A new weekly review of what local legislators are doing on the Hill and in Richmond that affect our region.
The following information is compiled from press releases as well as direct communication with elected officials.
United States Senate
Sen. Mark Warner
Chairman of the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence Mark R. Warner (D-VA) issued a statement after the Office of the Director of National Intelligence released an update on foreign threats to the U.S. election in 60 days:
“I applaud the Intelligence Community for its efforts to provide continuous updates to the public on foreign threats to the 2024 election. As this latest update notes, the IC has not observed any foreign actor attempting to target election systems and remains confident that a range of mechanisms would help detect any foreign efforts to do so.
“Nonetheless, today’s update underscores the extent to which a range of foreign actors – but most notably Russia, Iran, and the People’s Republic of China – remain intent on undermining confidence in the election, stoking divisions among Americans, and even seeking to shape outcomes of election races. I look forward to continued efforts by the IC to release this vital information as we approach Election Day and in the post-election period.
“A whole-of-society effort is needed to ensure our democratic processes are free from foreign meddling.”
Sen. Tim Kaine
Warner and Kaine Announce Over $3.4 Million in Federal Funding to Support Clean Energy Projects and Lower Energy Costs in Virginia
WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senators Mark R. Warner and Tim Kaine (both D-VA) announced $3,418,290 in federal funding to support clean energy projects across Virginia. This funding was awarded through the Department of Energy’s Energy Efficiency and Conservation Block Grant (EECBG) Program, which was made possible by the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, landmark legislation that the senators helped pass.
The funding is allocated as follows:
- $2,646,050 for the Commonwealth of Virginia to launch a marketing, education, and outreach (MEO) program to help residents decrease their energy costs and navigate financial incentives for home electrification and energy efficiency upgrades. The funding will also be used to create outreach materials in multiple languages. 60% of the funding will be sub-granted to small and rural local governments for energy efficiency and clean energy projects.
- $350,900 for Loudoun County to partner with the Department of Housing and Community Development to expand its housing program with energy audits of owner-occupied residences, develop a plan to reduce the energy burden of disadvantaged populations in Loudoun County, support the goals of the county’s energy strategy, and conduct 40 energy audits of municipal buildings.
- $267,820 for Arlington County to support a program that incentivizes residents to adopt lower-emission transportation options and shift from single-occupancy vehicle trips to e-bikes.
- $76,840 for the City of Charlottesville to launch a program to conduct residential energy audits for 165 low- and moderate-income households in partnership with a local nonprofit. This will help individuals determine energy inefficiencies in their households and educate residents on how to access the Inflation Reduction Act’s Home Energy Rebates and other energy efficiency incentives; these rebates and incentives will help residents finance energy efficiency upgrades and reduce energy costs.
- $76,680 for the Town of Blacksburg to enhance the safety and functionality of community bicycle routes by adding 4,867 square feet of high-visibility green bars, 14,867 linear feet of additional white lines, and 53 additional person or bike symbols on existing bike lanes.
Kaine & Marshall Lead Bipartisan Push Urging the Department of Education to Help Ensure Schools can Properly Meet New Transparency Rules
U.S. Senators Tim Kaine (D-VA) and Roger Marshall (R-KS), both of whom serve on the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) Committee, led a bipartisan group of 18 senators in sending a letter to the U.S. Department of Education (ED) in support of delaying the institutional reporting deadline for the new Gainful Employment (GE) and Financial Value Transparency (FVT) regulations to July 2025. The senators’ request comes as ED works through significant challenges in rolling out the 2024-2025 Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA), which have temporarily created additional demands for higher education institutions. Ensuring that schools are able to properly meet the GE and FVT rules’ reporting requirements will help prospective students and their families receive accurate information about the costs and risks associated with specific programs.
The full text of the senators’ letter is available here.
Kaine Statement on 23rd Anniversary of the September 11, 2001 Attacks
U.S. Senator Tim Kaine (D-VA) released the following statement on the 23rd anniversary of the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks:
“Today, I’m praying for the families and loved ones of all those we lost in Virginia, New York, and Pennsylvania on September 11, 2001. We must never forget the heroism of the first responders, servicemembers, and other individuals who risked their lives to save others on that day and defend our freedom in the decades after the attack. Today and every day, we owe them our unwavering support.”
U.S. Congress
Rep. Abigail Spanberger
Spanberger Celebrates Expanded Broadband Internet Infrastructure in Madison County
U.S. Representative Abigail Spanberger this week joined Firefly Fiber Broadband, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Central Virginia Electric Cooperative (CVEC), and Rappahannock Electric Cooperative (REC) to celebrate expanded internet access in Madison County.
In 2021, Spanberger voted to pass the American Rescue Plan Act to deliver $700 million dollars to our Commonwealth to build broadband infrastructure and improve internet access for hundreds of thousands of Virginians. This funding made possible a $79 million grant to Firefly Fiber Broadband and Central Virginia Electric Cooperative. Since then, this funding has been used to expand internet access in rural communities, like Madison. Now, REC and Firefly are partnering to connect more than 5,000 REC customers with broadband internet — achieving a milestone of connecting unserved residents and businesses in Madison County to high-speed fiber broadband. To celebrate the first internet connections in the county, Spanberger joined representatives from Firefly and CVEC, REC, Madison County government, and the Virginia Department of Housing and Community Development at Early Mountain Vineyards for a ribbon-cutting ceremony.
In Less Than 24 Hours, 119 Lawmakers Sign Spanberger-Graves Discharge Petition to Force U.S. House Vote on Bipartisan Bill to Eliminate WEP & GPO
U.S. Representatives Abigail Spanberger (D-VA-07) and Garret Graves (R-LA-06) today announced that 119 of their colleagues — both Democrats and Republicans — signed their discharge petition for the Social Security Fairness Act on the same day that the pair filed the petition. The lawmakers are already more than halfway to securing the 218 signatures required to force a vote in the U.S. House of Representatives on their bipartisan bill to eliminate the Windfall Elimination Provision (WEP) and the Government Pension Offset (GPO).
Spanberger and Graves yesterday morning filed a discharge petition to force a vote on the U.S. House floor on their bipartisan legislation that would eliminate both the WEP and the GPO, two provisions added to the Social Security Act in 1983 that unfairly reduce or eliminate Social Security benefits for millions of Americans who have devoted much of their careers to public service — including federal employees, police officers, firefighters, and educators. The Social Security Fairness Act now has 327 cosponsors — far more support than needed for the legislation to pass on the U.S. House floor.
Local Obituaries
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