginia Supreme Court to intervene in a lawsuit filed over congressional redistricting, after a circuit court judge Tuesday refused to dismiss the case.

January 25, 2012

Va. judge denies motion to dismiss congressional redistricting lawsuit

A circuit court judge on Tuesday refused to dismiss a lawsuit filed over congressional redistricting in Virginia and shot down a key argument the state and the GOP have used to defend a map recently passed by the legislature.

January 24, 2012

Partisan rift stalls judicial elections

The Virginia General Assembly postponed a squabble over judicial appointments after a partisan standoff Tuesday in the state Senate threatened to shut down the upper chamber for up to three days.

January 24, 2012

Va. House panel backs drug testing, repealing HPV mandate

A Republican-controlled House committee Tuesday passed bills that would subject recipients of welfare benefits in Virginia to drug testing and repeal a mandate that girls receive vaccination against the human papillomavirus (HPV).

January 24, 2012

Va. teachers’ groups push back against GOP education proposals

House Republicans on Monday morning pre-emptively protested the Virginia Education Association and the Virginia PTA, touting their own education proposals that have been roundly denounced by the teachers' groups, which later gathered for their traditional "lobby day" at the Capitol.

January 23, 2012

Father of suicide victim seeks change in Va. school policy

Steve Stuban's son, Nick, committed suicide last January in the wake of school disciplinary proceedings that Mr. Stuban said he found out about only after it was too late. Now Mr. Stuban, with the help of several Northern Virginia legislators, is pushing for an overhaul of the state's parental-notification policy to ensure that the same doesn't happen to other parents.

January 23, 2012