Category: The Center Square

(The Center Square) – Pressure is building on Gov. Abigail Spanberger to support a statewide pause on new data center approvals as Virginia continues debating the industry’s effects on the electric grid, water resources and utility costs. Virginia Sen. Glen Sturtevant, R-Chesterfield, released a 30-second campaign ad Tuesday renewing his call for a moratorium. “I’ve…

(The Center Square) – Twenty-five years after the terrorist attacks on the Pentagon, the Twin Towers and in rural Pennsylvania, Arlington is preparing to bring together more than 200 first responders as the county looks back at a response that quickly grew across Northern Virginia and continues to shape emergency preparedness today. Many of the…

(The Center Square) – A Virginia advocacy group is asking regulators to require Dominion Energy and NextEra Energy to provide additional information as the State Corporation Commission reviews their proposed merger. Clean Virginia filed a motion to compel Tuesday, arguing the companies have not fully answered questions involving enforcement of merger conditions, competition, costs to…

(The Center Square) – Virginia’s economy is projected to grow in 2026 even as employment declines for a second straight year, according to a new forecast from the University of Virginia. The August forecast from the Weldon Cooper Center for Public Service projects Virginia’s real gross domestic product will grow 0.5% this year while employment…

(The Center Square) – Fourteen Democratic lawmakers are asking first-year Democratic Gov. Abigail Spanberger to call a special session to give regulators more time to review the proposed merger between Dominion Energy and NextEra Energy. In a letter dated Monday, the lawmakers said the State Corporation Commission’s current review timeline does not give regulators enough…

(The Center Square) – Dominion Energy’s proposed 3,000-megawatt power plant moved a step closer to local approval Monday after Cumberland County planning commissioners backed the project. The Planning Commission voted 5-1 to recommend approval of a conditional use permit for the Cumberland Energy Center and voted 6-0 to find the project substantially in accord with…

(The Center Square) – Education leaders and lawmakers are weighing in after a bipartisan coalition of 47 state attorneys general announced a $17 billion settlement with Meta Platforms Inc., over allegations that the company harmed children and teens through its social media platforms. The lawsuit was filed in 2023. The state attorneys general argued that…

(The Center Square) – Virginia is launching a new grant program aimed at helping local governments and school divisions cover grid connection costs that can delay or derail public solar projects. Lawmakers set aside $2 million for the Solar Interconnection Grant Program, which opened for applications Monday through the Virginia Department of Energy. The program…