Later this month, the General Assembly will meet to finally pass a new state budget. The stalemate has centered on the data center sales tax exemption, which amounts to nearly a $2 billion per year windfall for the tech industry. I commend the state leaders, particularly Sen. Louise Lucas, who recognize that the tax exemption has outlived its usefulness. It’s obvious this tax break prioritizes big business over much-needed programs for Virginia citizens. Legislators wanting t

CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. (WVIR) - A project that would bring more than 100 miles of high-voltage transmission line corridor to Central Virginia is taking on a new shape, as resistance grows across the impacted counties. Valley Link, a joint venture between Dominion Energy and other energy companies, has unveiled revised routes for the proposed $1 billion Joshua-Falls to Yeat transmission line, which would stretch from Campbell County to Culpeper County. While Valley Link says the

Virginia’s budget-making process, which should have been done back in March, is at a standstill, largely because of one person. Senate Finance chair Louise Lucas, D-Portsmouth, has frequently and forcefully insisted that Virginia’s tax incentives for data centers give up too much revenue. The incentives are scheduled to expire in 2035. Lucas wants them gone next year. Or maybe the budget is at a standstill because of two people. House Appropriations chair Luke Torian, D-Princ

Pollution from generators at data centers could cause respiratory symptoms and deaths in the region, an analysis for The Washington Post found. STERLING, Va. — Not long after the enormous data center sprouted in Jessica Medeiros’s residential neighborhood, she began seeing black smoke. “There are times when the generators are running and … soot falls to the ground,” Medeiros said. “I have no idea what the long-term impacts on our health may be.” On days when the bursts of smo

Martha Hughes asked the room to stand. Medical workers. Teachers. Farmers. Mechanics. Parents. Students. One by one, people rose Tuesday in the Strasburg Town Hall council chambers as Hughes, who identified herself as a registered nurse and eighth-generation Shenandoah County resident, asked them to look around. Then she made her request plain. It was repeated many times Tuesday night. "I formally request a moratorium on all data center development," Hughes said. "I'd also li