Keya Vakil

The lack of paid family and medical leave laws in Virginia were the focus of a roundtable discussion in Richmond Friday, held with the aim of passing legislation to give additional rights to employees in the Commonwealth. Hosted by the Campaign for a Family Friendly Economy Virginia, the conversation featured several lawmakers, including state Sen.…

As the price of insulin has skyrocketed in the past decade, diabetics have been forced to ration their insulin, turn to cheaper alternatives, or forego the medication altogether, all of which have had fatal consequences.  In Virginia, Democrats are increasingly focused on solving that problem. Del. Lee Carter (D-Manassas) announced he plans to introduce a…

It’s time for our latest edition of the Dogwood Dog of the Week. This week, we’re shining a spotlight on our friend Dinero over at the Richmond SPCA. Here’s what the Richmond SPCA had to say about him: HAPPY is the best word to describe Dinero. He’s an all-caps, bolded, happy dog. The Richmond SPCA brought…

Does money in politics matter? In Virginia, oil and gas companies have long been some of the biggest political donors in the state. Among the primary beneficiaries of those donations is House Speaker Kirk Cox, who has received nearly $430,000 from energy companies during his time in the House of Delegates, including $116,711 from Dominion Energy, according…

Between 2006 and 2012, pharmaceutical companies flooded the Commonwealth with more than 1.6 billion prescription pain pills, according to a recent analysis by the Washington Post. Nearly 1.5 million of those pills went to Bennett Creek Pharmacy in Suffolk, a business owned by Del. Chris Jones (R-Suffolk), according to both the pharmacy’s website and Jones’…

Today, we’re excited to launch our new weekly round-up highlighting the latest Virginia Jobs news. From Roanoke to Reston, we’ll spotlight the week in hires, layoffs, job postings and all other major employment news in the Commonwealth. Norfolk Southern Corp. furloughed about 130 locomotive shop employees in Roanoke on Tuesday, saying there had been a…

Summer may be over, but that doesn’t mean the fun has to stop. Check out what’s on tap in Virginia this week: Northern Virginia / D.C. Prince William Education Association First Friday – Sept 6 from 3 PM to 6 PM – 2 Silos Brewing, 9925 Discovery Blvd, Manassas, VA 20109 9th Annual Bands, Brews,…

The National Rifle Association donated $200,000 to Virginia House Majority Leader Todd Gilbert’s political action committee on Tuesday, the largest single donation the organization has made in Virginia in at least the last 20 years, according to the nonpartisan Virginia Public Access Project (VPAP). Gilbert (R-Shenandoah) has received an A+ career rating from the NRA and…

The Virginia Beach City Council voted unanimously on Tuesday to delay moving the city’s primary in-person absentee voting location for this November’s elections to a building owned by incumbent state Sen. Bill DeSteph (R-Virginia Beach), who will also appear on the ballot. The City Manager’s Office signed a ten year, nearly $3 million lease for…

The Trump administration is taking more than $77 million away from four military projects in Virginia and re-allocating that money to advance the President’s desired border wall, Democratic Virginia Sens. Tim Kaine and Mark Warner said in a joint statement on Wednesday. The following projects stand to lose money due to the diversion of funds:…