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Here’s a recap of the top stories on the morning of Wednesday, May 12, 2021:
Gov. Ralph Northam declared a state of emergency yesterday in response to the shutdown of the Colonial Pipeline by a ransomware attack. The order will help Virginia deal with any potential gasoline shortages. The Environmental Protection Agency issued a fuel transportation waiver earlier to help areas affected by the shutdown. The governor’s order allows state agencies to issue their own waivers to access needed fuel. As of Tuesday morning, some gas stations in Virginia had reported they were out of fuel. In a statement, Colonial Pipeline said they hope to have service restored by the end of the week.
The latest coronavirus relief package expanded one of the nation's largest tax breaks: the Child Tax Credit. More than 1.6 million Virginia children will benefit from the expansion, though it may only last for one year.
Virginia Commonwealth University’s faculty senate voted this week in support of several demands being made by adjunct professors. The group of more than 100 professors and staff meets regularly to discuss and make policy recommendations for the university. In their latest report, the faculty senate called on VCU to offer health insurance options to adjuncts and increase their per-credit pay. The group is also asking the university to create more full-time positions, rather than relying on adjunct faculty to teach. VPM reached out to VCU for a response to the faculty senate report and has not heard back yet.
Hackers say negotiations with D.C. officials over the fate of stolen Metropolitan Police files have broken down. As Martin Austermuhle, from our partner station WAMU, reports the hackers are threatening to make the files public unless they get paid.
Richmond will start paying its public defender salaries moving forward. City Council has set aside just over $570,000 in the next budget, roughly half of what was requested.
- Former President Donald Trump endorsed Republican Glenn Youngkin yesterday to become Virginia’s next governor. His endorsement came less than a day after Youngkin won a GOP nominating convention. In a statement posted to his website, Trump said Youngkin was pro-business, pro-second amendment and pro-America. Susan Swecker, who chairs the state Democratic Party, called Youngkin a pro-Trump extremist. Trump lost Virginia by 10 points in the 2020 election. Youngkin will face off with the winner of June’s Democratic primary.
