Gary Emerling

Tough cuts coming with $3 billion budget gap

Virginia lawmakers will consider cutting from such critical areas as education and health care when they convene Wednesday for the 2009 General Assembly session to deal with an estimated $3 billion budget deficit.

January 13, 2009

Kaine eyes ban on smoking in eateries

Virginia Gov. Tim Kaine said Tuesday he will try once again to ban smoking in state restaurants during this year's legislative session, an effort that has failed during previous years of his term.

January 7, 2009

DNC post for Kaine raises issue of shortfall

It's the $3 billion question. Should Virginia Gov. Tim Kaine take on the role of national party leader with his state facing a ballooning budget deficit?

January 6, 2009

Moran dares foes to limit donations

Virginia gubernatorial candidate Brian J. Moran challenged his fellow candidates for the Democratic nomination Friday to agree to accept only in-state donations during what is expected to be a budget-busting contest.

January 3, 2009

New Year’s fire claims 6th victim

An 11-year-old boy critically injured in a New Year's Day house fire died Friday of his injuries.

January 3, 2009

D.C. house fire claims 6th life

An 11-year-old boy critically injured in a New Year's Day house fire has died of his injuries.

January 2, 2009

D.C. fire kills 5; boy in grave condition

An electrical failure caused an early-morning fire to roar through a home in Northeast on Thursday, killing two children and three adults and leaving an 11-year-old in extremely grave condition, D.C. officials said.

January 2, 2009

Five killed in D.C. fire identified

Authorities have identified the five people killed in a New Year's Day house fire in Northeast Washington.

January 1, 2009

Lanier tempers D.C. homicide count

Homicides in the District hit a three-year high last year, but Metropolitan Police Chief Cathy L. Lanier says there's less to that number than meets the eye.

January 1, 2009

Kaine eyes green-friendly Virginia

With just a year left in his term, Virginia Gov. Tim Kaine counts whipping his traditionally Republican state into a win for Barack Obama as one of his biggest successes, but he hopes to leave a mark on the legislative landscape with a final push to promote the environment and conservation.

December 30, 2008

Outlet eyed near Civil War battlefield

Preservationists and prominent historians are waging a dogged campaign against a proposed 138,000-square-foot Wal-Mart supercenter next to the Civil War's Wilderness Battlefield in Orange County, Va.

December 27, 2008

Extra police help for inauguration limited

The roughly 4,000 police officers coming to the District to help with an expected Inauguration Day crowd of more than 1 million are punching out when the official events are over - leaving the Metropolitan Police Department in charge of monitoring visitors partying until the extended 4 a.m. last call.

December 19, 2008

Plan to double Va. cigarette tax assailed

Virginia Republicans and the largest tobacco company in the country Wednesday said Gov. Tim Kaine's plans to help close the state's budget shortfall by raising the cigarette tax is ill-timed during a national recession and could harm employment in the state.

December 18, 2008

Council OKs ‘good, balanced’ gun regulations

The D.C. Council on Tuesday gave final approval to regulations governing guns in the District, six months after the U.S. Supreme Court struck down the city's decades-old ban on handguns.

December 17, 2008

D.C. gun regulations finalized

The D.C. Council on Tuesday gave final approval to regulations governing guns in the District, six months after the Supreme Court struck down the city's decades-old ban on handguns.

December 17, 2008

Council rolls back last call to 4 a.m.

UPDATED: The D.C. Council on Tuesday curtailed their extension of bar and restaurant hours during the week of President-elect Barack Obama's inauguration, moving last call from 5 a.m. to 4 a.m.

December 17, 2008

D.C. Council considers revising bar call

The D.C. Council Tuesday was expected to consider legislation that would curtail their previous extension of bar and restaurant hours during the week of President-elect Barack Obama's inauguration.

December 17, 2008

System failures blamed for theft

A report commissioned by the D.C. Council says systemic failures, a lack of oversight and a dysfunctional work environment all led to the theft of nearly $50 million from city coffers by a D.C. tax office employee.

December 16, 2008

Moran ramps up Va. governor campaign

The Virginia gubernatorial race heated up Friday as Delegate Brian J. Moran resigned from his state House seat and leadership post to devote his full attention to a run for governor.

December 13, 2008

Wilson Bridge to open all 10 lanes

Decades of frustration and delays are scheduled to end this weekend with the removal of what traffic planners describe as one of the biggest bottlenecks on the East Coast.

December 12, 2008