Category: Regulations, Gov’t Oversight
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About that Mask Mandate
by Kerry Dougherty Like everything else he’s done during the coronavirus crisis, Gov. Ralph Northam’s announcement that he was ordering masks for all Virginians over the age of 10 when they’re in brick and mortar establishments was onerous to businesses and fraught with contradictions. For instance, he warned about the mask mandate on Friday, May…
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You Don’t Have to Like the Decree, But Wear Face Masks Anyway
by James A. Bacon I’m still digesting Governor Ralph Northam’s face-mask mandate, but my initial reaction is that it could be worse. I dislike the coercive aspect of his executive order. But requiring Virginians to wear face masks in public buildings and places of commerce is less intrusive than compelling businesses and workplaces to shut…
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Virginia Board of Health & the Infrastructure of Influence
by James C. Sherlock The Virginia Board of Health (the Board) is by law a policy board (§ 2.2-2100) appointed by the Governor with the majority of seats specifically reserved for representatives of interests regulated by the Department of Health. Virginia law gives the Board broad policy, regulation and enforcement responsibilities and duties to communicate…
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Two Faces of the Face-Mask Mandate
by Sidney Bostian Governor Ralph Northam will announce tomorrow the details of a statewide mandate to wear masks in public spaces and businesses. “We are working through the policy. Obviously it’s an equity issue,” Northam said at his Friday news conference, adding that all Virginia residents would need access to face coverings and that he…
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Why Is Our Governor Ignoring His Own Orders?
By Steve Haner If the overall case fatality rate for COVID-19 is 4 tenths of one percent, as the Centers for Disease Control just estimated, then perhaps 300,000 Virginians have or have had the disease. That’s working the math backwards from the 1,200 Virginia deaths reported so far. The chart below snipped from the CDC’s…
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COVID-19 a Danger to Individuals but Not an Existential Threat to Society
We’ve published variations of this graph in the past, but the perspective never grows old. This data, provided by John Butcher of Cranky’s Blog fame, shows how the COVID-19 virus stacks up against other causes of death in Virginia (using 2017 data, the most recent available). The number is almost as high as it was…
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“The Dog Ate My Homework” Does Not Work for VEC
By Dick Hall-Sizemore The Virginia Employment Commission has been inundated with unemployment insurance claims. Virginians seeking to file claims have been frustrated at not being able to get through to the agency with their questions and by delays in receiving payments. All of this was the subject of a meeting and presentation to a Senate…
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New Virginia Battleground in War on Gas
By Steve Haner First published this morning in the Fredericksburg Free Lance-Star. To the modern environmental movement, natural gas is the Devil’s own breath. It must be opposed in every form on every front. This explains the existential battle being fought over what would otherwise be considered fairly minor capital enhancements to an existing gas…
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Pictures Don’t Lie. Or Do They?
by Kerry Dougherty Virginia Beach is dancing a weird waltz with the governor. Privately, city officials and local businessmen express fury over Ralph Northam’s capricious decision to ban sunbathing on the beaches. Publicly they’re groveling, as they beg him to reopen the sand before the tourist industry is a smoking ruin. No one will want…
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Taken Like Hicks At A Carnival
By Steve Haner Anybody who closely read the so-called Virginia Clean Economy Act and had watched Dominion Energy Virginia’s previous manipulations of Virginia’s General Assembly could see what was coming. Despite its “billing,” that bill was never going to end the use of fossil fuels in Virginia. As early as February 13, I reported that…
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Who Has Ralph Northam’s Ear?
by Kerry Dougherty Why appoint a task force if you’re going to ignore its recommendations? That’s what many Virginia business leaders wondered last week when they saw Gov. Ralph Northam’s arbitrary rules for reopening the commonwealth. On April 24, the governor merrily announced the formation of a “diverse” 24-member “Covid-19 Business Task Force” to advise…
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WTJU Podcast: COVID-19 and the Economy
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in Agriculture & forestry, Bacon and Pigs, Blogs and Blog Administration, Business and Economy, Charity, Philanthropy, Nonprofits, Civil Rights, Individual Liberties, Consumer Protection, Corruption and Scandals, Culture wars, Disasters and Disaster Preparedness, Economic development, Education (higher ed), Education (K-12), Efficiency in Government, Elections, Electoral process, Energy, Entrepreneurs and Innovation, Environment, Federal issues, General Assembly, Governance, Government Finance, Government Transparency, Gun rights, Health Care, Housing, Immigration, Infrastructure, Insurance, Labor and Workforce, Media, Money in politics, Planning, Politics, Poverty & income gap, Property rights, Public safety & health, Race and Race Relations, Regulations, Gov’t Oversight, Science & Technology, Social Services and Entitlements, Taxes, Telecommunications, TransportationBy Peter Galuszka Here’s is the twice-monthly podcast produced by WTJU, the official radio station of the University of Virginia. With me on this podcast are Nathan Moore, the station general manager, and Sarah Vogelsong, who covers, labor, energy and environmental issues across the state for the Virginia Mercury, a fairly new and highly regarded…
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Virginia, Watch the Florida COVID-19 Rollback Closely
by James A. Bacon Given the average age of Florida’s population — second highest in the nation — and the proclivity of the COVID-19 virus for killing the elderly, one might expect Florida to have one of the higher death rates among the 50 states. But, as the Wall Street Journal reports today, Florida’s death…
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Screwing Workers On Safety and Liability
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in Bacon and Pigs, Business and Economy, Civil Rights, Individual Liberties, Consumer Protection, Corruption and Scandals, Economic development, Environment, Federal issues, General Assembly, Government Finance, Health Care, Money in politics, Public safety & health, Regulations, Gov’t Oversight, Science & Technology, Social Services and Entitlements, TransportationBy Peter Galuszka At 4:30 a.m. on April 27, about 100 workers of the Greater Richmond Transit Company — half of the total – failed to show up for work. Worried about the health of its membership, Local 1220 of the International Amalgamated Transit Union demanded additional safety measures such as full personal protection equipment,…
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Why Northam Is Such An Important Governor
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in Abortion, Feminism, Women’s Rights, Agriculture & forestry, Business and Economy, Charity, Philanthropy, Nonprofits, Civil Rights, Individual Liberties, Consumer Protection, Defense, National Security, Energy, Environment, Federal issues, General Assembly, Governance, Government Finance, Government Transparency, Government workers and pensions, Gun rights, Health Care, Immigration, Infrastructure, Insurance, Labor and Workforce, Land use & Development, LGBQT, Media, Money in politics, Regulations, Gov’t Oversight, Science & Technology, Social Services and Entitlements, Taxes, TelecommunicationsBy Peter Galuszka This is a bit like throwing chum at a school of sharks, but here is my latest in Style Weekly. I wrote an assessment of Gov. Ralph Northam that is overall, quite positive. My take goes against much of the sentiment of other contributors on this blog. They are entitled to their…