http://hamptonroads.com/node/492939 Virginia News en-us Copyright 2012 PilotOnline.com / HamptonRoads.com. Fri, 10 Feb 2012 16:40:23 -0500 Virginia Gov. Bob McDonnell Saturday will present the Republican counterpoint to President Barack Obama's weekly address. It's a repeat role for the governor, who last March articulated his party's concerns about the federal health care overhaul package passed by Democrats. http://hamptonroads.com/2012/02/mcdonnell-tapped-give-weekly-republican-address Fri, 10 Feb 2012 13:32:57 -0500 Sen. Frank Wagner knows his overhauled transportation funding bill barely addresses Virginia’s shortage of road funds and is unlikely to find favor in the House of Delegates. http://hamptonroads.com/2012/02/va-senate-committee-approves-road-bill-indexed-gas-tax Thu, 09 Feb 2012 20:16:14 -0500 Many proposed tax credit bills this year are being routed by General Assembly committees to a common destination: a tax reform commission. References to the commission have been common in the legislature this year even though its purpose, membership and mission were unclear until Sen. Walter Stosch shed some light on the mysterious panel during a public hearing Wednesday. http://hamptonroads.com/2012/02/va-legislative-special-session-anticipated-summer Wed, 08 Feb 2012 09:54:33 -0500 Even as Virginia merchants push for tax parity with internet retailers such as Amazon.com, the local sponsor of a bill to provide it said the governor's office is in talks on a tax deal with the online retailer. http://hamptonroads.com/2012/02/updated-amazon-va-talks-over-collecting-state-sales-tax Tue, 07 Feb 2012 15:22:48 -0500 Perhaps lost in the focus on the Republican-run Virginia Senate's passage of a bill requiring women to get an ultrasound before an abortion is the amount of fight oppositional Democrats offered. An excerpt from Thursday's Pilot story (see below) on the legislation's approval suggest Democrats were internally divided on how to proceed. http://hamptonroads.com/2012/02/politics-behind-abortion-ultrasound-bill-reveals-dem-divisions Thu, 02 Feb 2012 09:55:38 -0500 At the request of state election officials, Virginia Attorney General Ken Cuccinelli's office has initiated a probe into alleged irregularities on petitions submitted on behalf Newt Gingrich in his failed bid to qualify for the state's March 6 presidential primary. A spokesman for Cuccinelli confirmed the investigation Tuesday, but didn't elaborate. http://hamptonroads.com/2012/01/va-investigating-gingrich-claims-petition-fraud Tue, 31 Jan 2012 19:43:59 -0500 Montana Gov. Brian Schweitzer is the featured guest at Virginia Democrats' annual Jefferson-Jackson dinner, a $200 per plate party event scheduled next month in Richmond. Other luminaries on the party fundraiser marquee are U.S. Sen. Jim Webb and the man seeking to replace him, former Gov. Tim Kaine; U.S. Sen. Mark Warner; and U.S. Reps. Jim Moran, Bobby Scott, and Gerry Connolly. http://hamptonroads.com/2012/01/big-sky-governor-headline-va-dems-gala Fri, 27 Jan 2012 17:02:52 -0500 It turns out Fred Quayle’s separation from state government service will be short-lived. Gov. Bob McDonnell has named the former state senator from Suffolk to the Virginia Parole Board, an appointment with a four-year term and a $52,000 annual salary. http://hamptonroads.com/2012/01/former-sen-quayle-picked-va-parole-board Fri, 27 Jan 2012 16:20:46 -0500 Another piece of President Barack Obama's Virginia re-election infrastructure will go live Saturday when his campaign opens its state headquarters in downtown Richmond. http://hamptonroads.com/2012/01/obama-team-open-va-campaign-hub Fri, 27 Jan 2012 15:52:44 -0500 Third grade students' standardized test load would effectively be cut in half if a bill approved by the Senate Tuesday becomes law. Legislation submitted by Newport News Sen. John Miller would eliminate required history and science testing in the third grade to place greater emphasis on math and reading standardized tests. http://hamptonroads.com/2012/01/senate-approves-bill-reduce-third-grade-testing-subjects Tue, 24 Jan 2012 20:04:30 -0500