RICHMOND – In a bipartisan show of support, the Senate passed on Wednesday HB2313, a transportation funding bill that will raise the gas tax in Virginia.
The plan differs in many ways from the bill that was passed by the House of Delegate’s last week. The Senate’s plan would increase the gas tax in Virginia, something Governor Bob McDonnell had proposed to get rid of altogether. The Senate’s version also would not use near as much general funding as McDonnell originally proposed.
RICHMOND – The Senate Finance Committee on Tuesday approved an amended version of Gov. Bob McDonnell’s transportation funding bill, opting to raise the gasoline tax instead of replacing the gas tax with a higher sales tax.
The committee voted 9-6 for a substitute to House Bill 2313, which the governor hopes will fund billions of dollars in road and transit projects.
“Today’s vote continues the legislative process,” McDonnell said afterward. “Now, we must work together to finish it with approval of a common-sense, fiscally responsible transportation plan that both works for Virginia’s citizens and can pass the General Assembly.”
The Senate Finance Committee’s version of the transportation bill differs in many ways from McDonnell’s proposal, which passed the House on a 53-46 vote last week.
RICHMOND – Gov. Bob McDonnell expressed his disgust after his transportation funding package was derailed by Senate Democrats late Tuesday.
Although the House version of the governor’s transportation plan had passed earlier in the day, the Senate Democrats had a different idea. All 20 Democratic senators vowed to vote against the bill, blocking it for this legislative session.
“Rather than engaging in a debate on how to move forward with tackling our transportation problems, it is apparent that the Senate Democrats are once again content to risk our continued economic prosperity and our citizens’ quality of life,” McDonnell said afterward.
RICHMOND – Gov. Bob McDonnell has reason to celebrate after the House Finance Committee on Wednesday approved a key part of the transportation plan that he hopes will define his term.
“Our effort to enact a long-term solution to Virginia’s transportation funding challenges took a major step forward,” McDonnell said. “I am pleased that legislators from both parties voted in support of our plan.”
The committee voted 14-8 in favor of House Bill 2313, which would finance McDonnell’s plan, which he calls “Virginia’s Road to the Future.”
As social media becomes more and more integrated into our daily life, our friends have the privilege of knowing what we’re doing at any given moment, what music we’re listening to, what we’re eating, where we’re eating it at, and exactly what our opinion is on that new Parenthood episode. The issue of over-sharing on social media sites such as Twitter and Facebook has been discussed over and over in the past few years, but what about how we are supposed to respond to all that over-sharing?
RICHMOND – Members of Gov. Bob McDonnell’s School and Campus Safety Task Force vowed Monday that their recommendations on keeping Virginia’s school safe would be based on fact and not emotion.
The taskforce – charged with evaluating the safety of schools and campuses throughout the state – was assembled by McDonnell in the aftermath of the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting last month in Newtown, Conn.
RICHMOND – Virginia Democrats slammed state Attorney General Ken Cuccinelli on Tuesday for refusing to support reauthorization of the federal Violence Against Women Act.
In a telephone press conference, Delegate Jennifer McClellan of Richmond and Arlington Commonwealth’s Attorney Theo Stamos criticized Cuccinelli for being one of three state attorneys general who did not sign a letter urging Congress to reauthorize the act.
“Virginians deserve to know what prevented Ken Cuccinelli from sticking up for the Violence Against Women Act, not a half-hearted excuse for sitting on his hands while Republicans killed the reauthorization,” McClellan said.
When Chelsea Pinacate, a Richmond mother of one, was preparing for the birth of her baby, she and her husband set some time apart to take a class on breastfeeding.
“We learned a lot about the benefits of breastfeeding in that class and decided it was something we definitely wanted to do,” she said.
The city of Richmond offers many resources and classes like this for new mothers who are breastfeeding or considering breastfeeding.
A Woman’s Place Lactation Center and Boutique, located at Bon Secour Hospital, hosts classes similar to the one the Pinacates took. The center is completely dedicated to supporting new mothers who breastfeed. They offer breastfeeding classes and support groups, address latch difficulties, and even host a breastfeeding answer line.
According to the center’s website, “Breastfeeding isn’t just a lifestyle choice, it’s a health practice that’s been shown to protect babies against ear infection, lower the mother’s risk of breast cancer, and help mom’s lose pregnancy weight.”
These healthy benefits play a large role in explaining why many mothers choose to breastfeed.
Whitney Torres 